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April 16, 2024
Students at the Pittston New Street Center have new books to read, thanks to a generous donation from Chewy Pharmacy.
Chewy employees in Pittston collected 60 preschool books during their Read Across America Book Drive in March. Devan Fritz and Nicole Reese from Human Resources at Chewy visited the center this week to drop off the donations.
Our students couldn’t wait to start reading!
April 5, 2024
Luzerne County Head Start, Inc. (LCHS) will hold its 59th Anniversary Celebration on May 13 at Mohegan Pennsylvania to honor our longstanding commitment to providing comprehensive services to low-income children and their families. We will also recognize our dedicated staff and community partners while honoring the next class of LCHS Alumni Scholarship recipients.
This tradition wouldn’t be possible without our sponsors. Their financial support enables us to honor the community organizations, businesses, individuals, students and staff who have contributed to our agency’s ongoing success. This year’s event sponsors are…
Diamond Sponsorship Level:
Gold Sponsorship Level:
Luzerne County Community College
Benco Family Foundation
Panzitta Enterprises Inc.
WVW Transport, Inc.
Silver Sponsorship Level:
Cambridge Investment Research
Conscious Discipline
Seltzer Group Partners
Bronze Sponsorship Level:
Becker’s School Supplies, Inc.
Creative Benefits, Inc.
Cross Valley Federal Credit Union
Kaplan Early Learning Company
Lakeshore Learning Materials
Mark J. Sobeck Roof Consulting, Inc.
Metz Culinary Management
Snyder & Clemente
The Wright Center for Community Health
We would also like to thank this year’s LCHS Alumni Scholarship sponsors:
Fran Williams Memorial Scholarship
Benco Family Foundation Scholarship
Eugene Hogan Memorial Scholarship
Tomalis-Gatusky Family Scholarship
PNC Bank Scholarship
Navient Community Fund Scholarship
George R. Evans Memorial Scholarship
Mary & Tom Sewatsky Family Scholarship
LCHS Board of Directors Lena Taylor Memorial Scholarship
Luzerne County Bar Association Charitable Foundation Scholarship
Church of Christ Uniting Scholarship
Friends of Head Start Scholarship
LCHS Policy Council Claudia O’Boyle Memorial Scholarship
Delaney Family Scholarship
Coombs Family Memorial Scholarship
Pittston Tomato Festival Committee Scholarship
Cross Valley Federal Credit Union Scholarship
Travis Black Scholarship
February 7, 2024
The Luzerne County Bar Association Charitable Foundation recently continued its support of the Luzerne County Head Start Alumni Scholarship Program with a $1,000 donation.
Established in 1987, the LCHS Alumni Scholarship Program honors the achievements of former Head Start students set to graduate from high school and continue their education. Since its inception, the program has awarded 333 scholarships totaling $333,450 to outstanding students who began their educational journey as preschoolers at Head Start.
LCHS will honor the next class of scholarship students during its 59th Anniversary Celebration in May. This marks the 15th year for the Luzerne County Bar Association Charitable Foundation Scholarship.
January 26, 2024
Dana Weidman experienced what she calls the “full circle of life of Head Start.”
Her Head Start journey began in 1999 as a 3-year-old preschool student at the Beekman Street Center of Luzerne County Head Start. Weidman credits the program with setting a foundation for her future success, from academics to socializing with peers. Her teacher even inspired her future career path.
After two years of preschool at LCHS, Weidman successfully transitioned to kindergarten. However, her Head Start story didn’t end there.
Later, Weidman decided to give back to LCHS as a volunteer. She primarily volunteered for Jump Start, a supplemental program the agency offers to a select group of incoming students every summer, and helped out teachers in their classrooms. This included her mother, Aimee Schneider, a longtime LCHS teacher who now works in the Edwardsville Center.
As a senior at Coughlin High School, Weidman earned an LCHS Alumni Scholarship from the agency that allowed her to purchase textbooks for her first year at Wilkes University. She originally pursued nursing, but it just didn’t feel right. Knowing her heart was in early childhood and elementary education, Weidman switched majors. She graduated in 2018.
After college, she heard of a job opportunity where it all began: Luzerne County Head Start. The agency’s Mehoopany Center in Wyoming County needed a teacher, and Weidman had no doubt that she would be the perfect fit.
“It’s actually really emotional for me because that’s where my roots started,” she said.
Knowing firsthand the importance of giving children a “Head Start” in school and life, Weidman appreciates being a part of the mission for future generations. She wants students to think of school as a safe place to learn and have fun.
“The best part about being a Head Start teacher is to see the growth from Day 1 to Day 180,” she said.
Several “mission moments” come to mind when Weidman reflects on her time at LCHS. It spoke volumes to Weidman when a former Head Start student, now in fourth grade, told her “Miss Dana, I wish that I can come back to your classroom.”
“Once they step foot into my classroom, I always tell their parents that they’re my children now, so I will treat them and love them and teach them how I would want my child to be taught and loved and cared for,” she said.
December 20, 2023
United Way of Wyoming Valley visited the Beekman Street Center on December 19 for a holiday storytime and check presentation.
United Way of Wyoming Valley President and CEO Bill Jones (also known as Buddy the Elf), read “The Poky Little Puppy’s Wonderful Winter Day” to Classrooms #3 and 5. Each child unwrapped their own copy of the book from United Way to read at home.
Luzerne County Head Start relies on funding from United Way of Wyoming Valley to provide comprehensive services to pregnant women, children from birth to age 3, and their families through its Early Head Start home visiting program. Before the storytime, United Way formally presented a $75,000 check for EHS funding that LCHS received earlier this year.
LCHS is grateful for its continued support from the local United Way.
December 11, 2023
PNC Bank showed its appreciation for early childhood educators at Luzerne County Head Start.
As part of its Grow Up Great® initiative, PNC gave teacher appreciation gifts to 10 randomly selected Head Start classrooms and Early Head Start family educators.
Classrooms in the Back Mountain, Nanticoke LCCC, Beekman Street, Edwardsville, Nanticoke, Tunkhannock and Dodson centers, as well as an EHS Wilkes-Barre family educator, each received a gift box containing a $250 Lakeshore Learning gift card, colored pencils, breathing cards, a sensory ring and a wellness journal.
November 28, 2023
Children at Luzerne County Head Start will have warm coats this winter thanks to the generosity of Bafile Family Chiropractic in Sugarloaf, a longtime community partner.
Bafile Family Chiropractic collected 28 coats through its annual Coats for Kids drive for children in LCHS programs. It’s been a tradition at their practice for 15 years. LCHS staff quickly distributed the coats to families throughout the agency.
September 14, 2023
Luzerne County Head Start, Inc. (LCHS) will once again provide its ‘Jump Start’ summer learning experience to children in the summer of 2024, thanks to a golf tournament sponsored by Navient; a company that provides technology-enabled education finance and business processing solutions.
The annual event held at Blue Ridge Trail Golf Club in Mountain Top raised approximately $20,000 for LCHS’s Jump Start program.
The program is a 4-week-long summer learning experience that offers comprehensive services for 30 eligible 3 and 4-year-old children who will attend LCHS in the fall.
This year marked the 17th year for the tournament. Since its beginning, the tournament has raised $340,000 to support the summer learning program. In addition to the tournament, several businesses provided sponsorship and gift donations for raffle drawings and other prizes.
The Navient Community Fund also awarded a $5,000 grant to Head Start to help support the program.
August 2, 2023
June 12, 2023
STAFF INFORMATION FOR THE 2023-2024 PROGRAM YEAR:
We are excited to welcome back our staff for the 2023-2024 School Year! Current staff who have a position/assignment change will be notified directlly via letter prior to the return date. For those staff who are not contacted directly, return will be to their own position and center assignment.
Important Return to Work Dates for Staff:
CLICK HERE for the 2023-2024 Program Year Calendar
