Ohio State joins national group to serve low-income pre-schoolers

COLUMBUS -- Jumpstart, a leading service organization that matches community needs with federal dollars, announced today that The Ohio State University has been selected as a new Jumpstart affiliate site beginning fall 2002. The program will bring one-to-one mentoring and early literacy skills to hundreds of preschoolers from low-income communities in the surrounding Columbus area. President George W. Bush will feature Ohio State’s commitment to public service partnerships such as Jumpstart in his June 14 commencement address.

“In October 2000, Ohio State pledged to expand its land-grant mission by significantly strengthening the scope and effectiveness of its commitment to P-12 education with a special focus on the education of underserved children and youth,” said Danielle Polemeni, the coordinator of Ohio State’s P-12 Learning Bridge program and Campus Champion for Jumpstart. “Jumpstart’s goals fit perfectly into our overall community service agenda. By pairing with Jumpstart, we will now serve hundreds of preschool children who will greatly benefit from one-on-one mentorship and early literacy skill development.”

Jumpstart currently engages more than 1,000 college students serving as Corps members to work with more than 5,000 preschool children around the country. It is the largest part-time AmeriCorps program in the nation, operating a network of 51 colleges and universities.

Jumpstart, also the largest Serve-Study program in the country, integrates Federal Work-Study dollars with AmeriCorps funding to help college students finance their education. In addition to earning Federal Work-Study dollars during the academic year, Jumpstart Corps members also earn a $1,000 AmeriCorps Education Award upon completing 300 hours of service.

Ohio State’s history of devoting Federal Work-Study money to service-based initiatives led Jumpstart to select the university as a campus-based affiliate site. Together, Jumpstart and Ohio State will help college students pay for school by working with children during their most formative years: pre-kindergarten.

SUPPORTING A NATIONAL CALL TO SERVICE
By joining Jumpstart, Ohio State students become members of the national service movement that gained momentum following President Bush’s State of the Union address last January.

“We congratulate Jumpstart and Ohio State University on their new partnership, and on the opportunities they are creating for students who receive Federal Work-Study assistance and are interested in serving the communities that surround and support their colleges and universities,“ said John Bridgeland, director of the USA Freedom Corps, the initiative President Bush created to help Americans answer his call to service.

Ohio State Jumpstart Corps members will commit to either 300 or 525 hours of service over a school year and summer. During their term of service, Corps members will work one-to-one with preschool children from Head Start centers and other early education programs, such as Columbus Public Schools, and focus on developing language, social, and adaptive skills, skills that children need to succeed in school and in life. Ohio State Corps members will complete intensive training and deliver a research-based curriculum under the supervision of a full-time Ohio State-based Site Manager.

“Over the next few years, hundreds of Ohio State’s Federal Work-Study students will be recruited and trained to deliver Jumpstart’s early literacy program,“ said Rob Waldron, president and CEO of Jumpstart. “They will deliver a measurable, proven program that will make a lasting impact on the children they mentor.“

Since its inception in 1994, Jumpstart has supported community involvement and early childhood education by building its involvement in the AmeriCorps National Service Network, supplementing Head Start programs across the country, and growing a base of college students into future teachers. To date, Jumpstart has engaged almost 3,000 college students on Federal Work-Study to serve more than 8,000 preschool children.

ABOUT JUMPSTART
Jumpstart is a national non-profit organization that engages young people in service to work toward the day every child in America enters school prepared to succeed. Jumpstart recruits, trains, and supports college students to serve as part-time AmeriCorps members, working directly with and supporting young children in Head Start and other early childhood education programs.

Jumpstart focuses on building School Success for young children by developing their early language, literacy, and social skills; encouraging strong Family Involvement to help families support children’s learning; and training college students to be Future Teachers and leaders in early childhood education. Jumpstart’s national sponsors include American Eagle Outfitters, official outfitter; Pearson, official education partner; and Starbucks, official growth partner. Jumpstart was named one of the “100 Best Charities” by Worth Magazine in 2001. For more information, visit the Jumpstart Web site at www.jstart.org.