Rendering courtesy of TurnerBatson.
Woodlawn’s revitalization continues in January with the opening of the first phase of the James Rushton Early Learning and Family Success Center on the former site of a long-vacant bank at First Avenue South and 55th Street.
That first phase is the 16,000-square-foot Early Learning Center, which will accommodate up to 100 students ages six weeks to four years, according to Sally Mackin, executive director of the Woodlawn Foundation.
Construction was to be complete in December, Mackin told Iron City Ink.
“The goal is to create a solid foundation for the rest of the education pipeline in the Woodlawn community to make sure that all students have the opportunity and necessary supports to successfully transition from birth to college and/or career,” she said.
The center’s a partnership between the Woodlawn Foundation and the James Rushton I Foundation, which will operate the school, according to Mackin.
Woodlawn families will be given enrollment priority, and tuition is based on need, with scholarships available for those meeting the criteria, she said.
“Opportunity is created for working families to be able to access high-quality childcare that they otherwise would not be able to afford,” Mackin said.
The center’s cost was almost $6 million, with $3.75 million coming from a $7.1 million Woodlawn Foundation capital campaign and the rest from other funding sources, including New Market Tax Credits, according to Mackin.
In the second phase, an adjacent 12,000-square-foot warehouse will be renovated as the Family Success Center, but there is no timetable as yet, Mackin said.
