St. Edward’s new Pre-School includes Day Care

As one of two planned initiatives in the planning stages for next fall, the St. Edward's Parish Council recently gave approval to move forward with licensing to become a daycare provider.

“Now that we have the Parish Council's approval, which was on Jan. 15, the next step is to apply to the state for a license,” said St. Edward's Principal Jaci Garvey.

“All of our proposed policies need to be spelled out and sent along with the application.”

The plan is for St. Edward's to be a licensed daycare provider for children ages three and four beginning next fall.

If approved by the state, St. Edward's would then also hire someone to teach preschool during the school year. The preschool would offer classes for three-year-olds, four-year-olds, and a Junior Kindergarten (ages four and five) beginning next fall.

“This is something that we have been talking about for many years,” said Garvey.

“There is definitely a need for child care.”

Initiative II: Extending After-School Program The other initiative proposed by St. Edward's is to extend its After School program into the summer months for school-aged children in both public and parochial schools.

The current After School program has been utilized for the past two years for students ages 5-12 and runs from 3-6 p.m. during the school year, but has not included summer months. The current program includes snacks, time to work on homework, and large-motor movement.

“We are researching different plans to use for our summer months,” said Mrs. Garvey.

“One of those plans would be getting the children to summer activities such as those enrolled in T-ball or swimming lessons.”

This would help working parents who already use the After-School program during the school year the freedom of not having to find summer child care, while also being able to enroll their children in various activities. The summer program would be available on a week-by-week basis.

Other plans are for the summer After-School child care program to include games or even an indoor summer camp. Additional staff member will also be needed for the extended After-School program.

“We will hire additional staff members depending on the number of children enrolled,” said Garvey. “We will also hire a director for the program.”