FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 11, 2009
Wintergarden Center’s Classrooms Awarded School Readiness Certifications
Eagle Pass, TX – TMC a member of the Texas School Ready Project, formerly the Texas Early Education Model program, announced today that 5 classrooms from the different Migrant Seasonal Head Start Centers in the Wintergarden Region were awarded the “School Readiness Certification for 2008-2009 by the State Center for Early Childhood Development at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. A ceremony was held at the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas Multi-Media Room to announce the 5 classrooms that were certified from the Wintergarden Region. Representative Tracy King congratulated the teachers on their certification and presented the teachers with their Certificate.
The following classrooms received the Texas School Ready! designation teachers Lorena Sepulveda from the Carrizo Springs Center, Teresa Cervantez and Judy Luna from the Crystal City Center, Lorena Garcia from the Eagle Pass I Center, and Juana Aguirre from the Eagle Pass II Center.
“We are excited that we are able to offer TEEM-mentor classrooms at our Centers in the Wintergarden region, this program helps the children start school ready to learn," stated Mary Capello, CEO.
The School Readiness designation indicates that after two years of compliance, the designated classrooms have demonstrated a high level of performance in providing a quality pre-school curriculum to children ages 4 and 5 years old. These teachers have successfully implemented the School Ready Project principles of classroom management, phonological awareness, vocabulary building, letter knowledge, early writing, early math, and preparatory reading.
Pre-schools and child-care centers apply yearly to SCECD and provide their review staff with information about classrooms and educational programs, including the learning environment and curriculum. Children attending applicant classrooms are then followed from pre-K into kindergarten and evaluated by the SCECD for early reading and social development to determine if the pre-K classroom helped prepare the student for success in elementary school.
