SKCDC’s Head Start program partners with Regional School Unit 12, Regional School Unit 2, and Winthrop Public Schools to provide pre-kindergarten programs. The programs are designed to prepare four year old children for success in kindergarten and beyond. Family involvement includes home visiting, parent conferences, parent meetings, and family events.
The importance of school collaborations with pre-K classes has been outlined by the National Head Start Association and specifically in this report:
Head Start School-Community Partnerships Create Change
In it, Dr. Deborah Bergeron explains why these partnership play such a vital role in the growth and success of our children. She also uses the partnership between SKCDC and RSU 12.
Collaborating with school districts to improve teaching and learning.
In rural central Maine, the Southern Kennebec Child Development Corporation Head Start operates the prekindergarten classes in the buildings of the RSU 12 school district. The Head Start program and the school district jointly participated in a First 10 initiative sponsored by the Maine Department of Education. As a result, they have expanded transition meetings between the two programs to include all rising kindergarteners rather than only students with individualized education programs (IEPs). The Head Start and kindergarten teachers conduct cross-classroom visits and participate in vertical team meetings. The school district has also revamped all of its structures, processes, and guidance documents to more intentionally and comprehensively incorporate prekindergarten classrooms into the workings of its elementary schools.
