WISD & YCS Celebrate Head Start Awareness Month with Rep. Wilson

In celebration of Head Start Awareness Month, Ypsilanti Community Schools (YCS) and the Washtenaw Intermediate School District (WISD) hosted Michigan State Representative Jimmie Wilson Jr. to tour Beatty Early Learning Center and read a story to a Head Start preschool classroom.

Each year, October is recognized as Head Start Awareness Month by the National Head Start Association.   This is a time to amplify the importance of early childhood education and specifically the positive differences made by the Head Start program.  Students from Beatty made a special banner that greeted Rep. Wilson when he entered the building, kicking off the visit with a warm welcome. Beatty Principal Keynon Atchinson led a tour of the school before Rep. Wilson read to a classroom of young Head Start learners. 

The Head Start program at Ypsilanti Community Schools currently serves 221 Head Start center-based children and will soon be home to eight children in the new Early Head Start center-based classroom.  This new Early Head Start center-based classroom will allow children as young as 18 months through 3 years of age to enroll and learn at Beatty Early Learning Center. This classroom is expected to open at Beatty this November 2024.

Beatty ELC is one of three YCS locations that serves Head Start and Early Head Start center-based classrooms, and Ypsilanti Community Schools is home to the largest Head Start Program in Washtenaw County.  The WISD was recently awarded the Open Head Start Competitive Grant for another five years and is excited to partner with Ypsilanti Community Schools to offer high quality learning experiences for the children and families.