Construction is underway for an early education and childcare center in Zion — an area described during a groundbreaking event Monday as a childcare “desert” — as officials look to what the school will mean for the city’s future.
Known as Educare Lake County, the 38,000-square-foot building comes from Chicago nonprofit Start Early, which promotes early childhood education and development and is aimed at “historically under-resourced communities,” according to a news release.
The building site sits between Shiloh Park and Zion Central middle schools, at 1800 27th Street, and will serve 174 students from ages six weeks to 5 years. The $30 million building, funded with a blend of public and private money, could open to students as soon as the 2027-28 school year, nonprofit officials said.
Zion Mayor Billy McKinney, who gave remarks during the groundbreaking, described the city as “overshadowed” for years. Educare is a step towards changing that, he said, emphasizing the importance of the education system for a long-term vision of the city.
That vision includes the creation of the Zion Leadership Group, made up of various taxing bodies across the city and meant to increase collaboration. That collaborative spirit seemed to be on display during Tuesday’s well-attended event, with local officials and representatives from numerous organizations coming to celebrate.
It’s a project years in the making — conversations first began three years ago — but it will be “transformational” for the city, McKinney said.
“When you have great school systems, people are more inclined to move into your community,” he said after the event. “You’ll continue to see the growth in the city of Zion as a result of what’s happening in the school system.”
Childcare programs are something Zion has been lacking for years, McKinney said, despite being crucial both for the community’s long-term health as well as for individual students and families.
Although the school won’t fall under Zion Elementary School District 6, many of Educare’s students will find themselves in the halls of District 6 schools when they’re older. Superintendent Julious Lawson was in attendance, and he emphasized a similar big-picture approach to what McKinney shared.
“It’s about just a collective, collaborative effort to ensure that our community is strong,” Lawson said.
According to a release, Educare Lake County is an early childhood program that will provide early learning and comprehensive family support services for children from birth to age 5.
“We know that the first five years of life are really the foundation for children’s learning and development and for families supporting their children in succeeding in school,” outgoing Start Early President Diana Rauner said.
Lake County has been “vastly underserved” in early learning and care, she said, and for the city to have “outstanding” middle and high schoolers, “you need to start early.”
The school will have full-day, year-round programming, early learning classrooms, a STEAM room and library (which adds arts to the more typical STEM acronym), indoor and outdoor play spaces, and dedicated community gathering and family support spaces.
The school will be staffed by bilingual teachers and professionals, “reflective of the community it serves,” the release said.
For every 10 children eligible for early care and education services, Rauner said Lake County has just three slots available, creating a childhood care “desert.”
She referenced a 2023 Lake County Regional Office of Education assessment on the county’s early childhood system. That study had concluded there were “not enough publicly funded slots” for the number of eligible children, numerous families couldn’t afford the cost of care, and efforts to expand access “will be challenged” without “significant investments” to support the early childhood workforce.
Start Early’s release emphasized a workforce development aspect to the school. Educare will be recruiting, developing and retaining “highly skilled early childhood educators,” while providing “coaching, professional development and career pathway opportunities for educators,” it said.
Educare Lake County will be Start Early’s first permanent location in the county. Since 2024, it has operated two interim locations in Beach Park and Waukegan.
Tremesha Bay currently works at Educare’s interim locations as a disabilities and mental health coordinator. She is looking forward to getting all their services under one physical roof, she said. Bay, who has a young daughter, has seen firsthand the benefits of early education.
In a county with vast economic differences between communities, bringing something like Educare to Zion is important for the kids, Bay said.
“I grew up in Lake County all my life,” she said. “There was nothing like this for me.”
For County Board member Gina Roberts, the school is a commitment to “better education for our children. It means a commitment to Zion, a commitment to education for children.”
“Every kid, no matter what Zip Code they are in, should have the same opportunity,” Roberts said.
