Operation Breakthrough building a bridge to Kansas City’s future
The fact that 3-year-olds learn the rudiments of coding for computers at Operation Breakthrough is a positive sign for Kansas City’s future economic health.
Civic leadership is actively working to bolster the strength and capacity of our future workforce by focusing on the educations of those employees now, while they’re still toddlers, not yet even in kindergarten.
A key component in the effort to provide a quality pre-K education for all children was announced Thursday. It came in the form of a $17 million expansion of Operation Breakthrough, the beloved daycare and educational program at 31st and Troost Avenue that has educated at-risk children for nearly 50 years.
A bridge will be constructed, literally connecting the older Operation Breakthrough building (a former J.C. Penney’s store) to the new space, (formerly The Jones Store) across the street. The bridge will be both symbolic and functional.
The project needs another $2 million to meet challenge grants from the J.E. and L.E. Mabee Foundation and the Hall Family Foundation. The remodeled building is to open in the fall, allowing Operation Breakthrough to serve an additional 290 children and their families, bringing the total to 720.
About those toddlers who are coding: The idea is to ensure that very young children are adept at “the language of science,” explained Mary Esselman, Operation Breakthrough’s CEO since 2015. The approach instills a mindset that is at ease with the skills required for science, technology, engineering and math — the STEM competencies.
Pre-kindergarten children learn to build circuits on paper out of copper tape, small lithium batteries and light bulbs. Operation Breakthrough kids also harvest motors out of old toys to build new gadgets and machinery. And they’re taught measurements through cooking.
The older students apply the knowledge to projects they conceive and design, a form of self-directed learning. One child is working on a model for a community cell phone charging station. He was aware that many impoverished homes don’t always have electricity.
Operation Breakthrough’s expansion and focus on early learning dovetail with efforts spearheaded by the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce. Earlier this month, the chamber kicked off a campaign promoting early childhood education. Quality pre-K education is a crucial factor for later school success. Without it, children from poorer families are more likely to fall behind their affluent peers, always having to work harder just to catch up.
Addressing that disadvantage has long been the work of Operation Breakthrough. It’s a remarkable program, founded in 1971 and nurtured by Sisters Berta Sailer and Corita Bussanmas. The sisters are still involved and have toured the new space, assisting in design decisions.
Theirs is an incredible legacy — one borne of love for children and a deep respect for education as the backbone of strong communities. Now it’s up to Kansas City to keep building on those commitments.
This story was originally published February 25, 2018 at 3:30 PM with the headline "Operation Breakthrough building a bridge to Kansas City’s future."