Ribbon cutting celebrates our new day care center
Haverhill and YMCA leaders joined us for a ribbon cutting ceremony yesterday to celebrate our new day care center, which opened the first week of September.
"We're fortunate to have found a wonderful partnership with the YMCA, and are thrilled to be offering this opportunity to our students as well as local families," Superintendent Lynch said. "The students in our Early Education and Care program are ecstatic to be able to work with children without leaving the building and utilize the knowledge they've gained through their studies, while also providing a high quality day care option for our community."
Superintendent Lynch welcomed Haverhill YMCA Regional Executive Director Tracy Fuller,
Whittier Early Education Center Director Allison Anthony, members of Merrimack Valley Chamber of Commerce, Haverhill Chamber of Commerce and Haverhill City officials to the center, located on the first floor across from Poet’s Inn Restaurant.
The Early Education Center is a partnership between Whittier and the Haverhill YMCA. The center accepts students between the ages of six weeks and five years old, and for the first time offers students in Whittier’s Early Education and Care program the opportunity to gain hands-on experience working with children through co-op opportunities and class visits to the center without leaving the Whittier campus.
"We wanted our students to have an opportunity to gain experience working in early education on campus, while also providing a service to our staff with children," said Vocational/Technical Coordinator Bev DeSalvo.
Children at the daycare are separated into three age groups: infants, toddlers and preschoolers, and follow an early education curriculum based on their age group.
The center also offers Whittier educators an on-site option for day care, and is also open to the public. Families that enroll children at the center have the opportunity to apply for financial assistance, and the center accepts state subsidies.
The center opened on Sept. 3, and has eight students. Two early education professionals staff the center at any given time, in addition to Whittier students who have co-op jobs at the center.
"The YMCA is excited for this great collaboration and we are looking forward to offering high quality affordable early education as well as providing an opportunity for learning for Whittier Early Childhood Education students,” said Tracy Fuller, Regional Executive Director of the Haverhill YMCA and Plaistow Community YMCA.
Parents and guardians who would like to sign their children up to attend the Whittier Early Education Center can do so by calling its director, Allison Anthony, at 978-374-0506. To learn more about the program, click here.
