Parents ask District 112 to keep Family Focus as child care provider

Jan. 17--Parents of children enrolled in the before- and after-school child care programs provided by Family Focus for North Shore School District 112 expressed dismay Tuesday at the district's plan to contract with the for-profit company.

District 112 administrators have selected Innovation Learning, a Colorado-based firm, to provide child care at no cost to the school system at all seven elementary schools from 6 a.m. until the start of the school day, and from the end of the school day until 6 p.m.

The firm was selected from nine companies and organizations that submitted proposals. District 112 administrators say Innovation Learning was the "very clear winner" based on the district's evaluation criteria which included previous experience, the capacity to serve all seven schools, administrative support, professional development, fee structure and flexibility among other factors.

According to the firm's literature, Innovation Learning's programs are based on the premise that innovation as a set of skills and mindset can be nurtured, taught and practiced.

Parents who addressed the school spoke of the warm, family environment that Family Focus creates and questioned if the new firm would be as sensitive to the particular needs of families in Highland Park.

"I don't want people to get so dazzled by the buzz words," said Kerry Trotter, the mother of a second grade pupil at Oak Terrace School. "These kids have to be kids, too. They have to play and have some unstructured time. They need to have the occasional party, the occasional movie day."

Superintendent Michael Lubelfeld said the need for before- and after-school programming at all elementary schools was evident when the district analyzed why school bus service was poor at the start of the school year.

"When we dived deeper to try to figure things out, it turns out we bus to 11 or 12 (providers of day care) including our own Family Focus, because they are the only game in town," he said.

The superintendent will ask the school board Jan. 29 to authorize an agreement with Innovation Learning.

Family Focus Highland Park, previously known as Family Network, currently provides a before-school program at Oak Terrace Elementary School and an after-school program at Oak Terrace, Indian Trail and Red Oak elementary schools that draws 170 students from all seven elementary schools.

The agency's 15-year relationship with North Shore School District 112 dates to 2002, when a needs assessment by the United Way identified afterschool programming as the greatest unmet need. Family Network was the only agency that responded to District 112's call for a provider.

kberkowitz@pioneerlocal.com

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