Journal & Topics Media Group

Community Leaders Tout Benefits Of Investing In Early Childhood Education

Dist. 62 Facility Serves As Model

Left to right, Dr. Ellen Swanson, assistant superintendent for Student Services for School District 62, Dr. Paul E. Hertel, superintendent of Des Plaines Elementary School Dist. 62 and State Sen. Laura Murphy (D-28th), senior police associate, Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, Liliana Velázquez Liu.

The importance of investing in quality early childhood education to build academic and personal skills and to reduce crime was the subject of a meeting Thursday, Sept. 20 at the Jane Westerhold Early Learning Center in Des Plaines.

Participating in the press conference were State Sen. Laura Murphy (D-28th); Paul Hertel, superintendent of Des Plaines Elementary School Dist. 62; Vice President of the Dist. 62 school board James Poskozim, Des Plaines Police Chief William Kushner, Schaumburg Police Chief James Lamkin, representatives of the Early Learning Center and Fight Crime Invest in Kids.

Fight Crime is a nonprofit, anti-crime organization of over 350 police chiefs, sheriffs, states attorneys, and victims of violence. It strongly supported Illinois’ $50 million boost in the FY19 Early Childhood Block Grant.

Des Plaines Police Chief William Kushner, Schaumburg Police Chief James Lamkin discussing the importance of preschool now and in the future.

The fast-paced, informative presentation introduced the mission and programs of the Early Learning Center (ELC), a facility that is part of Des Plaines Elementary School Dist. 62 located next to Forest School at 1375 S. Fifth Ave., Des Plaines. The Early Learning Center functions as a separate facility from Forest. Its objective is to provide a safe and secure environment where children can grow physically, emotionally, socially and intellectually. The building was the vision of former Dist. 62 Supt. Jane Westerhold. It takes into consideration the challenges of today’s families and single parents, a need for equal opportunities in early education.

“We take care of our students’ basic needs as they come in, said Supt. Hertel. “They get fed everyday. Some just need time to sleep. There are little beds in some of the rooms. We work on their pre-academics on reading, math and science. The kids really get a hands-on experience. We have a social-emotional needs program with Second Step. I talked a bit earlier about our restorative circles. Our ELC really meets the needs of the whole child.”

A video addressed the need for early education that provides a critically important window of opportunity for developing a child’s full potential. The center provides guidance and encouragement, where students try out new ideas without fear or failure. Over 600 preschool students use 17 classrooms at the ELC.

When the center opened six years ago, 30 families were served. Today, 240 students use the ELC through the 3-5-year-old block grant. In addition, under the Prevention Initiative portion of the block grant, newborns to 3-year-olds are served. With additional funding, 60 families are served this school year. This includes home visits, parent workshops, as well as parents attending class with their children. Hertel added that there are 114 children on the waiting list.

“We’re always looking for additional funds to come in so we can open additional classrooms. We see this as an enormous positive net in our community of Des Plaines,” said Hertel.

Margarite Beniaris, director of the ELC, and Julie Ritzema, infant/toddler specialist, spoke about the prevention initiative program that provides home visiting. Staff works with families who need guidance and support. They conduct developmental monitoring of the children as well. If they are falling behind, they offer information about referral services. The parents and children have individual plans with goals to meet. Some of the students are at the center from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. The parents know their children are safe, and to keep their funding, parents have to be involved.

“It might be a school, but it’s really a community because we have so many social workers that help us, too,” said Beniaris. “This grant issue was very competitive. I know a lot of districts that are going to get it. We were fortunate to get over $800,000 for Preschool for All. We went from $70,000 to $274,000 for the 0 to 3. We get the DHS funding. The casino has been wonderful to us. We have a lot of grant writings and a lot of nice things for our students. The smart tables, about 11 in the building, that was from writing a grant to the casinos and the kids love it. They are able to interact with each other. They communicate when they’re on the computer.”

The funding allows parents to work and provide a higher-quality of life for their families. Asked if there is private foundation money available for ELC programs, Beniaris said “no” but she was going to look into it. Some of the classes have paid tuition.

Sen. Murphy commented that they, “ …do an excellent job. What you’re not saying is that the test scores for the high schools in Dist. 207 have substantially improved. I’m a believer that it all starts at this level. You can’t get better at the high school level unless it starts here.”

Beniaris said to Murphy, “You came out and supported us with the Ounce of Prevention Initiative. You were out here three-four years ago and we got that money double, triple. We thank you, too, for all that support. That’s a big thing when you support us. We went from 30 to 60 families.”

“And the (help of the) casino,” Murphy added.

A 7-page description of programs was distributed to those in attendance. All programs are geared toward helping children reach their full potential. This is achieved through the following programs and services offered at the ELC:

– Special Needs Preschool presents developmentally appropriate classrooms for preschoolers with severe to developmental delays.

-The NSSEO Early Childhood Program for 3 and 4-year-olds who are deaf and hard of hearing. There is both a classroom with a orally trained teacher and assistant and a total communication classroom where teachers speak English and use sign language. Twice a week, students join hearing students.

-STAR (State-at-Risk) Preschool for All – Classes provide quality preschool for at-risk students who may not be able to attend preschool.

-STAR Preschool Transitional – Classes for dual language learners that are taught in English.

-STAR Preschool Bilingual Spanish – Students who are Spanish language dominant who are placed in this program are taught in Spanish. They are taught in English for part of the day for English language development.

-STAR Preschool Blended – This class has 20 students, five have developmental delays.

-Learning STARS – Enrichment programs adding 3.5 hours of instruction for students who attend SNP (Special Needs Preschool) or STAR classes.

-SPARK Preschool offers a positive early learning experience for 3-year-olds, focusing on social, fine, gross motor and problem-solving skills.

-SPARK Preschool Plus – a full-day SPARK preschool program.

-SPARK Preschool Lunch Bunch – Preschool half-day program with a longer lunch period.

-SPARK Jr. Kindergarten – Focuses on the physical, emotional, social needs of 4-year-old students, the developmental areas and the individual interests of a child.

Other programs included are SPARK Jr. Kindergarten, SPARK Jr. Kindergarten Lunch Bunch, SPARK Jr. Kindergarten Plus, Extended Day Kindergarten, Mini STAR/Baby Talk Book Times, SPARK Mini School, Baby Book Times, SPARK Book Time for 2’s, Preschool Speech Services, Adult Education with childcare, and a Teen Parent Program. Health Services, Occupational and Physical Therapy and Social Work Services are also offered.

A Learning Links Library brings families together encouraging a literacy rich environment. Literacy boxes with books, toys, crafts, puzzles and games can be checked out and brought home.

Schaumburg Police Chief James Lamkin, State Senator Laura Murphy and Des Plaines Police Chief William Kushner read two books about police, respect, and safety to the students at Westerhold Early Learning Center on Thursday, Sept. 20. (photos by Denise Fleischer/The Journal)

The students of the Jane Westerhold Early Learning Center in Des Plaines listen to the center’s director about how their guests will soon read to them.

Supportive Services for Families Parenting workshops are also featured throughout the school year. One example is a four-week parent group called Tuesday’s Child that teaches parents behavior management techniques. Both Spanish and English language groups are held 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. and childcare is provided.

After the video presentation and open discussion, the police chiefs and Senator Murphy read books about about policemen to the children. The young students were well behaved and appreciated the literacy session.

For more information about the ELC, visit westerholdelc.d62.org.

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