St. John Brebeuf Opens Doors to FranCenter and Conference

As part of the year long celebration of its 60th Anniversary, St. John Brebeuf (SJB) parish first opened its doors this Spring to FranCenter, a non-profit organization focused on helping children and their families who may be experiencing emotional stress, learning or behavioral problems. Then, SJB on Aug. 13-14 hosted the First Annual Early Childhood Conference during which FranCenter trained 150 teachers and administrators from 39 area schools. 

"Our organization has been based in Darien, Illinois for over three decades," says Dr. Robert E. Marciante, FranCenter's Chief Executive Officer. "But, we often heard we are too far away from the concentration of schools in the Chicago Archdiocese and Cook County. So, Father Michael Meany graciously gave us space at SJB which we now call FranCenter North." The new office is located at 8301 N. Harlem Ave., Niles.

The Conference was part of FranCenter's ongoing workshops and seminars. The organization also provides specialists such as teachers, counselors, social workers and therapists onsite to individual schools and school districts on an annual contractual basis. It averages over 100 contractual programs a year.

"In some areas, we could also be compared to commercial tutoring services which advertise on television," says Marciante. "However, since we are a non-profit we can offer services at a better price and provide great value for top quality one-on-one instruction. Most of our staff holds Masters or Doctorate degrees."

Marciante added that he is very familiar with SJB since he was married there many years ago. "We are thrilled to be part of this lovely campus in the heart of the Village of Niles and northwest suburban Cook County," he said.

For more information about FranCenter call 630-541-7138 or visit www.francenter.com. For information about SJB events including upcoming concerts and other activities call 847-966-8145 or visit www.sjbrebeuf.com.