First 5 Fresno County starts child-care scholarship program

A new scholarship program making child care more affordable at the Lighthouse for Children Child Development Center was approved Wednesday.

The First 5 Fresno County Scholarship Program will offset up to 60 percent of tuition costs for those earning between 30 percent and 50 percent more than the California State Preschool Program’s maximum income guidelines, aiming to fill in the gap for families who earn too much to qualify for state support but are still unable to afford full tuition amounts.

First 5 Fresno County and the Fresno County Office of Education, the center’s operator, developed the proposed tuition scholarship with the intent of creating a diverse socioeconomic center for children to thrive academically.

The Lighthouse for Children Child Development Center is in the licensing phase and is scheduled to open in early 2016.

This story was originally published November 19, 2015 at 7:18 PM with the headline "First 5 Fresno County starts child-care scholarship program."