Bethlehem Center of Charlotte is now Alliance Center for Education.

The center was founded by United Methodist Women in 1940 in Charlotte’s Brooklyn neighborhood in Second Ward as a tool for improving economic mobility for children in Mecklenburg County. It offers five-star licensed early childhood development which serves children from birth through age five, as well as year-round programing for children in kindergarten through grade 12. The inaugural graduating pre-K class had less than 20 children. The center has grown to serve almost 800 children on a daily basis from birth to high school seniors.

Over 100 center families gained access to affordable housing, earned a degree or diploma, participated in job training, and/or received emergency crisis intervention in 2019. Enrolled children receive health screenings through community resources, with over 600 children receiving dental, hearing, and/or vision exams in 2019. Last year, the center also provided children and their families with 800,000 hours of education and 300,000 meals. Over the last five years, 96% of students in the center’s Out of School Time program graduated high school on time.   

“Our new brand builds on our 80 years of success, and more accurately represents our mission and values,” Executive Director William McDonald said in a statement. “It’s important that our community understands our ties to education, upward mobility and equity, and we are excited that our new name and brand better reflect those priorities.”

Past alumni of the center include Charlotte City Council member at-large James Mitchell, a Charlotte native and West Charlotte High School alumnus.

“I attended Bethlehem Center of Charlotte as a small child and was supported by their caring teachers who allowed me to dream and let me know that I could achieve my dreams,” he said in a statement. “I am an example of how an individual born into poverty and provided the tools necessary for a good education can become a leader for the city. I would like to see others now partner with the Alliance Center for Education so that more children raised in low income families are allowed to dream and are encouraged to achieve those dreams.”

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