Early Learning Center

What makes the ELC special?

  • Innovative

    The Early Learning Center is the only early childhood education center model of this type in this part of the country.

  • Quality

    All lead teachers are required to have a four-year degree to implement customized, high-quality education plans.

  • Supportive

    Ongoing case management services provide family members with resources to achieve their goals, increase self-sufficiency.

  • Therapeutic

    On-site Clinical Director focuses on meeting the social and emotional needs of the children and their families.

Children Playing Together, Early Childhood Education, YWCA Greater Cleveland
Smiling Girl, Early Childhood Education, YWCA Greater Cleveland
Smiling Child, Early Childhood Education, YWCA Greater Cleveland

About the ELC

When you visit the Early Learning Center, you will sense right away that this is a happy place – not only for the children, but also for the teaching faculty. Everyone on staff is doing what they love most – working with children and families to establish a solid educational foundation. For more than 100 years, the YWCA has been providing high-quality early childhood education for children ages three to five years while empowering mothers and fathers to pursue their career and educational goals.

YWCA incorporates a therapeutic approach and two-generational model into its Early Learning Center model to best serve children age 3 to 5. This innovative model will assess and identify the social-emotional needs of the children, work with families to create case plans, achieve goals, prevent re-occurrence of homelessness, and empower families to achieve and maintain the highest level of self-sufficiency.

The Early Learning Center offers a unique child care setting for families who live and work throughout Greater Cleveland. Experienced educators teach a child-centered curriculum, and children learn to celebrate differences from a young age. ELC parents stay engaged and up to date through various communication channels, family events, support groups, and parent action teams.

To enroll your child in the ELC

For more information, contact us using the form below:

Urgent Need: ELC Wish List

Meet Marcus: An Early Learning Center Success Story

Early Learning Center Wish List

Thank you for supporting the Early Learning Center! Recently, we made an urgent call for donations of toddler’s socks and underwear. We are in desperate need of new toddler sized underwear and socks. Help us provide these basic essentials. Below is our Amazon Wish List (We are still experiencing technical difficulties with our link, presumably due to Amazon’s recent server outage.) or dropping off to the YWCA offices at 4019 Prospect Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44103.

  • The Early Learning Center is conveniently located between University Circle and downtown, in the administrative building of YWCA Greater Cleveland.

    4019 Prospect Avenue

    Cleveland, OH 44103

    The Early Learning Center is open:

    Monday – Friday, 7:30 AM – 5:30 PM

    The ELC is currently enrolling children 3 to 5 years of age. The ELC is closed eight days throughout the year for holidays and staff development.

  • Preschool

    The Early Learning Center has a whole-child approach to teaching preschoolers, accounting for their mind, body, and soul. We celebrate all children and encourage them to learn about and respect their differences.

    Preparing children for kindergarten comes naturally in our classrooms. YWCA preschool teachers help children internalize routines and rules to help them get along with others. Teachers also help children understand that there are many different ways to learn and be successful. We support each child’s individual strengths, which helps to foster their self-esteem.

    Pre-K

    Pre-K prepares children to enter kindergarten by teaching self-help skills, developing their attention spans, and fostering learning independence. Children develop a love of learning while they become accustomed to working independently, participating in group activities, and completing interest-based projects. Teachers help children understand the daily routines of a structured classroom while still focusing on child-centered, creative learning.

  • To prepare children for kindergarten and empower families to achieve and maintain the highest level of self-sufficiency.

    Studies show that upon entering kindergarten, children who participate in early childhood education programs demonstrate greater language, literacy, and math development than children who go directly from home care to kindergarten.

  • YWCA’s Early Learning Center provides:

    -Lower teacher-to-child ratios

    -Higher teacher education levels

    -A focus on professional development

    -Early childhood mental health consultation

    -Effective administration practices

    -Strong implementation of an evidence-based curriculum

  • In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.

    Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

    To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/USDA-OASCR%20P-Complaint-Form-0508-0002-508-11-28-17Fax2Mail.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:

    1. MAIL: U.S. Department of Agriculture

      Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights

      1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or

    2. FAX: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or

    3. EMAIL: program.intake@usda.gov

    This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

See the impact.

Take a look inside the Early Learning Center and see the impact of our unique approach.

Take a virtual tour of the ELC!

Thank you to NRP Group for serving as the general contractor for our outdoor classroom. The outdoor classroom is a therapeutic learning space that includes art stations, a sandbox, and raised garden beds that segue into a quiet green space.