The Virgin Islands has completed a $42 million federally funded initiative to rebuild and improve six Head Start facilities across St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John, following Monday's opening of the Dilsa Capdeville Head Start Facility on St. Thomas. The project marks the final construction milestone in a territory-wide effort supported by disaster recovery funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The newly opened St. Thomas center joins five other facilities completed under the initiative: Cruz Bay on St. John; Anna's Hope and Concordia on St. Croix; and Minetta Mitchell and Lindbergh Bay on St. Thomas. According to the Office of Disaster Recovery, approximately $15 million was spent on the St. Croix projects, while the remaining $27 million supported facilities in the St. Thomas-St. John district.
The federal investment was intended to replace and improve early childhood education infrastructure following the widespread damage caused by Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017. The Department of Human Services oversaw the rebuilding effort, with the Office of Disaster Recovery providing project and construction management, expedited payment processing and coordination with other territorial agencies.
The completion of the final facility was celebrated during a dedication ceremony on Monday honoring Dilsa Capdeville, a longtime social worker and child welfare advocate whose career spans more than six decades. Ms. Capdeville attended the ceremony with family members and friends as officials recognized her contributions to protecting vulnerable children and women in the Virgin Islands.
“Strong matriarchs like Ms. Capdeville helped change how we, as a community, understood our responsibility to children,” Governor Albert Bryan Jr. said. “She helped move child welfare beyond something handled quietly within a household to something our whole community had a duty to care about. Her six decades of service remind us how much that work matters. Naming this center in her honor carries that lesson forward for every child and family who walks through these doors.”
The Consortium previously reported on legislation to name the Bolongo Bay Head Start Facility in Ms. Capdeville's honor. During legislative consideration of the measure earlier this year, lawmakers heard testimony about her work as the territory's first child abuse specialist, her role in establishing the first child abuse task force, and her involvement in founding organizations supporting children and families, including Kidscope and Nana Baby Home.
Human Services Commissioner Averil George described Monday's opening as the culmination of the extensive federal investment in the territory's Head Start infrastructure.
“The opening of the Dilsa Capdeville Head Start Facility is more than just the completion of a building; it is the triumphant finish line of a massive $42 million journey to secure the future of our children,” Ms. George said.
The Head Start program provides early childhood education and related services to eligible children and families, including assistance with health, nutrition and developmental needs. The federally funded rebuilding initiative was designed to provide modernized learning environments and strengthen the facilities' ability to withstand future disasters.
The completion of the six facilities follows a series of openings across the territory. The rebuilt Cruz Bay Head Start center on St. John was dedicated in November 2024, while officials held a joint ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Anna's Hope and Concordia projects on St. Croix in August 2026. The St. Thomas projects at Minetta Mitchell and Lindbergh Bay also reached their opening milestones before Monday's final dedication.
Artra Watlington-Francis, deputy director of finance and compliance at the Office of Disaster Recovery, said the agency helped the Department of Human Services administer the federal investment and manage the construction work.
“Today marks the ‘grand finale’ of a multi-million-dollar investment from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Head Start. ODR is pleased to have supported DHS in expending approximately $15 million for projects on St. Croix and $27 million for facilities in the St. Thomas/St. John district,” Ms. Watlington-Francis said.
She credited the Departments of Public Works, Property and Procurement, and Planning and Natural Resources, along with the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority, for helping complete the projects.
The opening of the Dilsa Capdeville facility closes the construction phase of the federally financed rebuilding program. The administration did not provide updated enrollment figures or operating capacity for each of the six completed facilities in Monday's announcement.
