Elgin preschool expands enrollment with increased state funding

Summit School Early Learning Center in Elgin will have room for 40 more students this fall thanks to increased funding from a state grant.

The Illinois State Board of Education's Preschool for All grant for fiscal years 2019 through 2023 will enable the center to open a third classroom, increasing its enrollment from 90 to 130 at-risk preschool children.

"Summit's Early Learning Center has been the only separate community-based PFA program serving at-risk 3- to 5-year-olds with developmental delays at no cost since we started receiving funding in 2004," said Karen Romano, center director.

Summit, a Governor's ExceleRate Gold Circle of Quality-accredited program, is among a few regional sites for 3-year-olds to receive critical services and interventions. It helps children prepare for kindergarten teaching social-emotional, cognitive, mathematics and literacy skills.

A grant from the Grand Victoria Foundation also allows the preschool to incorporate speech and language services. The state grant will allow Summit to expand its parent education program as well.

"The children who attend our preschool program come with one or more developmental delays that, if left unaddressed, could lead to serious educational problems later," said Johanna White, CEO of Summit School, Inc. "While parents navigate the developmental, physical, and/or mental health concerns of their children, they require support to address their various family situations."

In recent years, Summit has provided parent education through family nights. With the additional grant funding and private support from foundations like the Andrew and Alice Fischer Charitable Trust, the center will offer more family initiatives, at-home learning opportunities and tools to further enhance parent-teacher communications, officials said.

"Serving more students with greater collaborative initiatives ultimately means brighter outcomes for our community's disadvantaged youth," Romano said.