Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Victoria Galbraith | 200116-N-AD499-1003 BREMERTON, Wash. (Jan. 16, 2020) Claudette Mohn, Naval Base Kitsap...... read more read more
Story by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Victoria Foley
Naval Base Kitsap Public Affairs
BREMERTON, Wash. – Naval Base Kitsap will begin renovating the Jackson Park Community Center classrooms into Child and Youth Programs Child Development Center childcare classrooms in April.
The projected cost of this renovation is approximately $2.1 million. Naval Facilities Engineering Command awarded the project on Dec. 13, 2019 and contractors are looking to complete the renovations by this September.
The newly renovated section of the facility, Bldg. 780, will add five classrooms and allow the CDC staff to care for the growth and development of 56 additional children, ages 6 weeks to 3 years of age.
The upgrades will benefit service members and civilian families currently on the waitlist and in need of immediate childcare. The three CDC on NBK average 350 to 400 children on the immediate need waitlist.
“2020 is the year of intention; to actively make efforts to meet our families’ needs for childcare,” said Claudette Mohn, Naval Base Kitsap Child and Youth Programs director. “Converting the Jackson Park Community Center to expand childcare spaces is just one of the few ways we meet their needs.”
U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) inserted a bill into the National Defense Authorization Act for military child care construction. About $20 million was allocated to Commander, Navy Installations Command Headquarters for child youth programs in the Operation and Maintenance Navy budget, along with a congressional directive to provide a “state of child care” from the services in 98 days.
“Renovating the community center will show the community that NBK is responsive to meeting the demand for childcare,” Mohn said. “We’re going to increase customer satisfaction and confidence that their child is going to be taken care of using a Navy program. We can certainly exhaust some of the waitlist.”
Culinary Specialist 1st Class Rechele Crawford, mother of five, assigned to Naval Base Kitsap, spoke about the necessity of new classrooms and the importance it has for her and her family.
“I’ve utilized the local CDCs for seven years now,” Crawford said. “All of my kids have been in and out of the CDCs and availability always depended on their age group. The longest I’ve waited was about two years.”
Military Childcare.com (MCC.com) gives families an anticipated placement time based off the family’s priority type and childcare space in a requested program. Families can increase their chances of receiving a space sooner by researching and submitting requests earlier and requesting all viable programs.
“The child development center is a great benefit that service members should take advantage of,” Crawford said. “The more availability that exists, the better able they are to support the parents and that in turn helps support the mission.”
Another way to combat the long waitlists and additional need for facilities is the child development home program. CDH is a program in which caregivers provide childcare services out of their homes. These homes are required to meet Navy childcare guidelines and many of them are licensed by the State of Washington.
To learn more about, or to apply for the CDH program, contact Christine Anderson, CDH program director at 360-476-7484.
| Date Taken: | 01.27.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 01.28.2020 18:19 |
| Story ID: | 360599 |
| Location: | BREMERTON, WASHINGTON, US |
| Web Views: | 492 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Naval Base Kitsap-Jackson Park to upgrade community center Increases base CDC capacity, by PO2 Victoria Galbraith, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
