Androscoggin Head Start & Child Care

Child Care Program: Promise Early Education Center strives to provide all children with a safe, nurturing, engaging, enjoyable, and secure learning environment. Each child is treated as an individual in an inclusive community that values, respects, and responds to diversity. Promise focuses around early childhood education and the important role it plays in a child's overall development ranging from social and emotional, physical, cognitive, and language and literacy development. We believe that each child is special and unique. Our goal is to meet each child's needs at his/her own level and to offer support to the families who care for them.

Food and Nutrition Programs: the Organizations offers food and dietary relief services through its Child and Adult Care Food Program ("CACFP"). The CACFP provides cash reimbursement to child and adult day care providers for serving meals and snacks meeting USDA standards to participants enrolled in care. Promise's food program recognizes and supports the important role childcare homes play in developing the healthy eating habits, growth, development, and overall wellness of young children. The Organization also assist in nutritional and affordable meal planning services.

The Organization provides many other child and family care services to its community. Examples include sponsoring and providing family educators, who meet weekly with client-families at the family's home. Educators guide and engage parents, lead activities, and act as resources for questions, concerns, and support. The goal is to help parents build a healthy parent-child relationship. Visits include education and child development opportunities, social services referrals, and guidance and referrals for health, mental health, and nutrition concerns. We also offer group gatherings twice a month where families can meet other parents of young children, helping build a community of support. Promise also provides prenatal support and assistance to expectant mothers to support healthy pregnancies and childbirth, starting the path toward a future of possibility for babies right from the start. A family educator conveniently visits families in their home and helps them through prenatal coaching, nutritional counseling (including WIC benefits), and helps to coordinate attendance at local childbirth education and newborn parenting classes. We also provide information on establishing a medical and dental home, health insurance, and any other community resource that provides support to expectant families.