EVERETT — The future of an esteemed early education program at Everett Community College remains uncertain, despite Snohomish County’s offer for hundreds of thousands of dollars in increased funding.

Before the Thanksgiving break, the school’s departing president announced plans to close the Early Learning Center, a preschool heralded as a beacon for families with low incomes. Instead, college leaders said they would look for an outside organization to operate a child care program in that same building on the northeast end of campus.

Public opposition swiftly mounted.

Everett, Snohomish County and state elected officials said they would seek funding to sustain the program. On Nov. 30 the college’s Board of Trustees delayed the decision to close the Early Learning Center.

The pre-kindergarten program supports children ages 3 to 4 in families with low incomes through the state-funded Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP). The college also runs an Early ECEAP program there for children from birth to 3 years old, one of only 10 contracted by the state.

But union leaders and the preschool’s staff worry the college’s leaders have decided to shutter the center after a bargaining meeting this month, despite the county’s offer to increase funding.

“When you have that much support and you want to throw it away, I just can’t understand,” said Stephanie Doyle, president of the Washington Federation of State Employees union that represents the remaining 12 Early Learning Center faculty and staff. “You’re really hurting children and families that need the Early Learning Center more than ever.”

Joe Whalen, Everett Community College’s acting president and vice president of human resources, wrote in an email the school has not made a decision. But without a “permanent funding source” identified, the college is “continuing to explore all financially sustainable options for offering on-campus childcare … without interruption,” he said in a letter to Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers last week.

Over the five years before the pandemic, the Early Learning Center’s expenses were roughly $700,000 over its revenue, according to school officials. The college covered that gap, but school leaders don’t consider it sustainable.

“This deficit has continued to draw support away from other college needs in order to fund the continued operations” of the Early Learning Center, Whalen wrote. “The college is not in a financial position to continue to bear the financial liability involved in continuing the program.”

Since the 2015-16 school year, the program’s expenses grew from $1.28 million to $1.58 million before the pandemic. Once COVID-19 took hold, expenses dropped to $1.22 million, according to a report by the college.

To break even and operate the Early Learning Center next school year, the college needs $200,000 in supplemental funding, Whalen said. Everett Community College gets $530,343 as a subcontractor through the county to provide ECEAP, according to state records.

In November, there were 45 children from 40 families enrolled.

Early Learning Center employees also said revenue can increase with more students. The center is licensed for up to 120, and in typical years, it normally enrolls around 100. But they can’t do that without hiring staff and teachers.

“We’re so low-staffed but we’re trying to maintain a safe ratio for children,” teacher Amanda Portier said. “We’re working with chaos, but we’re making it work.”

Last month Somers’ office proposed hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional annual funding over the next 10 years be dedicated to the learning center.

Lacey Harper, an executive director with the county, identified the Puget Sound Taxpayer Accountability Account (PSTAA) as a major revenue source in an email to the college administration and board of trustees Dec. 10.

County staff project that fund to accrue about $80 million through 2034. The Snohomish County Council marked over 70% of it for education of children from birth to third grade, with a goal of helping children who are homeless or poor.

Everett Community College and the county have an agreement for $88,000 from that fund this year. Most of that is for a cooperative childcare program for children ages 1 to 5 through ChildStrive, a nonprofit that works with young children and their families to support families with low incomes in adult education classes. A student-parent peer navigator program is getting $20,000.

The county has marked the college’s funding to increase to $176,000 for next school year. County staff project the PSTAA to “substantially increase each year” with a peak of $538,000 in a decade.

The extra money would let the college and county “sustain and grow efforts to support student retention and completion efforts, and to support early learning programs for student parents,” Harper wrote in the letter Dec. 10.

But Everett Community College has already “earmarked” the PSTAA funding per their original agreement for “very specific family-related initiatives,” Whalen said in his letter to Somers.

“We had hoped to use additional funding to support the creation of an on-campus family resource center for our students,” he wrote. “… We would recommend using PSTAA funding on initiatives other than the ELC, because the ELC only serves a small percentage of our students. The college needs to consider the 18,000 students we serve each year as we allocate existing program funding.”

Snohomish County hasn’t specifically allocated the PSTAA money beyond this year.

Harper also said the county could use some of its $160 million American Rescue Plan Act money to “stabilize” the Early Learning Center through next school year. Then the PSTAA increases would supplant that one-time infusion, which did not have a specified amount in the letter.

The Legislature’s Fair Start for Kids Act from last session is set to bolster access and subsidies to child care and early childhood development programs. Harper considered it another avenue for Early Learning Center revenue.

“There is growing support at the state and federal level for investments in childcare and early learning programs,” Harper wrote. “Snohomish County is committed to securing these financial resources in collaboration with our community partners.”

College staff discussed the Early Learning Center’s options with the state Department of Children, Youth and Families earlier this month, state spokesperson Emily Boone said in an email. According to her, they talked about the potential of directly contracting with the state for its ECEAP services, similar to its Early ECEAP that started in 2020. The state also encouraged the college to discuss its current rates with the county, Boone said.

“This is not a decision for DCYF to make but is rather something that is discussed between contractors and subcontractors,” Boone said. “In this scenario, Snohomish County will make a decision about any contract adjustments (rates or otherwise) and would work closely with DCYF regarding any changes in their direct contract.”

Everett Community College recently approved a contract with Darrell Cain to be interim president, while the board of trustees seeks candidates for the position.

Doyle and Portier said they hope any decisions wait until Cain starts. The union’s contract requires at least 30 days notice for layoffs.

College and county staff met Tuesday and plan to continue discussions about potential funding.

Ben Watanabe: bwatanabe@heraldnet.com; 425-339-3037; Twitter @benwatanabe.