GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – A Tuesday ribbon cutting for the Green Bay Area Public School District’s newest building.
The Head Start Learning Center on Bellevue Street opened in September.
“It’s a federally funded program that affords educational services to 3-5 year olds.”
Principal Sally Jansen says Head Start, which began in 1965. offers more than just the classroom instruction that is found at a typical preschool.
“We believe the parents are their first teachers, so getting into the home, working with families, training families on how to educate their children at home.”
Jansen says they also focus on students’ well-being.
“We get all of our kids hearing, vision, dental screenings. We ensure that they’ve all been to the doctor and have the proper immunizations.”
Jansen notes the program already had roots in Green Bay.
“At this site, we serve 204, but we’re funded for 336 with the Green Bay School District, because we have three other sites.”
Jansen says Head Start is open to children whose families are at or below the poverty level.
The facility was built as a school in the 1960’s but has served as county-owned office space for the past 26 years.
Jansen says work to gut the building began in May, with the cost of buying and renovating the facility coming in at $1.8-million dollars.
That was covered by a $2.5-million dollar federal grant, of which the other $700,000 has funded hiring additional staff members.
