More than 100 parents joined Lennox School District officials on May 28 to celebrate the opening of a new preschool classroom funded by LAUP, which has made quality and affordable early childhood education more accessible to families in the community. During a ribbon cutting ceremony at Moffett State Preschool, school district officials joined LAUP in praising the increased accessibility to preschool education in the community, which they said will help to better prepare students for kindergarten and beyond.

“Making preschool more available to parents is something we have worked very hard at to accomplish,” said Nellie Rios Parra, the school district’s Director of State Preschool Services. “With the help of LAUP, more children will now be better prepared for school.”

LAUP invested $140,000 in Moffett State Preschool, making it possible for an additional 24 students to attend preschool at little or no cost. Overall, LAUP has invested more than $420,000 in three Lennox School District operated preschools, where about 200 four-year-olds out of 715 preschoolers are currently enrolled in LAUP-funded preschool classrooms.

“We’re glad that we were able to increase access to high-quality preschool in the Lennox community because of the proven benefits that early childhood education has on children’s lives,” said Dr. Celia C. Ayala, Chief Operating Officer of LAUP.

During the ceremony, Moffett State Preschoolers sang songs and read poetry in English and Spanish to an appreciative audience.