(San Luis Obispo, CA) – First 5 San Luis Obispo County recently allocated an additional $1,000,000 to its School Readiness Initiative project intended to support future students at Georgia Brown Elementary School in Paso Robles. The funding will purchase land on the corner of 36th and Oak Streets (adjacent to Georgia Brown) that initially will be used to accommodate a First 5 Preschool serving up to 44 children and a future School Readiness/Family Resource Center.

“The First 5 Preschool and future School Readiness/Family Resource Center is just what the community needed,” said K.H. “Katcho” Achadjian, Supervisor, 4th District, San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors and chair of First 5 San Luis Obispo County. “It will give families a comfortable, friendly place to get answers for their questions about services that will help them prepare their children to enter school healthy and ready to learn.”

“First 5 San Luis Obispo County is committed to providing high quality preschool experiences for 4 year olds in the Georgia Brown community,” said Susan Hughes, Executive Director, First 5 San Luis Obispo County. “Knowing that children’s early experiences have a significant impact on their futures, the Commission has made this issue a local priority.”

First 5 San Luis Obispo County Purchases Land for a First 5 Preschool Page 2 of 2 The Paso Robles architectural firm, Phillips, Metsch, Sweeny and Moore, was selected to provide a site master plan and management for the project. The firm has extensive experience in designing similar projects that have enhanced and benefited the surrounding community.

“This is another step forward in providing local programs that will support a unified, integrated system,” said Julian Crocker, Superintendent of the San Luis Obispo County Office of Education and member of First 5 San Luis Obispo County. “It will provide an opportunity to restructure and coordinate the delivery of quality early care and education, health and social services, and parent education and support; plus improve schools' readiness for children through family-friendly environments.”

The purpose of the School Readiness Initiative is to improve the ability of families, schools, and communities to prepare children to enter school ready to succeed. Working in partnership, First 5 San Luis Obispo County, San Luis Obispo County Office of Education and the Paso Robles Joint Unified School District have collaborated to develop the project.

The City of Paso Robles has also dedicated redevelopment funds to the project. Research shows that a child’s brain develops most dramatically in the first five years and what parents and caregivers do to support their child’s growth during these years will have a meaningful impact throughout life. Based on this research, California voters passed Proposition 10 in 1998, adding a 50 cents-per-pack tax on cigarettes to support programs for expectant parents and children ages 0 to 5. First 5 San Luis Obispo County distributes approximately $2 million a year in Prop. 10 revenues to programs and services that meet local needs.