WINNEBAGO -- A deep-seated desire to better prepare their children for kindergarten led leaders of the Winnebago Tribe to a program that serves as a national model for early childhood education.

The northeast Nebraska tribe joined with an Omaha-based charitable group headed by Susie Buffett to develop the first Educare center on a Native reservation.

Tribal leaders and educators broke ground Wednesday on the $10 million facility, which will serve nearly 200 infants, toddlers and preschoolers when it opens early next year.

More than 50 people gathered under a tent at the construction site just south of town along Highway 75. The ceremony was steeped in tradition, with a tribal elder blessing the ground and a group of young male performers chanting and beating on a large rawhide drum.