Partners sought to help address critical child care needs

By Carleen Wild Moody County Enterprise
Posted 7/3/24

The Boys & Girls Club of the Northern Plains, the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe, the City of Flandreau and other supporters, are looking for additional partners as they seek to construct and …

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Partners sought to help address critical child care needs

Posted
This crucial initiative aims to nurture Flandreau/Moody County’s future leaders by providing a nurturing environment for early childhood development.
– Jody Hernandez, CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of the Northern Plains

The Boys & Girls Club of the Northern Plains, the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe, the City of Flandreau and other supporters, are looking for additional partners as they seek to construct and operate a new Early Learning Center on the Flandreau Public Schools campus.
The new facility, announced this past year, aims to provide families with high-quality childcare for children 0 - 5 years old, “catering to their diverse needs, fostering child development and driving economic progress within the Flandreau community,” the partners released in a statement.
The decision to pursue such a facility follows months of intense, open community meetings with parents, educators, local government leaders, area child care providers, employers, and anyone else with a stake in raising strong, emotionally and physically well-rounded children.
But it also comes after years of concerns expressed by parents that many of them struggle to work because of a lack of affordable, local licensed childcare options, especially if they work outside of the community. Pick-up and drop-off times are tough to meet, many say. Local childcare providers also discussed during community meetings how often they are approached about childcare during what would typically be considered non-traditional work hours, meaning earlier in the morning or later in the evening. There just are few long-term, reliable good options anywhere.

The result often is that at least one parent does not work, and that can put additional stress on a family already experiencing few resources.
The new Early Learning facility aims to address the need, one communities across the globe, big and small, are experiencing. It is planned for the area just outside of the Janklow Community Center, next to the Flandreau Public Middle School, and across from the current Boys & Girls Club.
The entities were awarded a $740,000 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) from the State at the end of May to help jump-start the project. Just over $3 million will be needed for the construction and full build-out of the facility, which will also be used as a training campus for local childcare providers.
“The Early Childhood Learning Center provides an exciting and much-needed opportunity for our community. So many families need a place like this for their children to learn and be cared for,” Flandreau Mayor Dan Sutton previously told the Moody County Enterprise.
“This is a perfect example of the great things that can happen when a joint collaboration of entities works together to solve a need, as the City, Tribe, and Boys & Girls Club of Moody County have done. I am grateful to all who have dedicated their time and resources to make this come to fruition to better our community.”
Jody Hernandez, CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of the Northern Plains, stated, “This crucial initiative aims to nurture Flandreau/Moody County’s future leaders by providing a nurturing environment for early childhood development.”
The grant application, supported by Moody County Commissioners, is a key milestone in the project’s journey. If successful, the Community Development Block Grant would provide substantial capital support, marking a significant step towards realizing the vision of the Early Learning Center.
Anyone wanting to get involved or learn more, you are asked to contact Jody Hernandez at jhernandez@greatfuturessd.org.