Brookline Preschool Forced To Close Doors Without State Budget Funds

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Without a state budget deal, a local preschool is being forced to close its doors starting Monday.

No budget deal means no money coming into agencies funded by the state, which is bad news for Our Lady of Loreto School in Brookline.

The preschool program is run through the Council of Three Rivers American Indian Center and relies on state funding. With no money flowing from the state since July, the Council took out two lines of credit to keep programs going. Now, the money is gone, the Council owes half a million dollars in loans and classes are cancelled starting Monday.

"Here we are today, and there are no more funds in terms of the agency's resources, and our first loan payment was due yesterday," said Sue Buffton with the Three Rivers American Indian Center.

Amanda Hillen spends several days a week volunteering in her son Nathan's classroom. She said it's tough to explain to him why he can't come to school next week, and that it's even tougher for working parents trying to scramble for daycare.

"There are a few moms who don't have anyone to help with childcare, so we're going to be taking some of the kids into our house to help out," Hillen said.

While the kids play games with their friends one last afternoon, parents and administrators say they're sick of the games in Harrisburg.

"Make a decision," Hillen said. "These kids' futures depend on it. Pretty soon they're going to be leading this country, and right now, we're teaching them that education isn't important by taking it away."

"When I close my doors on Friday and a hundred at-risk kids, low-income families, a hundred elders have no place to go on Monday, I want to ask them who defined 'essential services'?" Buffton said.

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