BY JOE ARCE AND COREY CRABLE
The Mattie Rhodes Center is expanding its Early Childhood Education services, launching a new Head Start program in Kansas City’s Northland.
John Fierro, president and CEO, made the announcement at a Jan. 22 open house at the new location north of the river, 3100 NE 83rd St. Kansas City, Missouri.
“This is certainly a milestone moment for our agency,” Fierro said. “How progressive that was when Mattie Florence Rhodes knew she was going to die of typhoid fever, left behind $500, and said, ‘I want this organization, these funds to be used to care for the most vulnerable populations of our city,’ and I am so proud that we continue to fulfill that foresight that she had.”
Fierro said he had heard last year that the Head Start location faced closure, and that he jumped at the chance to continue the good work it does for kids and families. The center’s Board of Directors shared Fierro’s enthusiasm, approving the move. He said that since then, minor repairs to the facility have been done and a mural by local artist J.T. Daniels installed.
“In January, we were working on making sure that we had everything that the state needed to approve licensure. That happened on a Monday. By that Wednesday, the staff was hosting an orientation for our families. We have about 58 families enrolled. Then last week we went live on a Monday,” he said.
The Head Start program’s new director, Susie Marks, called Mattie Rhodes “the perfect fit” for the program. She praised staff members for moving the program’s vision forward.
“I feel very, very lucky to be a part of this and to have such a supportive staff,” Marks said, “because as much as I do, I can’t do it without my staff.”
Fierro said this new development is proof that Mattie Rhodes continues to expand its reach throughout the metro.
“After COVID, we realized that there were multiple needs we were responding to throughout greater Kansas City. Certainly, our foundation, our history has been in the Westside neighborhood of Kansas City, MO,” he said. “For the last 25 years, it’s been in the Historic Northeast. And we expanded to the Northland about five years ago. But truly now, Mattie Rhodes is very much a regional organization working in Jackson County and in Clay County.”
A major selling point for the Head Start program, Fierro added, is that it employs bilingual staff, meaning that families from Spanish-speaking households will be able to better communicate with the program’s staff members.
“We recognize that the cultural diversity in the Northland is expanding. And in particular, in Clay County, the Hispanic population is probably at a minimum of 12,000 individuals. And so, our Head Start will provide bilingual services in English and Spanish to support those families, as well as those other Hispanic families that are very fluent in English,” Fierro said. “But what I see just in our first few months of being here with the Head Start is, the Northland is definitely changing and becoming very culturally diverse with the growing Hispanic population, Middle Eastern population, and Somalian population.”
Kansas City Councilwoman Lindsay French said that Mattie Rhodes is now filling a void in early childhood education in the city, providing much-needed resources to families.
“By Mattie Rhodes picking it up and moving it forward, there’s no longer a void. There’s always a childcare void,” French said. “But having Mattie Rhodes come in and step in and take over has really brought a new life, a new vibrancy to the program itself in order to really help provide a different type of resource.”
According to a press release from Mattie Rhodes, “The addition of this Head Start school aligns with Mattie Rhodes Center’s mission to empower individuals, families, and communities through education, counseling, and social services. By overseeing this program, Mattie Rhodes is extending its decades-long service while responding to a growing community need for accessible, trusted childcare and education services.”
For more information, visit www.mattierhodes.org.
