GUADALUPE CENTER INC

Programs: The guadalupe center's early childhood education (ece) program is nationally accredited by two agencies and is a gold seal program in the state of florida. The program currently serves 270 children from 6 weeks of age through 5. The ece center operates year round, five days per week, from 7:00 am until 5:30 pm. All students are pre and post-tested annually. The state kindergarten readiness assessment places the students in the top quartile in florida when they enter kindergarten. Their kindergarten readiness score was 88/100. The post-assessment scores on teaching strategies gold indicated that 95% of preschool students met or exceeded expectations. Pre-kindergarten assessment: 92% met or exceeded expectations for print knowledge; 92% for phonological awareness; 93% oral and vocabulary skills; 95% math. In the 3 year old program 98% increased expressive and receptive vocabulary on the ppvt. The program provides developmentally appropriate learning activities which incorporate language, literacy, math,science, technology, motor skills and the arts into the children's day preparing them for success in school. Breakfast, lunch and snack are provided to all students daily.

the after-school tutoring program provides educational support to over 650 children in kindergarten through second grade in four elementary schools in immokalee. The goal of the program is to provide academic support and enrichment to ensure that students are functioning on grade level when they enter third grade. All students in the program have been identified as "at risk for failure" by their teachers. Students are pre and post-tested using the district approved assessment instrument. The assessment results indicate that 97% of the students demonstrated gains in reading and 84% of the students increased their math score. An 8 week summer educational program is provided to the students to remediate the summer learning loss that can occur when children are out of school for an extended period of time. Pre and post-assessment data reflects that over 90% of the students in the summer program made gains in reading, vocabulary and math. There is no fee for parents for this program.

the tutor corps program offers a solution to reduce the high school dropout rate and increase the opportunities for post-secondary education for immokalee high school students. There are 70 students participating in the program and 105 enrolled in college. The program components include: a wage for working in the after-school tutoring program, a comprehensive college prep program, a mentor from the community, summer pre-college experiences, and college scholarship funds up to 4000 per year for every year the student is in the program. For the past 8 years 100% of the students in the program graduated from high school and were accepted to college. The college graduation rate for the program exceeds 90%. The average gpa for the students attending college last year was 3. 0. More than 70 students have graduated from colleges and universities and entered professional careers as engineers, teachers, business management trainees, social workers, attorneys, physicians, accountants and many other professions as well. The students often return to immokalee with the desire to give back to the community. Several students have returned to work in professional positions at the guadalupe center.

the organization also operates a resale shop and several special projects to meet the needs of the residents of immokalee. Thanksgiving in the park feeds over 2,000 people, back to school shoes provide new shoes to over 300 children at the beginning of the school year and the holiday gift shop provides over 1,200 gifts to the children of immokalee during the holiday season.