This Saturday, Jan. 20 will be the first annual Healdsburg Preschool Fair, aimed at improving access to early childhood education programs for Healdsburg families. Brought together by Corazón Healdsburg’s early childhood Health Action committee, the event at the Healdsburg Community Center will offer information, prizes, gifts, giveaways and activities for the kids in English and Spanish.
The head of the committee is Jenny Levine-Smith and she says the fair came about when the need became clear. The Children’s Museum of Sonoma County held a preschool fair last year, but the participation of programs and families from Healdsburg was low, according to Levine-Smith. So, it was decided they needed to do their own.
“There has not been a comprehensive way to get information about what preschools are out there and we know families need that,” she said. “It takes a lot of time to do that preliminary research. We reached out to every licensed day care and preschool facility, whether in-home or at a center, in Healdsburg and tried to get as many as we could to participate.”
Levine-Smith says about 10 programs will be represented, including the Healdsburg Unified School District’s own program put on by the North Bay Children’s Center. While all families and students are welcome to come and gather information, one of the primary goals of the fair is to make sure that Spanish-speaking families will have the same access as others.
“One of the things we have found as a committee is that there is a wide disparity between the preschool-going rates of primarily Spanish-speaking families and primarily English-speaking families,” she said. “There is not only one barrier or reason for that, but we know that language is a significant one. We have a number of preschools and daycares where no one speaks Spanish. Or maybe the teachers do, but there isn’t someone in the office who does. So, calling and getting information is a much bigger hurdle. Being able to guarantee that every bit of information is equally receivable in Spanish and English is critical. Without it, we wouldn’t achieve our goal, which is access for families that don’t currently have it.”
There will be a series of stations at the event, including specific preschool programs and other local program information, and completing all the stations and getting a “passport” stamped will enter attendees for a drawing with prizes like a brand new balance bike and helmet or a set of Magnatiles. Every child who attends the fair will receives a backpack and book, courtesy of the library and the United Way.
One of the groups that will be presenting at the fair is Quality Counts and VIP program. According to Levine-Smith, this organization provides a ratings system for preschools and also provides assistance and guidance to schools to help them improve. If a program achieves a score of four or five (on a five-point scale) they are eligible for funding from the VIP program, which helps offset costs for families who make too much money to qualify for a full subsidy, but for whom the cost of a program may be prohibitive.
“They are eligible to take money from the VIP program for families, up to $10,000 a year, to spend at the preschool of their choice that has gone through the Quality Counts program,” she said. “Just because the family doesn’t qualify for a fully subsidized program doesn’t mean there isn’t help. Preschools in our area want to be able to enroll low-income families, but can’t afford to because they rely on tuition money to provide a quality program. This is the best of both worlds.”
The first annual Healdsburg Preschool Fair takes place Saturday, Jan. 20 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Healdsburg Community Center, 1557 Healdsburg Avenue. It is open to all families with children ages zero to five and is sponsored by First5 Sonoma County, the American Association of University Women, the Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County and the Quality Counts program. It is presented by Corazón Healdsburg.
