BATON ROUGE — Assumption Parish School's preschool coordinator was appointed Thursday to the state early childhood education commission.

Rachel Dugas has been appointed to the Louisiana Early Childhood Care and Education Commission to help lead the state's early childhood care and education programs. 

“There is a position for the commission for only two representatives of high-performing community early childhood care and education networks, and Mrs. Dugas has been named to one of those positions,” said Karen Powell, deputy assistant superintendent of Early Childhood Care and Education for the Louisiana Department of Education.

Dugas also serves as director of Assumption Parish's Head Start program, which seeks to help low income preschool students enhance their readiness for school and self-sufficiency.

The state early education commission was created in 2018 and is tasked with affordable access to high-quality early childhood education for children under four, as well as helping to establish local initiatives.

The Louisiana Early Childhood Care and Education Commission in 2022 began investing $115 million in new funding annually over the next decade to increase the number of children under age 4 served in early care and education programs.

The new appointees' first meeting will be on June 10.