By the Way: News from United Way of Lebanon County (June 2020)

By the Way...

Community Schools in a Virtual World

Try Noggin for Free for 90 Days

Camp ROCKSs Day Camp Starts July 6

YMCA Summer Camp for School-age Children is Open

Check out the Summer Learning Program Through Local Libraries

Early Head Start and Head Start Now Registering

GOTR

Summer Student Food Distribution

Our Community Schools in a Virtual World

Lebanon Middle School Continued Connections

Provided by Guillermo A. Barroso, Community School Coordinator: As we moved to a virtual learning and services. CISPA is adapting to the changes by providing services on a virtual platform. Since the closure of the school, as the CISPA Coordinator, I have been asked to transition to provide an array of support services align with the Community in Schools Model of Tier I II and III supports.

Since March 13, 2020, I have been asked from the School Leadership and School staff including faculty and student support services to contact parents/students to provide Tier I school-wide support to provide information about Lebanon Middle School transition teaching and learning to virtual learning through the Schoology Platform. Lebanon Middle School Student Demographics 80% of students are Hispanics/Latinos. As CISPA Coordinator, I have provided multilingual and multicultural support via telephone calls and virtual to ensure that our students participate and engage on online distance learning.

I continue to provide Tier II and III services to my case-managed students through the virtual platform ZOOM. During these pillars of support, I provide individual counseling, mentoring and support to leverage student engagement and success. In addition, as the CISPA Coordinator, I am actively connecting with our Lebanon County Non-profits and Human Services Organizations through the stewardship of United Way of Lebanon County to get and provide update on resources to our families/students.

Check out this video Guillermo was asked to participate in, which was a project/collaboration among Lebanon School District Teachers and School Leadership to promote STEM Education in Lebanon County and beyond.

Northwest Elementary Success Story

Provided by Christina Tinoco, Community School Coordinator: Students who feel supported succeed. Early in the school year, I had established a relationship with Northwest Elementary 4th grader, Jesus Cruz Saldana. Upon speaking with his mother, I became aware of the transition his family was undergoing during their recent arrival from the Dominican Republic to the United States. I assured both Jesus and mom that I would assign Jesus to my caseload and would monitor, plan, and set goals to see improved success at school. Jesus’ Mom was connected with the IU-13 Family Literacy/ESL classes that were being piloted for the first time in the school library. She truly enjoyed building a community in class and made lasting connections with other adult students. Jesus was a participant of the NW Boy’s R.O.A.R. program, piloted for the first time this past school year, through a partnership with Domestic Violence Intervention of Lebanon County.

During the COVID-19 School Closure, I continued to provide case management virtually to support Jesus as he navigated the online platform, Seesaw, that was implemented by elementary schools in the Lebanon School District. Jesus also submitted a video thanking his teachers during “Teacher Appreciation Week," which was then used in a “Staff Appreciation” video created by Northwest Assistant Principal, Jennifer Nordall. Although maintaining distance during Marking Periods 5 and 6 at Northwest Elementary, the community was felt with each virtual connection made with students and staff.

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Try Noggin for FREE for 90 Days

Get 90 days free of noggin

What is Noggin? Noggin is a learning app created by the experts at Nick Jr. for kids 2+. This fun tool is the only subscription service where learning is lead by the trusted Nick Jr. characters that your kids know and love. And now you can try it for FREE for 90 days! United Way is proud to partner with Nickelodean to bring this resource to parents with young children to encourage learning and playing together at home through these challenging times.

Here's all you need to do to take advantage of this special offer:

Click on the sign up link.
Create an account (no credit card required).
Download the app and sign in.

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Camp ROCKSs

Recreational Outreach | Creativity | Knowledge | Social Skills

Camp ROCKSs is a FREE summer day camp offered by Empower the Mind LLC for any child who resides in Lebanon County. The July Summer Day Camp, for children in grades 2-7, will be held Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesdays from 9am-noon at Southwest Optimist Park. Children will enjoy breakfast, crafts, games, sports, water activities and a snack daily. All events will be held in compliance with state and federal guidelines. Find out more, and sign up today!

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YMCA Summer Camp

Join the FUN with the Lebanon Valley YMCA School Age Summer Camps! These camps are for children entering 1st grade through 12 years of age. Each week offers a different theme with adventurously fun and interactive activities.

Camps are being held at various locations in Lebanon County including the YMCA in Lebanon, along with Ebenezer, South Lebanon, and Jonestown elementary schools. Camp hours are 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

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2020 Summer Learning Program

Summer Learning at Lebanon County Libraries

The 2020 Summer Learning Program, Imagine Your Story, began June 8 with Lebanon County Libraries! Children can explore classic stories and fairy tales from around the world, and discover new ones!

What does the Summer Learning Program look like this year? With our library buildings closed until further notice because of the pandemic, library staff are hard at work adapting the Summer Learning Program to our social distancing community.

Check out their website to find out more about the Summer Learning Program, how to participate virtually, and the available programs.

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Early Head Start and Head Start Now Registering

Head Start and Early Head Start

Babies & toddlers are always growing and, before you know it, they’re heading off to Kindergarten. Don’t worry, though. You’ve got this, and Head Start can help your young family succeed.

From the beginning, through nutrition education, socialization opportunities, activities that encourage literacy and independence, and free preschool, the Early Head Start programs of Lancaster & Lebanon Counties and Head Start of Lebanon County will help you prepare your child for school.

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Power Up by Girls on the Run

Power Up Activity Kits combines the best parts of the Girls on the Run mission with new lessons and activities to motivate and encourage your girl. While the kit is designed specifically with your 8- to 11-year-old-girl in mind, the entire family can participate and learn.

Empathy and resilience are at the core of the Girls on the Run curriculum, and it is never too early for girls to learn how to put them into practice. These valuable lessons are just a few that can be found in the Power Up Activity Kit. Kits are $49 each and include an exclusive GRL PWR t-shirt, Physical Activity Family Training Plan, completion certificate, access to free Power Up videos, and a few other fun surprises. There are limited scholarships available for girls who may need financial assistance.

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Summer Student Food Distribution

School Districts

Some schools in our county will be continuing student meals through the summer, while some are ending this month. The most current status of food distribution is available directly from your school district.

Annville-Cleona
Food is available throughout the summer to students, and will be distributed Monday-Thursday at the Secondary School each week from 11am-12:30pm.

Cornwall-Lebanon
Cornwall Lebanon currently has free grab 'n go meals posted through June 29, including two breakfasts and two lunches per child.

ELCO
Food distribution will continue at the Intermediate School on Wednesdays between 10:00am and 1:00pm through the end of June.

Lebanon
Breakfast and lunch for the week are available at Northwest and High School only through June. July and August details are TBD.

Northern Lebanon
Meals will be distributed Tuesdays and Fridays 1-2pm at the High School until June 30.

Palmyra
Food distribution is currently on Tuesday and Thursday of each week (7 breakfasts/ 7 lunches). On July 1st, there will be one day of distribution on Wednesdays (5 breakfasts/5 lunches) at the Palmyra Area High School from 11am-noon.

Other Food Resources

Better Together has put together a resource list for local families in need to access food pantries and meal programs throughout Lebanon County.

211 is available 24/7 to find food and other resources near you. Simply dial 211, or text your zipcode to 898211.

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Questions or comments about our newsletter? Contact Flame Vo, Director of Marketing & Communications.