On September 12th, 2022, the Child Care program reopened its Little Bucs Pre School. They hosted an Open House event, welcoming the new and former kids back into their classroom. The last time they were open was before the COVID-19 pandemic and the multiple health guidelines and concern for the safety of the kids delayed their reopening. “After two years of being closed, we finally get to celebrate the opening this year,” said Griselda Perez, the teacher in charge of the program.

South Dade’s Child Care program allows teachers and staff with young children to drop them off before work and pick them up after, without the hassle of driving them to a different location. “The teachers have access to their child, and know that they’re in safe hands and in an environment that they can visit at any time,” said Perez. The kids receive one-on-one learning due to a large number of high school students in the program. Each week, the teachers, who are the students, rotate, with 5/6 new teachers each week. The daycare only charges the staff $260 a month, and this rate has remained consistent despite the recent inflation and the pandemic. When COVID hit the world, staff lost the easy access and comfort of an “at-work” care facility, and were forced to find alternates and face higher expenses. 

Their reopening event consisted of a Candy Land theme to ensure that the children were comfortable. “We wanted to welcome the parents and their children with a world of sweet choices and joy,” said Perez. They showed them their classroom and did hands-on activities to get to know their peers and their teachers. On the first day, the kids came in ready to learn and excited to get started, doing first-day activities and helping them adjust to a new learning environment.

“It was hard getting back into the groove of having the kids back with us and teaching them, but it was really nice to see them come back again,” said senior Grace Solis, a student in the program.