Event Monday Spotlights Pre-K Education

The Newark Public Schools will be hosting Pre-Kindergarten Awareness Day Monday, April 15 at 9:30 am at the Early Childhood School-West, Gladstone Avenue (approach from the South Orange Avenue side).  The celebration will launch the Week of the Young Child, with announcements on new initiatives by the district in collaboration with the City of Newark, Newark Pre-School Council (NPC), Newark Fire Department and community organizations. The theme for the day will be Advocacy and Awareness for Early Childhood Education.

Newark Public Schools Superintendent Cami Anderson will receive a proclamation, stating the importance of early childhood as a foundation for learning, to be presented by Councilman Ron Rice, Jr. on behalf of Mayor Cory Booker.  In addition, New Jersey Association of Education for Young Children Board President Kathy Burke will speak on the Week of the Young Child, Preschoolers from the school will perform a skit, and a video produced by NPS entitled A Day in the Life of a Preschooler will premier.

They will be joined by Assistant Superintendent Roger Leon, Director of Early Childhood Sandra Rodriguez, NPS Advisory Board President Toni Baskerville and Members DeNiqua Matias and Shavar Jeffries, parents and community group representatives from organizations such as Advocates for Children of New Jersey, Newark NOW, United Way of Essex and West Hudson and iReform. 

The event will also highlight pre-kindergarten registration for next school year, which started April 1.  The Newark Public Schools is committed to ensuring all preschool eligible children in the City of Newark have an opportunity to participate in high-quality preschool programs.  A number of the NPC Head Start preschools are also overseen by Newark Public Schools.

Throughout the week activities will include Ann Street School students’ art exhibit at NPS Central Office, 2 Cedar Street, and the Sarah Ward Nursery collaboration with New Jersey Institute of Technology.