PROVINCE LAUNCHES STRONGSTART EARLY LEARNING CENTRES

COQUITLAM – The Province will open 16 early learning centres as the first phase of a new program to help preschool-age children develop reading skills and get ready for kindergarten, Education Minister Shirley Bond announced today.

“Nearly one out of four B.C. kindergarten students is not developmentally ready to start school, so we need to address that,” Bond said during the launch of the StrongStart centres, at Roy Stibbs elementary school. “These 16 early learning centres will be located in schools with underutilized space and are part of our plan to improve literacy skills so that B.C. children have the best possible start in school and in life.”

The Province will provide $1.4 million to fund the centres, which will offer a free drop-in program for parents or caregivers and their children. Qualified early childhood educators will lead literacy activities, including stories, music and crafts to help children grow linguistically, physically and socially, and become comfortable in a school-like environment.

“StrongStart centres will make sure that preschool-age children in B.C. will have access to first-rate early learning opportunities,” said Tom Christensen, Minister of Children and Family Development. “This program is a tremendous opportunity, especially for children who are not enrolled in preschool or childcare centres.”

In addition to two sites in the Coquitlam school district, StrongStart centres will be located in the Alberni, Burnaby, Central Okanagan, Chilliwack, Comox Valley, Kamloops/Thompson, Mission, Okanagan Similkameen, Prince George, Prince Rupert, Quesnel, Revelstoke, Surrey and Vancouver school districts.

The centres will be in schools with unused and underutilized spaces. Many schools have excess space as a result of declining enrolment. Since 2001, enrolment has decreased by more than 37,000 students. Like the School Community Connections program that provides community access to existing underutilized school space, StrongStart centres turn the challenge of declining enrolment into an opportunity.

“Investing in early learning makes sense,” said Linda Reid, Minister of State for Childcare. “Creating opportunities for parents to engage their children in enriched environments will only strengthen their capacity to build and nurture their families.”

Each StrongStart centre has been awarded $50,000 to prepare an in-school space and fund the first year of operating costs, including staff and supplies and healthy snacks. Each centre will receive another $30,000 for its second year of operation. An additional $10,000 will be provided to districts who submit a thorough evaluation of the program.

“This is an amazing opportunity for young families,” said Dr. Carol Matusicky, executive director of the B.C. Council for Families. “Connecting families with young children to the schools in their neighbourhoods and communities will create new opportunities for parents and their children. When children blossom, it creates a stronger family unit and a more literate, vibrant community.”

StrongStart centres are a part of government’s overall plan to improve literacy, and will build on the success of Ready, Set, Learn, a kindergarten readiness program. Over the last three years, the Province has provided $9 million to operate Ready, Set, Learn. Last year, the program was offered in 1,071 schools and served more than 17,000 preschoolers. StrongStart centres also complement the ActNow Literacy Education Activity and Play (LEAP BC) program that encourages literacy, physical activity and healthy eating in preschool-aged children – a $2.7-million program announced last month.

Future StrongStart centres are planned throughout British Columbia, fulfilling a 2005 election promise to use underutilized school spaces as centres to deliver early learning services. These new StrongStart centres fulfil a commitment made in the speech from the throne and are a part of the Ministry of Education’s new mandate, which was expanded in 2005 to include early learning.

The Province is committed to reaching its goal of making B.C. the best-educated, most literate jurisdiction on the continent. This $1.4 million in funding brings the Province’s total investment in literacy to more than $60 million since 2001, including $12 million for public libraries, $1.4 million for adult literacy, $5 million for Literacy Now, and $10 million for textbooks.

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Contact information for StrongStart centres can be found at:

1 backgrounder(s) attached.
Media contact:	Public Affairs Bureau Ministry of Education 250 356-5963

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