Mayor Attends October 3 Groundbreaking
(Nashville, Tenn., October 3, 2024) Responding to the critical need for quality, affordable childcare in Nashville, Saint Mary Villa Child Development Center, one of the longest-serving child care centers in Nashville, and Renewal House have partnered to bring a new childcare center on the Renewal House campus on Clarksville Pike.
This new center will be the first of three new centers in the Nashville area to be established and run by Saint Mary Villa as a result of a $1.93 million grant from the Tennessee Department of Human Services. With generous support from the community, Renewal House is investing more than $4 million to build the childcare center on its campus. Mayor Freddie O’Connell, several Metro Nashville Council members, along with board members from Saint Mary Villa and Renewal House, will take part in the groundbreaking.
The new 7,400-square-foot building is designed to serve up to 75 children, infant to preschool, with up to 45 spaces designated for children of Renewal House clients. Saint Mary Villa will begin accepting applications in April 2025 for an expected Fall 2025 opening. Pamela Sessions, Chief Executive Officer of Renewal House stated, “this partnership is a win-win for all involved. Renewal House provides the facility, Saint Mary Villa serves as the operator, and our area’s families receive an important child care center.”
“This is an important step in meeting the growing demand for quality, affordable childcare in Middle Tennessee, and we are delighted to put our grant into action so we can provide our services to the many families who need us,” said Alyssa Garnett-Arno, executive director of Saint Mary Villa. “We are so pleased to partner with Renewal House on this new center and look forward to welcoming families next year.”
Saint Mary Villa Child Development Center at 1704 Heiman Road accepts students on a sliding scale tuition basis, and the new center at Renewal House will do the same. Both centers accept the Smart Steps childcare assistance program through the State of Tennessee, making it possible for families at all income levels to afford quality childcare and early education for their children.
Saint Mary Villa, founded in 1863 as Saint Mary Orphanage and operated continuously in Nashville ever since, serves more than 145 children, infants through PreK. The new center on Renewal House’s campus at 3600 Clarksville Pike will open with 40 students and expand to 75 within the first year.
“We are thrilled to partner with Saint Mary Villa to make our campus the location for their first new center,” Pamela Sessions, Chief Executive Officer of Renewal House said. “Being able to provide quality education to our residents’ young children and other families in the area is extremely important.”
ABOUT SAINT MARY VILLA
Saint Mary Villa has been caring for children for over 150 years, starting as an orphanage in the mid-1800s in response to family and social disruption following the American Civil War. A beneficiary of the United Way, the center consistently provided exceptional child care services as an early learning center for over 30 years – along with measurable and documented results. Saint Mary Villa provides licensed, 3-Star rated (the highest rating award by the State of Tennessee) full-time child care at its Heiman Street location and soon as its Renewal House location on Clarksville Pike. It also provides daily after-school care at Saint Ann School. More information is available at www.stmaryvilla.org.
ABOUT RENEWAL HOUSE
Renewal House provides specialized substance use treatment to women and their children. Since 1996, Renewal House has served 9800 women and children through all its programs and is the only long-term family residential program in Middle Tennessee that treats women and their children together. Other Renewal House programs include intensive outpatient services, affordable recovery housing, and therapeutic groups for women and children. More information is available at www.renewalhouse.org