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history of school

In 1967, the New York City Council authorized funding for the expansion of day care programs; however, it experienced difficulty in finding not-for-profit organizations as sponsors. Few organizations of this type were able to meet the requirement of providing 10% of the program’s annual operating budget from non-government sources. In 1968, members of the Jamaica Branch met the challenge and became one of the first sponsors under the City’s program. Orchestrated by its board of directors, the Branch developed a program, located a site, solicited the funding and obtained the required approvals to sponsor a day care facility.
The process took two years. Funding for the sponsor’s requirements was principally provided by a gift from the New York Life Insurance Foundation. Its site, a closed supermarket, was redesigned and renovated to accommodate four classrooms, five offices and a kitchen on the main floor. The lower level was re-engineered into several large meeting rooms and storage areas. The roof-top provided the play area for the Center’s children.

The Center was formally opened on September 19, 1970

Roy wilkinsRoy Wilkins, Executive Director of the National Association of the Advancement of Colored People was the honored guest for the dedication. In his remarks, he cited the dire need to prepare Black children “to gain the most from their future educational experiencing” as the reason for the National N.A.A.C.P.’s consent for the undertaking. He then christened the building with a bottle of milk. The Jamaica N.A.A.C.P. Day Care Center, Inc. has had a successful contractual relationship with Agency for Children’s Services for more than 38 years.

school earier daysIn August 1997, Universal Prekindergarten legislation was enacted by the New York State legislature and funded as part of the state’s budget. The state’s Universal Prekindergarten Program, to be phased in over four years, was designed to give all of New York City’s 112,000 4 year-olds a seat in an early childhood program. In 1998, the Jamaica N.A.A.C.P. Day Care Center, Inc. applied to be one of the first operations in New York to sponsor such a program. The proposal to become a private contract provided was accepted by the Department Of Education, and in September 1998, the operation launched its Universal PreKindergarten program. This relationship has been a very successful one.