Week of the Young Child

Last week, April 11th through 17th, was the Week of the Young Child (WOYC).  Celebrations were in full-swing at Mi Escuelita, culminating in a carnival for our students and their parents on Friday. While it was a week of fun on campus, one of the main objectives of WOYC is to spotlight the needs of young children and their families.  The mission of Mi Escuelita aims to teach English to children from all cultures and to prepare them for academic success.  Reaching this goal presents several obstacles that our community must combat.  Some of the issues facing the preschool include:
-Limited English proficiency at home.
-Living at or below the federal poverty line.
-No family history of educational attainment.

Although these barriers certainly challenge our staff and our teachers, in partnership with the community, we have begun to surmount them.  So, when you smile at pictures of our children donning their bunny slippers and bathrobe for Pajama Day (Monday), remember that our children need continued access to high-quality early childhood programs, like Mi Escuelita.  After all, we can either invest now in our children and enjoy a more vibrant nation of healthy, achieving children.  Or we can fail to make the investment and pay the price: increased delinquency, greater educational failures, lowered productivity, less economic competitiveness, and fewer adults prepared to be effective, loving parents to the next generation of children.