The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP), ABK Learning & Development Center, and Duquesne University School of Education were honored on May 10, 2022, with the Pennsylvania Early Learning Investment Commission's Response in Caring Award. The partnership was one of three such efforts in the state to receive the distinction, presented by Gov. Tom Wolf and former Gov. Mark Schweiker during the Commission’s annual Early Learning Economic Summit.
The early learning center, housed in the Bedford EnVision Center, launched in February 2018. The resulting program is the culmination of years of strategic planning designed to make high-quality early childhood education accessible and affordable to the residents of PA’s oldest public housing community, the Bedford Dwellings.
The HACP and our partners are proud to receive recognition for an initiative that has been truly creative in expanding access to high quality child care in Bedford Dwellings and the surrounding Hill District community. The program has expanded through the years to increase capacity and continue to serve families as students progress through Pre-K, Kindergarten and First Grade. The center is also one of the few in the nation that offers around-the-clock childcare in order to accommodate workforce families that work nontraditional hours.
“High quality, accessible early childhood education is a vital component of a thriving community. And while the recognition is nice, this effort has been a labor of love for HACP and our partners,” said Michelle Sandidge, Chief Community Affairs Officer at the HACP. “Knowing that HACP residents have access to one of the very best early learning centers in the city is the true reward.”
Learn more about the center and the HACP's recent achievement in this brief video: https://youtu.be/xkTkmrIrf1o
For additional information, please contact Michelle Sandidge, Chief Community Affairs Officer at michelle.sandidge@hacp.org.