A year and a half ago the Lois Bronz Children’s Center, was in jeopardy of closing. I participated in some strategy sessions with the center leadership and attended a session with representatives of Congress, our State Legislators, potential donors and civic leaders at the Madame Walker estate in Irvington–strategizing on approaches that needed to be taken to save the center. We all felt that closing the center was unthinkable!
Dr. Michael Rush, the director of the center, met with me earlier this week and gave me some good news. The center is now operating at a surplus and is not in any danger of closing. This is great news for our community. The center provides outstanding child care services to the community. And, was one of the first child care facilities of its kind in our county. This is the report I just received from Dr. Rush:
PAUL FEINER
Lois Bronz Children’s Center
“A Good Reason to Celebrate”
As you may recall during the 2010-11 school year there were several staff layoffs and the Center was in jeopardy of closing due to financial instability. The community set forth on a campaign to ensure that the Lois Bronz Children’s Center (LBCC) remains open and continue to provide valuable services. Letter writing campaigns, fund raising luncheons, brainstorming sessions, and a complete restructuring of the administrative facet within the Center have helped to strengthen our finances and viability.
Although the Center closed a classroom in the 2010-11 school year, we have since been able to rehire displaced staff and boast a healthy enrollment. Our Special Needs Program was full to capacity by mid-year and we have several more children enrolled this summer as compared to last year. Westchester Districts continue to make referrals to our program since we are no longer in jeopardy of closing.
With our new Administrative restructuring, cash flow management team, and monetary donations from the community and supporting businesses, we are pleased to announce that our center is now fully operating at a surplus and will continue to operate efficiently. We have come together to put our “Children First” and will continue to provide a safe and nurturing educational experience for our children and families for years to come. Even in these difficult economic times, enrollment has risen and many classrooms have waiting lists for this upcoming school year. We have integrated a new interactive and creative curriculum to encompass a love of reading, math and science to help prepare our children for Kindergarten and beyond. The Board of Directors along with the administrative team adopted the “Genius Child Project” which promises to meet the individual needs of every child. We welcome 6-week-olds to 12-year-olds and will provide an array of activities like gymnastics, swimming, tennis, artist in residence and trips to enhance the educational hands on experiences for our children.
We truly appreciate the support that the community and our families continue to give as we help our children grow intellectually, physically, emotionally, culturally and socially. We have an open door policy and welcome visitors to tour our facility and see the faces of our future leaders.
If you would like more information about our center, please feel free to contact Dr. Michael Rush or Jennifer Johnson at 914-761-6134. This is “You, Me and LBCC” working together!
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