Since 1998, the University of
Arkansas for Medical Sciences has overseen the Pulaski County Head
Start/Early Head Start programs, which serve 1,130 children at 23 facilities
around the county. Head Start helps prepare young children for school,
providing them with the learning skills and medical assistance necessary to
keep them on an equal footing.
In more than eight years, UAMS
has watched its Head Start/Early Head Start enrollment continue to grow
while its federal funding continues to get smaller. Head Start provides such
services as education, dental, health, nutrition, mental health and
referrals for parents to community resources.
These services promote the growth
and development of preschool children and help to strengthen family members
for their role as parents and contributing members of their community.
Head Start and Early Head Start
are struggling to serve some of the most financially disadvantaged youth in
Central Arkansas. The program provides services for children as young as a
few weeks old up to kindergarten age. Ninety percent of these children are
at or below the 100 percent poverty level, i.e., an annual budget of $16,600
for a family of three.
Sponsorship
When Pulaski County was in jeopardy of losing funding for the Head Start
Program, UAMS recognized the importance and need for this program for the
people of Pulaski County and offered its leadership skills by serving as the
primary investigator for the grant. This provided the university with an
opportunity to broaden their outreach to a community in need. The Head Start
budget has been cut as much as it can without effecting programs and
services. UAMS is glad to continue to provide leadership for Head Start but
it must financially stand on its own since it is not part of the UAMS
budget. This planned giving by our community is a way to provide for the
ongoing financial challenges of the Head Start Program and allow it to
continue its critical mission of giving children and their families a head
start on school and life.
Head Start is offering two types of giving opportunities to support their
services:
-
A one time contribution, which may be as much or as little as one
wishes. All gifts are appreciated and are tax deductible.
-
An ongoing class sponsorship of $30 a month to support an individual
child, or $600 a month to support a whole class (maybe a group
sponsorship). The class sponsorship includes:
- Setting up a monthly automatic check debit or credit card payment
- Sending 4 self addressed stamped envelopes.
- The class will send back quarterly artwork, pictures, and notes
about their progress in the envelopes to the contributor
- The class will send a class picture with a border of autographs of
the kids.
Sponsors are encouraged to visit the class and read to the children,
share stories about their own career, participate in field trips and
stress the importance of succeeding in school and what it means to care
for members in the community.
The group class sponsorship of $600 will provide support to send pictures
and notes for up to 20 people who may be contributing.
This is an opportunity to teach the value of contributing to others in
the community who are less fortunate. The Sponsor can see the children’s
picture and see those being helped. The children are eager to share what
they are learning, their favorite things, their pets, what they want to be
when they grow up, and other experiences in their lives.
This sponsorship will show the parents a community that cares and wants
to see them succeed. There will be an opportunity to watch these children
grow and develop as they advance through the program.
“My mom used to be a teacher’s
aide with Head Start at the Kramer School. I spent a lot of time there
during the summer when I was in junior high, playing basketball and watching
the kids get the kind of help they needed. Head Start gave them a leg up,
the kind of support that made a difference. It offered them a nurturing
environment, and it had a long-term impact on those kids. I still see some
of them from time to time, and they remember my mother and how much she
meant to them growing up. Head Start is a very positive program and always
has been.” - Sidney Moncrief former NBA All-Star and head coach of
the Fort Worth (Texas) Flyers of the NBA Development League
To begin making a difference in the lives of a
future generation, fill out the sponsorship form and mail to:
Melony Goodhand, Vice Chancellor
University of Arkansas for
Medical Sciences
3401 W. Markham, #632
Little Rock, AR 72205-7199
Phone: 501-686-5670
E-mail: GoodhandMelony@uams.edu
Return to Programs
|
