WHAT:
The Cherokee Nation will celebrate the grand opening of its new 38,000 square-foot Pryor Childhood Development Center and Head Start in the MidAmerica Industrial Park.
WHEN:
Thursday, July 31 at 11 a.m.
WHERE:
Pryor Child Development Center and Head Start
3343 W. 530 Road in Pryor
MidAmerica Industrial Park
WHO:
Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr.
Cherokee Nation Deputy Chief Bryan Warner
Cherokee Nation Cabinet
Council of the Cherokee Nation
Cherokee Nation Education Services
Cherokee Nation Human Services
Pryor Community leaders
PRYOR, Okla. — The Cherokee Nation is opening a brand new 38,000-square-foot childcare facility, which will serve 150 children across 15 classrooms. The new state-of-the-art facility has amenities such as a FEMA-rated safe room, secure entrances, age-appropriate classrooms, two kitchens along with other designs with safety and functionality in mind.
The new facility to help families with more childcare options, was partly funded through the historic Verna D. Thompson Early Childhood Education Act of 2021, which was expanded in March of 2024 to provide an $80 million investment in replacing aging early childhood education Head Start centers across the Reservation. Upgrades are being made to existing facilities along with a comprehensive review of all early childhood education services for Cherokee citizens.
The tribe recently opened a new Head Start facility in Jay and construction is ongoing for the new Head Start in Tahlequah.