Gov. Dayton Recommends $3.75 Million in Bond Money for St. David's Center

Governor Mark Dayton released his 2014 capital budget recommendations for state bonding Wednesday. 

Included in the plan is $3.75 million for expansion and renovation of St. David’s Center for Child & Family Development, a Minnetonka nonprofit specializing in exceptional early childhood education and intervention and treatment for children with developmental needs.

“Our planned renovation and expansion will improve our capacity to reach twice as many children with important services in the areas of autism, pediatric rehabilitation, and mental health, as well as support an early childhood education program that shows great outcomes for both typically developing children and children with disabilities," said Julie Sjordal, Executive Director at St. David’s Center.

St. David’s Center’s Building Our Children’s Future $12.25 million capital campaign is working to raise $8.5 million in private sector support to leverage a request for $3.75 million in State bond funding. To date, $6.8 million has been raised or pledged, including $2.25 million from the Peter J. King Family Foundation—the largest grant ever received by St. David’s Center.

St. David’s Center’s Building Our Children’s Future Capital Campaign will create a state-of-the-art early education, early intervention and treatment, and training center that supports services on site and in the community. 

Building Our Children’s Future will support redesigned and expanded autism day treatment classrooms (including a new community-based program in N.E. Minneapolis scheduled to open in March 2014); a children’s mental health facility housing outpatient and community-based services; therapy gyms; and improved classroom environments—including a School Forest—where children of all abilities learn side-by-side. 

As a result of these improvements, 90 percent more children with identified early intervention needs will receive services within the first three years of the investment.