YMCA Early Childhood Services
The YMCA of the Central Bay Area provides comprehensive early care and education programs that promote school success and family involvement, reflecting the cultural and linguistic diversity of our service area - Albany, Berkeley and Emeryville. Services are available for children birth to age 5, pregnant women and their families. We welcome all children with mild to severe disabilities.
Our Early Childhood Services (ECS) programs provide:
- Warm, safe and nurturing environments for young children.
- Highly qualified staff with caring and supportive attitudes.
- Opportunities for families to participate in leadership and policy-making groups, make friends and build communitites.
- Services that are respectful, comprehensive and designed to meet the needs of children, families and the community.
State Preschool
In addition to Head Start and Early Head Start, we operate a California Department of Education child care program, in which a child can arrive as early as 7:30 am and stay as late as 5:00 pm. In order to be eligible for extended child care hours, parent(s) in the home must have a need for care, such as working, going to school, seeking employment, incapacitation or an active Child Protective Services case.
