Ground is broken for construction of the Soong Ching Ling Early Childhood Research Center.

As the Soong Ching Ling Kindergarten of China Welfare Institute celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, its fourth-phase project – the Soong Ching Ling Early Childhood Research Center – started construction in Qingpu District on Friday.

The center will integrate functions of early childhood research, international exchanges and teacher cultivation featuring a fusion of health care, caring and education as well as research, training and services, according to Zhu Sujing, the kindergarten principal.

“We expect that with the center, we can give full play to the institute’s research results and capacity in early childhood care, as well as share high-quality educational resources to serve families needing early childhood services,” said Zhang Xiaomin.

“We hope the center will be able to make contributions to integration of educational resources in the Yangtze River Delta region to improve basic education for children and our population’s all-round development and innovative vitality of the nation.”

An artist's rendition of the Soong Ching Ling Early Childhood Research Center

An artist's rendition of a building at the Soong Ching Ling Early Childhood Research Center