Your Child’s World Learning Center located at 1052 Easton Road in Roslyn provided free Pre-K to families in Abington and Cheltenham, but the program was cut. Funding for this program was reallocated leaving many families without Pre-K options for their young children.

The Pennsylvania Department of Education and Human Services created the Pre-K Counts program which provides FREE high-quality preschool for families with annual incomes between 100% to 300% over the poverty guidelines. For example Your Child’s World Learning Center in Roslyn benefited families of three earning between $20,782 and $62,340 per year until this school year.

The Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts funding is based on five-year funding  cycle, and the Roslyn location was not funded for the the 2018/2019 school year and this will remain in effect until new grants are issued for the 2024/2025 school year. The families that relied on this Pre-K program have few options for child care that is free or subsidized.

The other programs available for families seeking assistance for Pre-K and child care are not a viable options for most families in Abington due to the income requirements. For instance CCIS a state program that helps subsidize child care costs is only available to families earning 200% of the poverty level. This maximum annual income level for a family of three to qualify for this program is $41,560.

The Head Start program funded by the United States Department of Health and Human Services provides early childhood education to families that make below the poverty level, so a family of three must make less than $20,780 annually to qualify.

Early learning and early childhood education are beneficial to children three to five years old. Studies have shown positive results of a good high-quality preschool program that prepares children for kindergarten and academic success. Children that attended Pre-K are more likely to stay in school, graduate college and make more money after graduating.

There is an effort underway to reopen the Pre-K Counts program at Your Child’s Learning Center in Roslyn. A Change.org petition is available  HERE in support of bringing Pre-K Counts to the Abington and Cheltenham School districts.