$8.75 million, state-of-the-art facility will provide quality education to over 90 children

IFF – a mission-driven lender, real estate consultant and developer — and Matrix Human Services (Matrix) — a nonprofit social services organization and early childhood educator — along with numerous partners, celebrated Tuesday the opening of the new McClellan Early Childhood Center (McClellan) in the Gratiot Woods neighborhood on the East Side of Detroit.

Located on the site where Detroit Public Schools’ Pingree Elementary once operated, the 15,000-square-foot facility features eight classrooms that are providing 96 new seats for early learners in the community, helping to close a 521-seat gap in the surrounding neighborhoods. Offering Head Start and Early Head Start programs, McClellan will welcome its first students by October 2024.

“The McClellan Early Childhood Center is a milestone in our mission to transform Head Start early childhood education in Detroit,” shared Brad Coulter, CEO of Matrix. “By providing a new state of the art facility right in the heart of Gratiot Woods, we are setting a foundation for our children’s future success. This facility is not just a school; it’s a commitment to our community.”

Funding and financing for the $8.75 million project is provided by JPMorgan Chase, Cinnaire, The Kresge Foundation, the City of Detroit, PNC Bank, and IFF.

“The McClellan Early Childhood Center is a prime example of what is possible when passionate partners come together to create opportunity for children, families and their community,” said Kirby Burkholder, president of Core Business Solutions at IFF. “When IFF first began working in Detroit 10 years ago, our intention was to support the rich landscape of nonprofits and the communities they serve, and this project exemplifies what that commitment looks like in action. We believe that every child has the right to quality early learning, and through our services and our partnerships, we are committed to meaningfully increasing access. We are thrilled that this state-of-the-art facility now exists to support Matrix’s work to help Detroit’s families thrive.”

“Providing financing to a CDFI that is bolstering job creation and providing quality child care to Detroit is essential for both workforce and community development,” said En Jung Kim, Head of New Markets Tax Credit at JPMorgan Chase. “IFF has a unique ability to provide a range of services, including development expertise, that fills a gap for the community and sets them apart.”

Access to quality early childhood education continues to be a priority for the City of Detroit and Hope Starts Here, a citywide framework to develop a comprehensive early childhood system in Detroit that puts young children and families first. In 2015, IFF released The System We Need: A Neighborhood Snapshot of Early Education in Detroit, a rigorous, data-driven research study that found that more than 20,000 Detroit children ages 0-5 did not have access to quality education; a number that has risen as a result of the pandemic. The study helped to catalyze the formation of Hope Starts Here and the plans for new early childhood centers to meet the demand for quality child care in Detroit. The first new center under the framework, Marygrove Early Education Center, opened in 2021, and was developed through a partnership between The Kresge Foundation, Starfish Family Services, IFF and others. In 2019, as the development of the Marygrove Early Education Center was underway, IFF acquired the land that would become the second center – McClellan. A third center is in the early stages of development in Southwest Detroit.

“The McClellan Early Childhood Center represents a significant step forward in our commitment to providing Detroit’s children with access to high-quality early education,” said Detroit Deputy Mayor Todd Bettison. “This new facility not only addresses a critical need for our early learners, but also serves as a shining example of how dedicated partnerships can drive meaningful change in our community. We are grateful for the collaborative efforts of IFF, Matrix Human Services and all our partners who made this achievement possible.”

“McClellan Early Childhood Center reflects what is possible when a city rallies around the needs of its children, families and communities,” said Wendy Lewis Jackson, managing director for Kresge’s Detroit Program. “For the last 10 years, we’ve worked closely with IFF to increase access to quality early childhood education for all of Detroit’s children, to make Detroit a city that truly puts its youth children first. With this center – whose design and planned programming reflect community priorities identified in the Hope Starts Here framework – we have passed a milestone in reaching that goal.”

“Investing in early childhood education lays the foundation for children’s future success in school and beyond,” said Peter Giles, SVP Public Funding at Cinnaire. “Cinnaire’s New Markets Tax Credit investment in McClellan reflects our strong support for IFF’s pursuit of making early childhood learning available with a standard of excellence for all Detroit children. McClellan and Marygrove Early Childhood Center are examples of IFF’s commitment to expanding opportunities for early learning across the city and Cinnaire is proud to have partnered in bringing the vision of both projects to reality.”

Like Marygrove, McClellan emphasizes leading practices for the design, operation and financing of early childhood facilities. Each classroom encourages play and learning while providing ample opportunity for interaction with the natural landscape surrounding the facility, which was designed by D Met Studio and built by general contractor PCI Dailey.

Informed by input from more than 300 community members that was gathered through canvassing and neighborhood events by IFF partner MACC Development – a place-based community development organization – McClellan also features a community room and meeting spaces that will be used by residents and local organizations for decades to come.

Additionally, acknowledging the importance of a significant asset like McClellan staying in the hands of the community, IFF will act as interim owner of the facility, taking on the upfront risk and enabling Matrix to develop programming and focus on serving the children enrolled at the center and their. After Matrix’s operations at McClellan are well established, the organization will have the opportunity to assume ownership of the facility.

Laura Silverman is the managing director for communications at IFF. For more information about the project visit: https://iff.org/mcclellan.