| 1976 - 1993 - 1998 - 2000 | |
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1976 In 1976, the Youngstown community was in need of a children's center to service small children from economically challenged homes. The Community Development Agency appealed to Sister Jerome Corcoran, who with 12 preschool children from the inner-city and a small federal grant, opened Millcreek Children's Center on lower Glenwood Avenue. Within a year, there were 40 enrollees and an increased budget from several federal agencies. Very low income working parents qualified for free preschool for their children; those above the poverty level paid for service on a sliding scale according to income. This policy has been continued to this day. Many organizations and individuals contributed to the exciting educational program. For these children of lower-income working parents, the Center provides a new trend in child care - quality instruction and a broad variety of excellent materials, services, and experiences. After several years, Millcreek Children's Center reached capacity enrollment. The Board began a capital campaign securing $1.3 million to build a beautiful 12,500 sq. ft. preschool accommodating a larger enrollment and all needed services for the children. The project rallied broad community support: the City of Youngstown, foundations, businesses, financial institutions, and individuals, all cooperating in this civic and educational project for our inner-city children. |
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| 1993 In fall, 1993, the new Millcreek Children's Center was opened, a state-of-the-art facility on the lower south side of Youngstown, at 44 Essex Street. The new Center enrolled 100 pupils, and provided a still greater range of services for lower-income working families. Parents were thrilled with the small group instruction, degreed teachers, dental and medical care, nutritious meals, speech therapy, developmental tutors, and our successful Reading Magic Program for "graduates" of our center. Our preschool was educating children effectively. By fall, 1996 the mortgage on the new Center was burned. |
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| 1998 With no mortgage, our next attainable goal was providing space for year-round indoor play and an area for gatherings and small classes, such as our successful Reading Magic Program. In 1998, that goal was met with the completion of a new 5,300 sq. ft. Play 'N Learn Room. Once more we had encouraging community support from foundations, businesses, the Diocese of Youngstown, the Ursuline Sisters, and the City of Youngstown. About this time, the Ohio legislature passed laws authorizing Community (Charter) Schools. These "schools of choice" were to be public schools receiving the same per diem allocation as existing public schools. Because we regretted that our pupils lost so much of their preschool education after leaving us, we decided to start a community school in 1998 with two kindergarten classes. Sister Mary Dunn became Principal of the new Youngstown Community School housed in part of our Play 'N Learn Room. Our plan is to add one grade a year, two classes of each, through Grade 6. The classes will be kept small, limited to twenty pupils each, so that the very best education, with plenty of teacher attention, will be provided. In the spring of 1999, parents registered children for kindergarten and First Grade for the 1999-2000 school year. Parent response has been rewarding. Imagine 100% attendance at parent conferences this year! The thrust of the Youngstown Community School is to provide a well-balanced curriculum, including the arts as well as the basic subjects and a strong VALUES program. Our happy, well-adjusted, and attentive children will be carefully taught, so they can each year score higher on the Ohio Proficiency Test, one of our major objectives. Our entire program, preschool through community school, focuses on helping each child reach his/her true potential for academic success, personal fulfillment, and responsibility. |
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| 2000 As we close out this century and look forward to the next, we are proud of the objectives and goals that we have met. We are looking forward to continued growth that will benefit our children, the community and society as a whole. |
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