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Head Start turns to the community |
By David Sale,
Newberg Graphic reporter
E-mail David at
dsale@eaglenewspapers.com
|
Head Start of Yamhill County is
moving ahead with plans to construct a new facility in Newberg after
accepting a $2 million bid from Woodburn Construction Co.
The building, which will house Head Start’s preschool and early
childhood education programs for low-income area residents, will be
located on a two-acre site near the A-Dec Inc. campus on Crestview
Drive.
The land, appraised at $215,000, was donated by the A-dec owners
Ken and Joan Austin, said Claudia Campos of CASA of Oregon, which is
assisting Head Start in the project.
“We had a facility at Joyful Servant (Lutheran Church) but we’d
outgrown it and the church was expanding,” said Michael Eichman,
Head Start’s executive director. “They’ve been great hosts for 20
years and really exemplified the Christian spirit.”
The new building will be approximately 4,000 square feet and should
serve about 60 children, Eichman added. The Head Start program
serves approximately 200 families in Yamhill County at sites in
McMinnville, Dundee and Sheridan in addition to Newberg.
Head Start is within $300,000 of its funding goal and is requesting
donations from Chehalem Valley Chamber of Commerce members and other
community residents.
“There’s some great studies to show that early childhood programs
also create economic development,” Eichman said. “The kids who have
an opportunity to participate in these programs go on to do well in
school and in pursuing careers.”
Head Start has received $307,500 in donations toward construction
costs to date, from sources including Spirit Mountain Casino, the
Collins Foundation, the Ford Foundation, U.S. Bancorp, and the Meyer
Memorial Trust.
The project has also received $600,000 in federal funds through the
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, which the city of
Newberg applied for on Head Start’s behalf, and a $312,000 loan from
the USDA Rural Development Program.
Construction is scheduled to begin this summer and Head Start
intends to pursue a “green building” certification through the
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification
program, Eichman said. |
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From May 12, 2007,
Newberg Graphic
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