Friday, July 5, 2002

Sheltering Arms opening facilities in South Fulton

In a groundbreaking partnership, the Fulton County School System will provide sites for two new Sheltering Arms Child Development & Family Support centers in South Fulton County.

The 40-year land lease agreements approved at the Fulton County Board of Education June legislative meeting will allow Sheltering Arms to provide quality early childhood education for 500 children ages 6 weeks to 5 years old, and prepare them for school success.

Sheltering Arms, a nonprofit child care and early education provider, will open centers during the 2003-04 school year at Camp Creek Middle School in College Park and at the intersection of Connally Drive and Mulberry Street in East Point, down the street from the site of an elementary school under construction.

Sheltering Arms will partner with local schools to provide child care at a discounted rate to school employees and to foster continuity for children as they transition from preschool to elementary school.

"Fulton County Schools welcome Sheltering Arms to South Fulton. We are pleased to partner with them, knowing that each year more than 500 children are being readied for future school success," said Dr. Stephen Dolinger, Superintendent of the Fulton County School System.

Last year, more than 8,513 children in South Fulton were eligible for Pre-Kindergarten programs at local schools, but 3,343 students ­ or 39 percent ­ did not attend programs due to a lack of available space or other unspecified reasons.

The 500 slots in preschool programs that will be available due to the new Sheltering Arms centers will help close that gap and help prepare children for kindergarten.

About 92 percent of the four-year-olds attending Sheltering Arms' 19 centers last year met or exceeded kindergarten readiness requirements. The remaining 8 percent were either new to the program, or were referred for special services to address developmental delays and special needs.

Founded in 1888, Sheltering Arms is metro Atlanta's oldest, largest, and most respected nonprofit child care provider. All Sheltering Arms centers meet the accreditation standards of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), and all offer scholarship assistance to students based on income and family size.

For more information on Sheltering Arms Child Development and Family Support, visit www.shelteringarmsforkids.com or call 404-523-2767.