#reopenclc Reconsider the PERMANENT closing of the Children’s Learning Center

You will be doing the community a disservice by closing this center. Education for all ages must be a priority.

Our son has been going to CLC since his second birthday. He is now 5 years old and will be going to kindergarten. It has been the best experience and I can't imagine sending my daughter (who is now 1) anywhere else next year. I was deeply saddened to hear about the closing and very frustrated that there was no opportunity to provide any input. The reasons provided for the closure didn't seem valid to me. Without the current public health crisis this would have never happened and the administrators were not transparent about that. Yes, CLC has been serving many children from the community but many of those children have parents who were HCC students when the child first enrolled. Additionally, the tuition is much higher for these children so CLC is compensated. If it is a funding issue, then the parents and the community should have had a chance to discuss some solutions before jumping to the decision to close. The center also served as a laboratory school where HCC students had the opportunity to observe and gain practical experience. HCC is a public institution so thinking from a purely business perspective is not acceptable. Many potential HCC students do have children and need childcare. Having quality childcare associated with and near a school is very important. Maybe further lowering tuition for children of HCC students should have been considered. Or ensuring that potential HCC students (not just current) are aware of the center and it's benefits. Another option should have been to look into a way to keep the center open during college closures and other holidays as that is one of the reasons some are unable to enroll. These are just some things that should have been discussed and explored before jumping to this decision. This is also one of the rare MDSE certified childcare centers that had no specific religious leanings (something very important to me) and had no profit incentive. From my search there is none in the area that has decent amount of physical s

Our son attended the CLC for five years, and his teachers treated him with the utmost love and respect every single day that he was there. He started at the CLC when he was three months old, after having been born premature and spent time in the Johns Hopkins NICU, and the CLC was the only child care center that I felt completely confident entrusting him to under those circumstances. When he received services from Early Intervention as a toddler, the CLC teachers impressed Early Intervention with their eagerness to familiarize themselves with the exercises he needed to do. And most recently, during the pandemic, his pre-K teachers took it upon themselves to record daily videos, schedule Zoom calls, and even organize graduation activities for their students. The decision by HCC to close the CLC, and the manner in which that decision was made, suggests a disregard for working parents, for the community of which HCC is a part, and, most importantly, for the talented professionals at the CLC. Is HCC planning to tell its Early Childhood Education students that this is the type of treatment they can expect if they pursue this career? Please reconsider your decision.

It has been a very valuable institution for both great nieces and great nephew.

Early childhood education in the name of daycare which help many families is treasure and great investment for future. Never should be closed during especially difficult time for everybody. One of the teachers is my daughter’s excellent teacher! Wish to help in any possible way!

Please don’t close the school

The community needs this. Especially now. Cut budget some place else.

Please reconsider.

Seriously Absurd

My grandson loves this program! Please reconsider.

It seems many people rely on these programs for child assistance. I’m sure we can find a way to open these learning centers at a lower capacity.

We are grateful to have a child care center in our community that is as committed to excellence as the CLC. Our older child has been a student there for more than two years, and our younger child was scheduled to join him as a new student this summer. It was a surprise to receive a letter from the Howard Community College administration at the end of July informing us that the CLC would not reopen, primarily due to financial constraints (the letter stated that HCC subsidizes the Center at a cost of $350,000 annually). I imagine that the College recognizes the value of a lab school in not only providing opportunities for HCC students but also in serving the community by providing quality early education. I would have been pleased to participate in discussions to find a workable solution to allow for reopening the CLC and am disappointed that there was no opportunity for parents or community members to voice their comments and offer recommendations for alternative structures that may have allowed the CLC to reopen, as countless other early education programs have done.

The CLC was a pivotal part of my daughters pre-K preparation and a reason why I chose to work at HCC. Closing the center is a terrible choice.

I love the CLC! I started out as an aide and ended up as a substitute teacher (would've been a teacher but got married and moved out of state). The CLC built my love for teaching and it helped me grow as a person. I always speak so highly of the CLC to my friends and tell them what a model of a learning center it is. Please do not shut this place down!

It would be a shame to close such a needed daycare. Very sad if it actually happens.

This place was a large part of making my family who we are today. My husband and I met here as single parents while attending HCC as well. Three out of four of our children were nurtured, loved and learned so much from the amazing staff and teachers here. These people are teachers, they teach childeren vital life skills and the first building blocks of learning and development. This center should continue to be able to open it's doors and help students to achieve their dreams with the reassurance that their childeren are not just being taken care of, but continuing to grow in every way because of this absolutely amazing center.

With people at work schooling and childcare are imperative it is unreasonable to close these institutions unless we are on complete lock down as we are not they must be open so that children are not put at risk by forcing parents to Find less suitable arrangements.

Child care decisions cannot be made in isolation. High-quality child care is essential for children, students, and employees. The benefits reach more than two generations. Please involve your community in any permanent decisions, and consider the long-term implications for the viability of recruiting and retaining students, faculty, and staff. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/07/03/big-factor-holding-back-us-economic-recovery-child-care/

This thoughtfully worded petition points out the myriad ways in which CLC is indispensable to families in Howard County. As a visiting grandparent, I have been so impressed, not only by the curriculum, but by the friendly atmosphere and the diversity of the teachers, children, and college students on the campus. Our hard-working parents need to be able to depend on excellent child care, and those fine teachers have so much to offer.

In a world that has become so uncertain, let’s not take away that which is safe and familiar for children and teachers.