LCHS to begin classes virtually for Fall 2020

Luzerne County Head Start, Inc. will begin the 2020-2021 school year virtually on Mon., Aug. 31.

Based on the health and wellness of our community and state, students and staff in federal and state Head Start classrooms, as well as Pre-K Counts, will begin in-person classroom learning on a staggered start beginning Mon., Oct 5. Please note this date is subject to change.

All classrooms will be limited to ten children and will have up to three direct staff per classroom, who will practice social distancing and follow face mask guidelines.

To review Luzerne County Head Start, Inc.’s complete Fall of 2020 reopening plan, please CLICK HERE.

 

Children, their teachers and classroom staff at Luzerne County Head Start’s Mehoopany center were featured on Eyewitness News WBRE/WYOU for a presentation they took part in that taught them about the importance of heart health. Head Start regional nurse, Eva Kennedy, talked to the 3, 4 and 5-year-old children at the center in Wyoming County about eating the right food, exercising and not smoking. She offered several demonstrations and held up flash cards that helped the children to understand how to make good decisions that will keep their hearts healthy. Each child then got to listen to his or her own heartbeat with a stethoscope.

The presentation is one of many lessons built into the Head Start curriculum that helps to encourage healthy habits among young children. Click HERE to watch the story put together by Eyewitness News Healthbeat Reporter, Mark Hiller.

Luzerne County Head Start, Inc. recently replaced its large outdoor, building sign at its central office/ Beekman St., Wilkes-Barre location. The design (top picture) has a more modern look and includes LCHS’s updated logo, which was unveiled in the summer of 2019. The updated logo includes the traditional Head Start building blocks along with a small, red heart. The heart is meant to signify the importance of family, trust, relationships, culture, diversity and understanding: all of which are important values in the Head Start program. The old sign (bottom picture) was installed on the building when it opened in the mid 1990’s.

Thirty five children who attend Luzerne County Head Start’s (LCHS) Beekman Street, Wilkes-Barre center have a brand new coat this winter thanks to a successful fundraiser conducted by the city of Wilkes-Barre’s fire department and other first responders. For the past several years, the city’s fire department purchased coats through “Operation Warm” for children in need in the Wilkes-Barre Area School District.  Operation Warm is a national non-profit organization that focuses on improving the lives of children living in need through the gift of a brand new winter coat. Thanks to this year’s successful fundraiser, for the first time, city firefighters were able to expand their reach and purchase 35 new coats for children at LCHS. The fundraiser was a joint effort conducted by the city of Wilkes-Barre’s fire department, police department and paramedics. 

Families whose children are enrolled in Luzerne County Head Start, Inc. recently completed a six-session series of parenting classes called “Understanding Children.” The classes took place in November and December at LCHS’s Wilkes-Barre, Beekman St. center. Trained mental health professionals from Lakeside, a company based in the Philadelphia area, helped parents to focus on better understanding their child’s behaviors, interactions and needs. Families also had the opportunity to talk with other families about their experiences with parenting.

Children from Luzerne County Head Start, Inc. (LCHS) will once again have a brighter holiday thanks to employees at Commonwealth Health.  For the past several years, staff from the healthcare network has been collecting gifts for the Head Start program, which provides early childhood education and comprehensive services to children, birth to age five, and their families in Luzerne and Wyoming Counties.

This year, employees fulfilled the wish lists of 93 children who attend school at LCHS’s Edwardsville and Beekman Street, Wilkes-Barre centers. Employees from LCHS picked up dozens of gifts that were collected by staff and volunteers at Commonwealth Health Wilkes-Barre General Hospital and will distribute them to each child’s family before the Christmas holiday.

Pennsylvania State Treasurer, Joe Torsella, visited Luzerne County Head Start in 2018 to kick off the Keystone Scholars pilot program. As part of this demonstration project, babies born or children adopted in 2018 in six counties in PA including Delaware, Elk, Indiana, Luzerne, Mifflin and Westmoreland became eligible for a $100 seed deposit in a Keystone Scholars account established for their post secondary education. For babies born or children adopted on or after January 1, 2019, Keystone Scholars became available statewide.

Mr. Torsella’s visit to LCHS helped to create awareness and acceptance for this new and innovative savings program. To learn more about the Keystone Scholars program, click HERE.

Click HERE to view the video which highlights Mr. Torsella’s 2018 visit to Luzerne County Head Start’s Beekman St., Wilkes-Barre center. 

Luzerne County Head Start, Inc. accepted the 2019 “Healthy Workplace Award” during Tuesday night’s annual Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce dinner. Each year the event recognizes businesses and individuals throughout the Greater Wilkes-Barre area in a number of different categories. The “Healthy Workplace Award” is presented to a business or businesses that promotes health and wellness within their organizations.

LCHS works alongside Geisinger’s wellness programs in order to collaborate and develop annual wellness plans catered to its workforce. The overall goal is to improve the health of staff by offering screenings such as blood pressure, weight management, glucose, lipid panels, and bone density screenings. Through challenges that focus on weight management, such as the “March Mayhem Walking Challenge” and the holiday-themed “Maintain Don’t Gain,” and the development of annual screening and wellness plans, LCHS continues to develop a culture of wellness and self-improvement. The goal of these programs is to help employees lead healthy lifestyles and become role models for the communities in which they serve.

LCHS is one of four organizations in Luzerne County that received the 2019 Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce’s “Healthy Workplace Award.”

Thomas P. Leary, president of Luzerne County Community College, recently read “Pete the Cat, Rocking in My School Shoes” to children who attend Luzerne County Head Start’s center located at the college’s campus in Nanticoke. President Leary also handed out t-shirts to the children which read, “Luzerne County Community College, Class of 203?”