Last week, the Northside neighborhood celebrated another milestone by breaking ground on The Franklin School, a new early learning center that will serve approximately 160 children ages six weeks through five years old.  The Mary Black Foundation has partnered with the Northside Development Group since it was formed and has funded numerous projects in the neighborhood.  The focus on cradle to career education and the desire to build a high quality early learning center that would serve children of all backgrounds aligned perfectly with the Foundation’s priority area in early childhood development.  In December 2013, the Foundation made a $1 million lead gift to build The Franklin School and, in 2015, the Foundation increased its commitment to $2.5 million.

The Franklin School represents a unique partnership among Spartanburg County First Steps, Early Head Start, Head Start, School District 7, and USC Upstate.  Spartanburg County First Steps will operate The Franklin School in collaboration with the other service providers.

The Franklin School will begin serving families in January 2019, but enrollment will begin in early 2018.  Families interested in enrolling their children in The Franklin School, should visit www.thefranklinschool.org for more information.

To learn more about the groundbreaking event, check out this Go Upstate article and photo gallery.