Letter: New early education center a welcome addition to Farmington

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I echo the University of Maine at Farmington President Joseph McDonnell’s excitement about the new Sweatt-Winter Child Care and Early Education Center . It is a wonderful addition to our community for the parents and young children who need high-quality child care, and for the university students interested in early education who will use this as a learning lab for their future careers.

As someone who has spent my career in law enforcement, I can also attest to the fact that high-quality early learning centers like this one also support community safety.

Early learning programs help start children off on the right path in life and keep them safe. We know that the first five years of life are critical to each child’s development. Early learning programs also give parents the peace of mind that their children are safe and nurtured while they are working. As a chief of police, I also know that children who participate in early learning programs in their early years are much less likely to be involved in criminal activity as they grow older.

Setting our youngest children up for later success in school and life is also foundational to helping Maine support our state’s educational attainment goal that 60 percent of Maine adults will earn a post-secondary degree or credential of value by 2025 and into the future.

Hats off and welcome to the new Sweatt-Winter Child Care and Early Education Center.

Kenneth Charles

Chief of police

Farmington