Preschool Tuition Assistance Helps Make High Quality Pre-K Accessible in Bedford County

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Bedford, PA (April 27, 2017) –Quality preschool programs are proven to better prepare children for entry into kindergarten, and some studies show the benefits last as long as 25 years! While a few school districts offer free pre-kindergarten programs, it is not universal in Bedford County. That means many local parents must send their child to a private preschool. Unfortunately, not every family can afford the cost.

The Learning Lamp, a nonprofit organization that works together with schools and families, offers high quality preschool programs across the region with tuition assistance available for income-eligible families. “In the 2016-17 school year, The Learning Lamp provided tuition assistance to 50 families, including many in Bedford County, so their children could attend the preschool of their choice, not a program parents settled for because it was all they could afford,” said Erica Ponczek, Early Learning Director at The Learning Lamp. 

Research has shown that every dollar spent on a quality early learning program saves between $7 and $17 on social services later in a child’s life. Parents can determine the quality of a preschool program by checking into licensing, accreditation, and whether the program participates in Pennsylvania’s Keystone STARS quality improvement initiative for early learning programs.

Parents interested in exploring the early childhood education options available to them are welcome to stop by The Learning Lamp’s open house and registration event at its Bedford preschool location inside of Bedford Elementary School on Tuesday, May 2, 2017 from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. If parents intend to enroll a child, they are asked to bring with them their child’s insurance card and, if applying for assistance, their previous year’s tax return information.

For more information about The Learning Lamp’s early childhood education programs, please contact Erica Ponczek at 814-262-0732 extension 222 or visit thelearninglamp.org.

The Learning Lamp is a nonprofit organization with a mission to engage all children in the support they need to succeed. We deliver high quality programs that are affordable and accessible to families of all income levels. The Learning Lamp served 33,795 children from 55 school districts and 22 non-public and private schools and other organizations in 16 Pennsylvania counties and one county in Maryland in 2016.

Our programs include: one-to-one tutoring; before/after school programs; portable classrooms aimed at building math and science skills; alternative education programs for at-risk students; evidence-based prevention programs; online learning and credit recovery; SAT preparation; educationally-focused child care; literacy-based preschool programs; and grant writing and project consulting for schools.