SANTA ROSA -- A $1.38 million grant to Community Action Partnership of Sonoma County will help to establish a new hub for early-childhood and family-assistance programs in southwest Santa Rosa.
The grant from state-supported group First 5 Sonoma County will fund a planned Southwest Santa Rosa Early Childhood Campus and Family Resource Center at Santa Rosa's Cook Middle School, according to an announcement today. Operated in partnership with Santa Rosa City Schools, the location is planned to offer a number of early childhood programs along with education for parents.
In addition to programs hosted on site, the location is planned to serve as a one-stop shop for connecting parents with other nonprofits and community services, according to the announcement.
"All children and their parents deserve to have the education and tools they need to succeed, and this project will provide that," said Socorro Shiels, superintendent of Santa Rosa City Schools, in a statement.
The first programs at the site are planned to be offered in September, according to Community Action Partnership spokeswoman Lannie Medina. The group plans to build a new facility at middle school campus as well, to be opened by late 2015 or early 2016, she said.
A number of details related to the project remain under development, according to the announcement. Yet having secured funding, planners said a long-term goal of the new center will be to provide to provide educational and supportive services that range from early childhood to adulthood.
Founded in 1967, Community Action Partnership is supported by 34 public and private donors and has an annual operating budget of $10 million. The nonprofit provides services to more than 13,000 low-income individuals annually. It has 18 sites that provide health, literacy and training programs throughout Sonoma County.
First 5 Sonoma County is funded by California's 50 cent Proposition 10 cigarette sales tax and grants more than $4 million annually to county programs that support early-childhood development.
