Spartan News

The Lima City Schools and many community partners will again give away free school supplies at a Back to School Celebration planned for 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Aug, 7, at Martin Luther King Park, 400 E. Eighth Street.

This is the third year of the event, which brings businesses, organizations and churches together to help families and provide a fun way to get ready for a new school year.

This year’s event will be a true cookout, as Lima Police Officers will grill hot dogs right at the park.

“We are so excited to again bring this wonderful event to our community,” Superintendent Jill Ackerman said. “It is so much fun to see our families and to be able to help our kids get ready for a new school year.”

Highlights of the afternoon will include:

• Free school supplies
• Free hot dogs, drinks and other food
• Free Spartan gear
• Lima Senior Face Painters
• Kickball
• Talk with school officials
• School Resource Officers and K-9s
• Spartan Community Health Center
• Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts
• Community agencies
• RTA Trolley
• Other games and activities

Many area businesses and organizations have made the event possible by collecting and donating school supplies and money, and by providing food. They are listed below:

Salvation Army, Neighborhood Relief, Grace Community Church, Lima Community Church, Husky Lima Refinery Volunteer Council, Allen Oakwood Correctional Institution’s Women in Corrections Committee, Trinity United Methodist Church, Lima Kiwanis Club, Altrusa International of Lima, Webb Insurance, Gordon Food Service, Lima Mall, Walmart Lima Education Association and Lima Congress for School Administrative Personnel.

Thank you also to the City of Lima for use of Martin Luther King Park.

Like last year, the district is asking families to bring along a non-perishable food donation to the event. The food will go to the district’s food pantries.

The Lima City Schools will again provide free lunches for children over the summer months through the Summer Food program.

Children and teens between the ages of one and 18 qualify for the summer meals.

Lunch will be served at the following locations from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays beginning June 10.

• Heritage Elementary School, 816 College Ave.
• Independence Elementary School, 615 Tremont Ave.
• Liberty Arts Magnet School, 338 W. Kibby St.
• South Science and Technology Magnet School, 755 St. Johns Ave.
• Unity Elementary School, 925 E. Third St.

The free lunches will run until Aug. 1. There will be no lunches served July 4.

The Lima City Schools announced plans Tuesday to expand its preschool offerings and to offer transportation for preschool children.

School officials announced at a Tuesday press conference an effort to get more children enrolled in preschool by addressing barriers like transportation and scheduling that many families face.

Preschool children living within the district’s boundaries will be eligible for busing beginning next school year, and the district is adding more full-day options.

Citing studies showing that 90 percent of brain development happens between birth and 5 years of age, Superintendent Jill Ackerman said not nearly enough children are getting the early instruction they need.

According to the 2018 Ohio Early Childhood Race and Rural Equity Report, only 40 percent of children in Ohio come to kindergarten ready to learn. Once they are behind, Ackerman said, it is difficult to get them caught up.

”They often continue to lag behind their classmates both academically and socially,” she said. “Not getting that early classroom experience with a qualified teacher can negatively impact that child many years down the road.”

The district’s preschool program serves both typically-developing children and those eligible for special education services. Three, 4 and 5 year olds are eligible. Tuition is based on federal poverty guidelines and can be as low as $12 a month for the full-day program.

Full-day programs will be available at Freedom Elementary, Heritage Elementary, Independence Elementary and Unity Elementary. Heritage and Unity will also have half-day programs.

Students attend Monday through Friday, with times varying depending on the classroom and building. Students are enrolled August through May.

All classrooms are staffed by licensed teachers and paraprofessionals, who work with children on all areas of development: cognitive, language, social, emotional, physical and adaptive.

The program is a Five Star Step Up to Quality rated program. This is the highest rating possible and means the program has met quality program standards that exceed licensing health and safety regulations.

Walk-In Preschool Screenings will be held from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 23, at Heritage Elementary, and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 30, at Unity Elementary.

For more information, call or email Angela Miller at 419-996-3427 or amiller@limacityschools.org. Or Jody Webb at 419-996-3692 or jwebb@limacityschools.org.

Community effort

Ackerman said the need in the community goes beyond just getting children enrolled in preschool. It is also about getting books in homes early on, educating parents and making sure families are connected to the help and resources they need.

“I challenge this community to come together to wrap itself around these children and families,” she said. “This is a community-wide concern that impacts the wellbeing of our entire community. And together we need to find a way to address it.”

The school district, with the help of members from this year’s Allen Lima Leadership class, will be at various locations in the community from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, April 6, to talk to people and distribute information about preschool.

They will be at the following locations: Dollar General on Jameson Ave., Family Dollar on Main Street, Meat City on Kibby Street, Chief Markets in Northland, Ruler Foods on Elm Street, Lima Public Library, Lima YMCA, Fresh N Faded on Main Street, Black Lace Hair Salon on North Main Street, Superior Federal Credit Union on Kibby Street, and the Allentown Road Walmart.

**Superintendent Jill Ackerman will be at Ruler Foods.