About Us
PRE4CLE is dedicated to ensuring that every child in Cleveland has access to a high-quality preschool education.
Our mission
PRE4CLE’s mission is to expand access to high-quality preschool to every child in the City of Cleveland.
Our vision
Every child in the City of Cleveland enters kindergarten ready to succeed.
Our history
March 11, 2014
PRE4CLE officially launches!
December 2014
President Barack Obama praises PRE4CLE as model for collaboration at the White House Summit on Early Education
May 2015
PRE4CLE celebrates the induction of the first 90 PRE4CLE Preschool providers
June 2015
33% of Cleveland preschoolers enrolled in high-quality preschool
July 2015
Classroom expansion grants create 180 new high-quality preschool seats
November 2015
Cuyahoga County passes $10 million expansion of UPK programs with $12 million private match to create 2,000 new UPK seats
2015
Cleveland surpasses 100 high-quality preschool providers throughout the city
August 2016
PRE4CLE launches an outreach and enrollment campaign to engage families resulting in more than 400 preschool referrals in the first two years.
December 2016
First PRE4CLE Plan update is published
June 2017
PRE4CLE's Second Annual Report is released, highlighting that 4,277 children were enrolled in high-quality preschool across Cleveland
July 2018
PRE4CLE's Accelerated Quality Improvement Model helps unrated and lower quality preschools receive high-quality ratings
August 2018
PRE4CLE hosts the first Preschool Palooza at the Children’s Museum of Cleveland
September 2019
PRE4CLE celebrates five years of progress and a 72% increase in preschool enrollment
November 2019
70% of children who regularly attended high-quality preschool were demonstrating or approaching kindergarten readiness
March 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic shuts down early childhood providers city-wide
2020
Cleveland surpassed 200 high-quality preschool providers
April 2022
Cleveland Early Learning Spaces is launched to address early learning facilities in Cleveland
January 2023
The PRE4CLE Plan Refresh is published
December 2024
Number of kids enrolled in high-quality preschool returns to pre-pandemic levels.
Our Steering Committee
The PRE4CLE Steering Committee is a public-private leadership body that is responsible for developing, guiding, and collaboratively participating in the PRE4CLE Plan.
Executive Committee
Marcia Egbert
Co-Chair
Program Director for Thriving Families & Social Justice, The George Gund Foundation
Dr. Warren Morgan
Co-Chair
CEO, Cleveland Metropolitan School District
Shawna Rohrman
Director at Invest In Children/Cuyahoga County Office of Early Childhood
Mark Sniderman
Executive in Residence at Case Western Reserve University Weatherhead School of Management
Sonya Pryor-Jones
Advisor to Mayor Justin Bibb
Chief of Youth and Family Success at City of Cleveland
Nancy Mendez
President and CEO of Starting Point
Steering Committee Members
Michelle Rzucidlo
Teacher at Cleveland Metropolitan School District
Cleveland Teachers Union Secretary
Jennifer Dodd
Assistant Superintendent at Educational Service Center of Northeast Ohio
Marianne Wolf
Director of Special Education Preschool at Cleveland Metropolitan School District
Kristen Baird Adams
Chief of Staff at Office of the Regional Presidents of PNC Bank
Karen Mintzer
Director at Bright Beginnings
Kathleen Hallissey
Director of Community-Responsive Grantmaking at The Cleveland Foundation
Ann Mullin
Associate Director and Program Director for Public Education at The George Gund Foundation
Felton Thomas
Director of Cleveland Public Library
Bob Mengerink
Superintendent at Educational Service Center of Northeast Ohio
Dr. Jacklyn A. Chisholm
President and Chief Executive Officer at Step Forward
Erin Deimling
Vice President and Director of Client and Community Relations at PNC Bank
Meagan Ray-Novak
Research Associate at the Center on Poverty and Community Development at Case Western Reserve University
Rob Fischer
Co-Director at the Center on Poverty and Community Development at Case Western Reserve University
Denise Hallman
Early Childhood Education Manager at Ideastream Public Media
Linda Schettler
Director of Early Learning Programs at Catholic Charities Early Learning Program & Head Start
Eric Morse
President and CEO of The Centers for Families and Children
Meghann Marnecheck
Executive Director of Cleveland Transformation Alliance
Kara Porter
Vice President of Strategy at Starting Point
Samantha Whatley
Senior Manager, Head Start/ Early Head Start Business Support & Performance, Step Forward
Mary Rose Molnar
Site Administrator of Villa Head Start
Our Staff
Katie Kelly
Executive Director
Michelle Connavino
Deputy Director & Chief of Staff
Mary Carter
Communication Manager
Dani Elliot
Cleveland Early Learning Spaces Manager
Barb Pritschau
Administrative Assistant
Jazmyne Lewis
Outreach and Provider Engagement Manager
Staff emails are first initial followed by last name @pre4cle.org (ie: jsmith@pre4cle.org)
PRE4CLE partners with hundreds of preschools across the City of Cleveland.
PRE4CLE is supported by the following organizations:
The Educational Service Center of Northeast Ohio provides backbone support for PRE4CLE through administrative and fiscal oversight.
Want to support our work? Donate or contact a member of our team today!