A Good Start

A Good Start Summer Program is a early literacy school readiness program, under A Good Start for All, a nonprofit outreach of the Maynard Avenue United Methodist Church.  We are committed to nurturing the spirit of all who enter our doors.  Through the partnership with Ohio Wesleyan University and many social service agencies in the local community, this 6 week summer program focuses on preparing children entering Kindergarten for what lies ahead.  We offer supportive  services to families including year round free tutoring to all family members who participate in the summer program.  Literacy and supportive programs will be developed as needed in an effort to keep the program responsive to the overall community.

Mission
To provide a literacy rich experience for children who are entering Kindergarten in the fall who live at or below poverty.  These children begin their education far behind their peers in vocabulary, early literacy skills and general exposure to books.  Since 2008, A Good Start has served over 240 families and children who are entering kindergarten in the Fall.  This literacy rich program is a partnership between Maynard Avenue United Methodist Church, Neighborhood Services, Inc., Ohio Wesleyan University and Marburn Academy with support from many other local social service partners.  

Goals
  • To develop a child's confidence and understanding  of how to be a part of a learning community
  • To nurture their love of learning - providing challenges, problem solving skills and supporting risk taking in their learning
  • To enrich the child's exposure and experience with learning content area and early literacy skills to prepare them for public school.
  • To develop relationships  - the foundation of our program is relationships  with families, children, the community and social service programs
  • To help model the family/school relationship and support advocacy in the best interest of the child.