EARLY LEARNING COALITION OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY CEO ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT

TAMPA, Fla., Aug. 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Early Learning Coalition of Hillsborough County (ELCHC) Chief Executive Officer Gordon L. Gillette announced his retirement to the ELCHC Board of Directors on Monday, August 1, 2022. After four years of dedicated service as the CEO of the ELCHC and more than three decades at TECO, Gillette plans to enjoy his retirement.

Gillette said, "I came to the Coalition after retiring with 36 years of service from TECO, where much of my non-profit volunteer work had been in education. It has been my distinct pleasure to work with a strong leadership team to serve the families and children of Hillsborough County. With 90% of brain development occurring before age 5, this work is of paramount importance for every child. We have made great progress in early learning in our County, and I am proud to have led the Coalition during this time."

Under Gillette's leadership, the Coalition reduced the waitlist from several thousand to zero, decreasing the time families wait for services, created new local programming aimed at preparing children for kindergarten. He led the Coalition during the COVID-19 pandemic, helping child care business owners stay in business, including raising rates four times to increase the amount per child received by child care programs participating in the School Readiness program. Gillette is also credited with bringing INCENTIVE$ to the Coalition, resulting in more than $1MM in wage supplements to early education teachers in the County.

Established by the State Legislature, the Early Learning Coalition of Hillsborough County (ELCHC) is a 501(c)(3) organization focused on promoting school and life success for young children and their families through quality school readiness services and supports. The ELCHC administers School Readiness and VPK (Voluntary Prekindergarten) programs in Hillsborough County, offers teacher trainings and coaching, and provides Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) along with other services that daily serve more than 20,000 children and their families.

Contact: Alison Fraga
Phone: 813-205-6205
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Early Learning Coalition of Hillsborough County