Monroe Housing/ Prime Time Ribbon Cutting

William V. Smart, Executive Director, announced that Monroe Housing Authority in partnership with PRIME TIME, Inc., will celebrate completion of the expansion to the Robinson Place Head Start Center. A Ribbon Cutting Ceremony will be held to commemorate the occasion. The ceremony will be held on Friday, December 11 at 9 a.m. at the Robinson Place Head Start Center, at 5307 Robinson Drive, Monroe, LA. Social-distancing will be observed and, we ask that all attendees wear masks. MHA and PRIME TIME, Inc. began their partnership in 2017 with the opening of the Robinson Place Head Start Center. At that time, PRIME TIME had recently been awarded local administration for the Head Start Program and was seeking locations for their Head Start Centers. MHA had recently begun a pilot program at Robinson Place designed to transform public housing communities into environments for personal growth and economic self-sufficiency. The PRIME TIME Head Start Center and early childhood education program fit perfectly into the community model. PRIME TIME, Inc. offers a set of unique, humanities-focused and outcomes-based programs designed to engage new and underserved children and families. PRIME TIME programs are proven to generate long-term improvements in family engagement and student academic achievement. All PRIME TIME based programs offer partner sites such as libraries, schools, museums and other community service agencies research-based initiatives that directly engage children, parents, teachers, educational administrators and the community in high-quality family focused learning experiences. Today, the Robinson Place Head Start Center is one of PRIME TIME's most requested locations. The Center had the highest Performance Profile for the 2018-2019 school year of all the PRIME-TIME Head Start locations. The Center operates at full capacity and has a long waiting list. Currently, the Center provides Head Start program services to 59 families. Now, with the completion of this annex building and renovations to the main building, the Robinson Place Head Start Center has capacity to serve 82 families. The Center can now also provide additional program services that were previously not offered due to the limited space. On behalf of the MHA Board of Commissioners: Hal H. Hinchliffe, Chairman; Rick Miller, Vice-Chairman; and Commissioners Joe Farr, Beverly V. Lewis and Angelina Jones; and the management and staff of the Monroe Housing Authority, Mr. Smart expressed his deepest appreciation to PRIME TIME, Inc. and PRIME TIME Head Start for setting a new standard of excellence for early childhood development services and academic achievement. In a statement, Mr. Smart went on to say that "Monroe Housing Authority is committed to providing our families with access to quality, educational opportunities. These children are our future and we have to do whatever it takes to help them achieve success. Through partnerships with PRIME TIME, Inc. and Children's Coalition for Northeast Louisiana, MHA has three site-based Head Start and Early Head Start Centers operating within its public housing communities. For additional information contact William V. Smart, Executive Director, Monroe Housing Authority 300 Harrison Street, Monroe, LA 318-388-1500 ext. 310