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Smiling faces and new spaces
Child Development Center awaits new building while still providing quality care
Eunice Virgen / Roundup
A child playing is not the typical image a college student encounters as they walk to class, but it isn’t uncommon on the Pierce College campus.
The Child Development Center, which provides childcare for Pierce students, will be moving to a new building in the spring.
Kathleen Reiter-Vasquez has been the Child Development Center director for 35 years. She was also instrumental in starting the Child Development Department 11 years ago.
The Child Development Center will be moving to a new building close to the animal barn in the spring of 2010. The staff very excited.
“The children will have access to the animals,” Reiter-Vasquez said.
“I like my job, I like being around children,” said Gina Witherspoon, a teacher’s assistant and a student at Pierce. When asked about the new center, she said, “I’m excited. I think we have worked hard for the new center.”
The new center will have a lot of new features the current center does not. For example, the children will have sand pits, mud pits and a “secret garden” where the kids can play outside.
Inside the new center they will have lots of space. Each classroom will have about 2,200 square feet, allow them to accommodate about 32 children per room.
Reiter-Vasquez wants to keep the capacity to around 20 to 24 children per room, as she feels quantity does not equate to quality. She wants to make sure the children have enough space to play and that safety measures remain a priority.
Before they can even think about moving to the new center, Reiter-Vasquez has to begin licensing procedures this month, to be ready by April 2010. Furthermore, the Los Angeles Fire Department and the L.A. Health Department must also give clearance to allow the new center to open.
The center must also have support from the campus. According to Reiter-Vasquez, Pierce is one of the most supportive campuses in the district.
“Bob Garber, the previous president, was very supportive and instrumental,” Reiter-Vasquez said. The campus gives a substantial contribution that goes directly toward keeping the program running.
Besides campus contributions, the Child Development Center receives most of its funding through the California State Budget. However, there is a process to receive funding.
Reiter-Vasquez explained that in order for her center to receive state funding, she must create a budget that includes all costs and submit a proposal to the state. She must earn the money being allocated by providing childcare to qualifying students.
The current state budget cuts have affected the Child Development Center. The evening program that lasts from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. has been cut and Reiter-Vasquez has had to let go of a part-time lead teacher and two assistants. She expects more cuts in the near future.
Currently, the center has six full-time classes Monday through Friday, with about 18 children in each class, which run simultaneously from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. The children’s age requirements are between 2 years and 9 months to 5 years old, and the children must be toilet trained. The center does not take infants because that requires a different license.
More information is available by contacting the Child Development Center at (818) 719-6494.
