ABC27: Christmas Tree Lit at Pennsylvania Capitol
December 5, 2023
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — Gov. Tom Wolf and First Lady Frances Wolf held the annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony at the state Capitol on Monday.
The Central Dauphin High School Choir performed during the ceremony to celebrate the lighting of the 20-foot-tall tree from Crystal Spring Tree Farm in Lehighton, Carbon County. The tree is decorated with more than 900 LED lights and more than 700 handmade ornaments.
The ornaments were donated by students and seniors throughout the commonwealth coordinated by Pre-K for PA and the Department of Aging, according to the governor’s office.
Ornaments were made by seniors from around the state, according to the Department of Aging, and were submitted by locations including Big Spring Senior Center and Schaner Senior Center in Cumberland County; the Franklin County Area Agency on Aging; Millersville Senior Center in Lancaster County; Myerstown Senior Community Center in Lebanon County; the Mifflin-Juniata County Area Agency on Aging; Central Perry Community Senior Citizens Center in Perry County; and South Central York County Senior Center and Windy Hill Senior Center in York County.
“Each year, this ceremony reminds me of the common bonds we share across humanity,” said Gov. Wolf. “During this holiday season, let us celebrate and strengthen those bonds by reaching out to those in need, by sharing what we have with others, and by extending our kindness beyond our friends and families to strangers and acquaintances who we know to be different than us.“
Read the full article and watch the video here.
Pre-K Kids Join Governor Wolf, First Lady Frances Wolf at Tree-Lighting Ceremony
Adorn PA Capitol Christmas Tree with Hand-crafted Ornaments
HARRISBURG (December 5, 2022) — The Pre-K for PA campaign joined Governor Tom Wolf and First Lady Frances Wolf at the Pennsylvania Capitol tree lighting ceremony to mark the official start of the holiday season today. The 20-foot Douglas Fir Christmas tree from Crystal Spring Tree Farm in Lehighton, Carbon County was decorated by pre-k students from all corners of the commonwealth who crafted hundreds of original ornaments.
“Each year, this ceremony reminds me of the common bonds we share across humanity,” said Governor Tom Wolf. “During this holiday season, let us celebrate and strengthen those bonds by reaching out to those in need, by sharing what we have with others, and by extending our kindness beyond our friends and families to strangers and acquaintances who we know to be different than us. Pennsylvanians will celebrate many holidays over the next several months. No matter which holiday you celebrate, I wish every Pennsylvanian a very happy holiday season.”
Joining Governor Wolf and the First Lady for the in-person Christmas tree lighting ceremony was staff, students, and families from York Day Early Learning and Pre-K for PA supporting organizations.
“Every year, our holiday wish is for lawmakers to make serious investments in our kids to continue to keep early learning strong — and Governor Wolf and the General Assembly did just that,” said Steve Doster, State Director of Mission: Readiness, a principal partner of Pre-K for PA. “The $79 million pre-k expansion in this year’s budget will provide high-quality pre-k to over 2,300 additional students as well as increase rates for providers to support the early care and education workforce and address rising costs.
“We thank Governor Wolf and our champion legislators who continue to prioritize Pennsylvania’s youngest learners and look forward to working with Governor-elect Josh Shapiro and new and returning members of the General Assembly.”
Today, less than 40 percent of eligible children in Pennsylvania has access to high-quality pre-k, leaving more than 100,000 children without the benefit of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Yet, according to recent polling, 90% of registered Pennsylvania voters believe that early childhood education is important in helping set kids on a path to leading healthy and productive lives.
A study by the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill confirmed that the commonwealth’s investment in pre-k is paying dividends for the children fortunate enough to access pre-k through Pennsylvania’s Pre-K Counts program. In language and math skills, the study showed that these kids outperformed their kindergarten peers who did not enjoy access – an advantage that equated to four to five months of learning gains, which is a substantial difference in development at that age.
Pre-K for PA is an issue campaign supported by individuals and organizations across Pennsylvania who believe that investing in our children is the right choice and an urgent necessity. Our vision is that every 3- and 4-year-old in Pennsylvania will have access to high-quality pre-k. For more information www.prekforpa.org.
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Daily American: Turkeyfoot opens new pre-K classrooms
November 22, 2022
The Somerset County Commissioners and other local leaders visited a new Head Start expansion classroom at the Turkeyfoot Valley Area School District. The commissioners were joined by Turkeyfoot and Community Action Partnership for Somerset County officials, as well as Head Start students to mark the new classrooms with a ribbon cutting ceremony.
“I am very excited by so many visitors to our program today to mark the passage of the 2022-23 state budget that includes a $79 million increase for more of Pennsylvania’s 3- and 4-year-olds to attend Pre-K Counts and Head Start,” said Anne Garrison, director of Early Childhood Education at CAPFSC.
“This $79 million increase is important because we know that 62% of income eligible 3- and 4-year-olds in Somerset County do not yet have access to publicly funded high-quality pre-K. This equates to more than 600 income eligible 3- and 4-year-olds still lacking access to these services every year in our county.
“Across Pennsylvania more than 100,000 eligible 3- and 4-year-olds are waiting. Tableland Services Inc. Early Childhood Programs are committed to helping educate the youngest learners to keep the Commonwealth growing in its early childhood programs.”
The Head Start expansion classroom at Turkeyfoot Valley Area School District was made possible by the infusion of an additional $60 million in funding for the Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts Program and $19 million for the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program as part of the state’s 2022-23 budget.
Together, this new funding will allow roughly 2,300 additional students access to pre-K. Pre-K Counts and the Head Start State Supplemental are the primary state funding sources for pre-K in Pennsylvania.
Kara McFalls, associate executive director of the Pennsylvania Head Start Association and a principal partner in the Pre-K for PA Campaign, said that access to high-quality pre-K is an important part of a child’s opportunity to lead a prosperous life.
Read the full article here.
MyChesCo: Leaders Celebrate New Pre-K Counts Classroom
November 18, 2022
PHILADELPHIA, PA — Local, state and federal government leaders visited a new Pre-K Counts expansion classroom at Amazing Kidz Academy LLC in Philadelphia yesterday. Officials visited with students and participated in a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate state funding increases for early care and education and the Amazing Kidz Academy LLC acquisition of the real estate comprising of 3 buildings, where they opened their first child care center, in Oxford Circle. Participants included Mayor Jim Kenney, State Senators Christine Tartaglione and Sharif Street, State Representatives Jason Dawkins and Danilo Burgos, City Councilmember Cherelle Parker, Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal, and students, teachers and administrators at Amazing Kidz Academy LLC.
“It’s an amazing day to have so many distinguished guests visit our Oxford Circle site… to mark the passage of the 2022-23 state budget that includes a $79 million increase for more of Pennsylvania’s three- and four-year-olds to attend Pre-K Counts and Head Start, and to celebrate our purchasing of the school building and other parcels at the site where we opened our first child care space,” said Lisa Smith, President of Amazing Kidz Academy LLC. “This $79 million increase is important because we know that 43 percent of income eligible 3- and 4-year-olds in Philadelphia do not yet have access to publicly funded high-quality pre-k. This equates to more than 12,000 income eligible three- and four-year-olds still lacking access to these services every year in our City.
“Across Pennsylvania more, than 100,000 eligible three- and four-year-olds are waiting. Additional funding enables us to attract, recruit, and retain highly qualified staff, offering a real living wage, health and pension benefits, that we would could not afford, without the increased PreK budgetary spending.”
The Pre-K Counts expansion classrooms at Amazing Kidz Academy LLC were made possible by the infusion of an additional $60 million in funding for the Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts Program and $19 million for the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program as part of the state’s 2022-2023 state budget. Together, this new funding will allow roughly 2,300 additional students access to high-quality pre-k. Pre-K Counts and the Head Start State Supplemental are the primary state funding sources for high-quality pre-k in Pennsylvania.
Carol Austin, Executive Director of First Up and a principal partner in the Pre-K for PA Campaign, noted that access to high-quality pre-k is an important part of a child’s opportunity to lead a prosperous life. Austin cited a recent study by the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill showing that kids enrolled in Pre-K Counts outperformed kindergarten peers who did not have access to pre-k. This advantage equated to four to five months of learning gains, which is a substantial difference in development at that age.
“These outcomes are significant because language and math skills have been shown to be the school readiness skills that most strongly predict later academic achievement,” said Austin.
Austin also referenced recent polling data showing that 90 percent of registered voters in Pennsylvania agreed that early care and education are important investments that help set kids on a path to leading healthy and productive lives.
Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal added that high-quality pre-k programs are not only an important part of our educational system, but also as a critical part of our overall community safety efforts. “Studies show that high-quality pre-k programs also reduce problematic social and self-control behaviors that hinder student learning and can lead to future delinquency and even crime,” said Bilal.
Participants thanked state lawmakers for their support at the state level which has led to more state funding for Pre-K Counts and Head Start year after year.
Read article here.
Leaders Celebrate New Pre-K Counts Classroom
Applaud Commonwealth’s Expansion of Pre-K Access
PHILADELPHIA, PA (November 17, 2022) — Local, state and federal government leaders visited a new Pre-K Counts expansion classroom at Amazing Kidz Academy LLC in Philadelphia today. Officials visited with students and participated in a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate state funding increases for early care and education and the Amazing Kidz Academy LLC acquisition of the real estate comprising of 3 buildings, where they opened their first child care center, in Oxford Circle. Participants included Mayor Jim Kenney, State Senators Christine Tartaglione and Sharif Street, State Representatives Jason Dawkins and Danilo Burgos, City Councilmember Cherelle Parker, Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal, and students, teachers and administrators at Amazing Kidz Academy LLC.
“It’s an amazing day to have so many distinguished guests visit our Oxford Circle site today to mark the passage of the 2022-23 state budget that includes a $79 million increase for more of Pennsylvania’s three- and four-year-olds to attend Pre-K Counts and Head Start, and to celebrate our purchasing of the school building and other parcels at the site where we opened our first child care space,” said Lisa Smith, President of Amazing Kidz Academy LLC. “This $79 million increase is important because we know that 43 percent of income eligible 3- and 4-year-olds in Philadelphia do not yet have access to publicly funded high-quality pre-k. This equates to more than 12,000 income eligible three- and four-year-olds still lacking access to these services every year in our City.
“Across Pennsylvania more, than 100,000 eligible three- and four-year-olds are waiting. Additional funding enables us to attract, recruit, and retain highly qualified staff, offering a real living wage, health and pension benefits, that we would could not afford, without the increased PreK budgetary spending.”
The Pre-K Counts expansion classrooms at Amazing Kidz Academy LLC were made possible by the infusion of an additional $60 million in funding for the Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts Program and $19 million for the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program as part of the state’s 2022-2023 state budget. Together, this new funding will allow roughly 2,300 additional students access to high-quality pre-k. Pre-K Counts and the Head Start State Supplemental are the primary state funding sources for high-quality pre-k in Pennsylvania.
Carol Austin, Executive Director of First Up and a principal partner in the Pre-K for PA Campaign, noted that access to high-quality pre-k is an important part of a child’s opportunity to lead a prosperous life. Austin cited a recent study by the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill showing that kids enrolled in Pre-K Counts outperformed kindergarten peers who did not have access to pre-k. This advantage equated to four to five months of learning gains, which is a substantial difference in development at that age.
“These outcomes are significant because language and math skills have been shown to be the school readiness skills that most strongly predict later academic achievement,” said Austin.
Austin also referenced recent polling data showing that 90 percent of registered voters in Pennsylvania agreed that early care and education are important investments that help set kids on a path to leading healthy and productive lives.
Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal added that high quality pre-k programs are not only an important part of our educational system, but also as a critical part of our overall community safety efforts. “Studies show that high quality pre-k programs also reduce problematic social and self control behaviors that hinder student learning and can lead to future delinquency and even crime,” said Bilal.
Participants thanked state lawmakers for their support at the state level that has led to more state funding for Pre-K Counts and Head Start year after year.
ABOUT PRE-K FOR PA
Pre-K for PA is an issue campaign supported by thousands of individuals and organizations across Pennsylvania who believe that investing in our children is a necessary and urgent priority. For more information, visit prekforpa.org.
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Local Leaders Celebrate New Pre-K Counts Classroom
Applaud Commonwealth’s Expansion of Pre-K Access
Confluence, PA (November 17, 2022) — Somerset County Commissioners and other local leaders visited a new Head Start expansion classroom at the Turkeyfoot Valley Area School District. The Commissioners were joined by Turkeyfoot Valley Area School District and Tableland Services officials, as well as Head Start students to mark the new classrooms with a ribbon cutting ceremony.
“I am very excited by so many visitors to our program today to mark the passage of the 2022-23 state budget that includes a $79 million increase for more of Pennsylvania’s three- and four-year-olds to attend Pre-K Counts and Head Start,” said Anne Garrison, Director of Early Childhood Education at Tableland Services. “This $79 million increase is important because we know that 62% of income eligible 3- and 4-year-olds in Somerset County do not yet have access to publicly funded high-quality pre-k. This equates to more than 600 income eligible three- and four-year-olds still lacking access to these services every year in our County.
“Across Pennsylvania more than 100,000 eligible three- and four-year-olds are waiting. Tableland Services, Inc. Early Childhood Programs are committed to helping educate the youngest learners to keep the Commonwealth growing in its early childhood programs.”
The Head Start expansion classroom at Turkeyfoot Valley Area School District was made possible by the infusion of an additional $60 million in funding for the Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts Program and $19 million for the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program as part of the state’s 2022-2023 state budget. Together, this new funding will allow roughly 2,300 additional students access to high-quality pre-k. Pre-K Counts and the Head Start State Supplemental are the primary state funding sources for high-quality pre-k in Pennsylvania.
Kara McFalls, Associate Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Head Start Association and a principal partner in the Pre-K for PA Campaign, noted that access to high-quality pre-k is an important part of a child’s opportunity to lead a prosperous life. McFalls cited a recent study by the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill showing that kids enrolled in Pre-K Counts outperformed kindergarten peers who did not have access to pre-k. This advantage equated to four to five months of learning gains, which is a substantial difference in development at that age.
“These outcomes are significant because language and math skills have been shown to be the school readiness skills that most strongly predict later academic achievement,” said McFalls.
McFalls also referenced recent polling data showing that 90 percent of registered voters in Pennsylvania agreed that early care and education are important investments that help set kids on a path to leading healthy and productive lives.
Participants thanked lawmakers for their support at the state level that has led to more state funding for Pre-K Counts and Head Start year after year.
ABOUT PRE-K FOR PA
Pre-K for PA is an issue campaign supported by thousands of individuals and organizations across Pennsylvania who believe that investing in our children is a necessary and urgent priority. For more information, visit prekforpa.org.
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