|
The University of South Carolina and Gateway Academy broke ground Feb. 3 on a $4.1 million child development center that is expected to become a national model for early childhood education.
The center, which will be at the southwest corner of Wheat and South Pickens streets, is set for completion by fall 2003. It will be owned and operated by Columbia-based Gateway Academy and Child Development Centers and will be open to children between the ages of 6 weeks and 12 years from USC Children's Center, SCETV's childcare facility, Head Start programs, and the general public.
It will be called the USC/Gateway Academy Child Development and Research Center.
Provost Jerome D. Odom said the center will fill a critical need for USC and SCETV employees and be a national model for early childhood education.
"We're delighted to have this center actually under way and to be a partner with Gateway," Odom said. "The center will deliver the best-quality care for the children and become a national model for early childhood education. It not only will provide an opportunity for researchers to study and then implement the best practices in the classroom,but also will offer USC faculty and staff the very best childcare and educational setting anywhere in the area."
The two-story, 28,000-square-foot building will feature classrooms, an activity room, cafeteria, and an administrative and staff area. The second level will include a research and observation area for university researchers and students, as well as a classroom with advanced digital audiovisual, Internet, and TV production capabilities.
Gateway Academy will provide $2.7 million toward the project, and the USC Development Foundation, which is extending a 40-year ground lease at $1 per year to the center, has joined forces with the Columbia-based Moore Foundation and other supporters to provide funding toward the second floor. The S.C. Department of Health and Human Services, which will use the center as a demonstration and training site for childcare workers and educators around the state, will provide support for the design and equipping of the center's rooms and playground according to state and national guidelines.
David Jacobs, president of Gateway Academy, the 16th-largest childcare provider in the nation, said each of the participants brings valuable resources to the project, making it an excellent example of a public and private partnership.
"We are pleased to be partnering with USC, SCETV and the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services," Jacobs said. "This is an excellent example of what can be accomplished when public agencies team up with private enterprise. Our goal is to make this a national model where children are nurtured and taught and where their parents feel confident that they are getting the best care and education available."
The USC Children's Center has operated in portable units since its former site, the Booker T. Washington Center, was demolished to make way for university residence halls. Parents say they're looking forward to the new facility.
Ken Washburn, owner of First Source Mortgage in West Columbia and the father of a 2-year-old daughter enrolled at the USC Children's Center and a 6-year-old daughter who graduated from the center, said he's excited about the new center.
"It's been a long time coming, and it sounds like it's definitely going to be for the better," Washburn said. "You can't really improve on the curriculum because the teachers are so fantastic, but the new building is really exciting, and bringing in these new partners sounds like it's going to be great."
The center also will have a learning component for USC students in education, nursing, public health, psychology, social work, art, music, and medicine.
"Our students will benefit from working with the children alongside the excellent faculty, staff and researchers of the center," Odom said. "USC students have an opportunity to study at a center that provides childcare, child education, and child-educator training of the highest quality. In our partnership with Gateway, we share a vision for a center of excellence."
The building's design will feature elements of classical architecture in keeping with other campus buildings. The interior will be designed with input from Louis Torelli, a nationally recognized consultant in child development environmental design. The center will be governed by a board of representatives from the university and Gateway. An advisory board comprising members from the Parent Teacher Organization, staff and the community also will be appointed. Gateway will be responsible for the oversight and management of the operation, and university representatives will be responsible for curricular and educational matters.
The center will operate from 6:30 a.m.–6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday year-round.
02/03
|
