First 5 Solano seeks ‘Business Champions’ for summer pre-kindergarten program

March 31, 2015

SOLANO COUNTY - First 5 Solano has launched its "Pre-K Business Champions" campaign, seeking local businesses to help support Solano Pre-Kindergarten Academies. Now in its third year, First 5 Solano has partnered with the business community to support Solano's children. First 5 will match every business contribution up to the maximum $5,000.

This year, there are four ways that businesses can support children participating in Pre-K Academies:
• $200 sends one child to a Pre-K Academy
• $500 provides an entire classroom with backpacks and supplies
• $2,500 funds half of a classroom
• $5,000 funds an entire classroom

“As a business owner, I believe we can’t afford to not help our children get the best education possible,” said Buck Kamphausen,” owner of Fairfield Funeral Home. “The pre-k academies target children who have not yet experienced the school environment, daycare, or any other early learning program.”

Last year, 42 Solano Pre-K Business Champions raised $14,800, with some businesses donating as much as $2,000 each. Because of this support, First 5 Solano was able to serve more than 550 children.

“As a business owner and mother I think about the future workforce and how studies have shown that kids who benefit from quality early learning programs are more confident and tend to be more successful throughout school and life,” said First 5 Solano Commissioner Marisela Barbosa. “We need to continue on the road of empowering our young kids and families. I’m so proud that First 5 Solano has planted the seed. I invite the business community to partner together, and be engaged with the whole community in order to create a bigger impact.”

Children have a better chance of success when provided transition time to understand school structure. Skills including how to stand in line, sharing and basic academics, gives children this transitional opportunity. Children who participate in Pre-K Academies display significant improvements in their social, emotional and cognitive skills. In addition, parents are able to connect with teachers, ask questions and be supported in their role as their child’s first and best teacher.

The “Pre-K Business Champions” campaign includes awards for participating businesses at a breakfast on May 28, co-sponsored by First 5 Solano and the Solano Economic Development Corporation (EDC). This year’s theme, “A New Social Contract of Mutual Benefits for the Future of California,” focuses on why investing in children is best for all Californians in order to sustain our future economy.

This year’s keynote speaker is Dowell Myers. As a demographer and professor in the Sol Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California, Mr. Myers incorporates numerical evidence with interpretations of social problems and policy solutions. His research emphasizes the linkage of demographic data (census, surveys, and projections) to future trends in housing, workforce, education, taxpaying, voting, and immigration, promoting greater public understanding about pressing issues that affect our common future.

For more information about the First 5 Solano Pre-K Business Champions Campaign, and to make a contribution, please contact Ciara Gonsalves at (707) 784-1338 or [email protected]