Dr. Cannon on the New Eckhardt Academy Head Start

Dr. Marie Cannon at the Ribbon Cutting Event

This transformational project features affordable housing, a proposed indoor urban farm for the basement, and my favorite part of the entire project…the 12,000 square foot Eckhardt Academy, which will become the home for CAO’s free Head Start early childhood educational program, under the leadership of our very own Dr. Chelsea White!  This new Academy, right here on the ground floor will feature six classrooms which will allow us to serve 24 infants and toddlers and up to 50 preschoolers…FREE OF CHARGE!

This is truly transformational for the children and the families to be able to have access to a high-quality early childhood educational program that promotes school readiness and parental engagement right here in their community!

It goes without saying that none of this would be possible without all the partners for this project: Cedarland Development, Empire State Development's Better Buffalo Fund, New York State Home and Community Renewal, Community Preservation Corporation, and the support of Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes.

This is the 60th anniversary of the Economic Opportunity Act that established Community Action Agencies as part of the War on Poverty. Next year will mark the 60th anniversary of the CAO of WNY, so expect invitations.

This election year we’ve heard rumblings about Head Start being in the cross hairs…that some people would like to see it eliminated. We can’t let that happen. Since its inception Head Start has served more than 40 million children and their families, 778,000 this year alone nationally and locally, CAO’s Head Start program currently serves more than a thousand children and their families in Erie and Niagara County.

Head Start is and has been a vital part of providing the resources to make sure children and families have the things they need to ensure they grow up to become healthy, happy, and productive citizens.