Barely tall enough to see over the desktop, a group of three-year-olds Friday morning sat transfixed, wearing large black headphones and staring at computer screens across which brightly-colored pictures danced.
Thanks to The Colom Foundation, 100 Black Men and United Christian Baptist Church, local 3-, 4- and 5-year-olds at UCBC will be more ready for their school years.
Recognizing a need to better prepare children for entry into elementary school, United Christian Baptist Church has become the first in the state to participate in a Waterford Research Institute project.
Developing educational software focusing on reading, mathematics and science curriculum for children aged four to seven, WRI is a nonprofit organization founded in 1976 with a mission of using technology to provide educational equity and excellence for children.
A WRI instructor, Dr. Haya Shamir, visited the church Friday to train UCBC Instructor Marilyn Payne on the computer software.
“It”s very valuable, because it gives (the children) some of the skills they”ll need when they get to elementary school,” Payne said of the program.
“It prepares and helps children in school,” said Shamir. “It teaches everything from letters to logical awareness, vocabulary, reading and reading comprehension. It”s very attractive. It has books, stories and songs and different games that will help them learn while they”re enjoying it.
“They love it,” she added of the students at UCBC. “They”re just really, really enjoying it.”
The program is funded by 100 Black Men and The Colom Foundation, said UCBC Pastor Steven James, giving special thanks to Dr. Dustin Heuston, the founder and chairman of WRI.
“The Waterford Institute is extremely important to our church,” James said. “We don”t just teach our salvation only, but also empowering the whole man. We feel education is an important tool to empower our people. And all the research we”ve looked at says this program is one of the best in the entire country.
“For so long, Mississippi has been looked at in a negative light when it comes to education,” he continued. “This program is going to be a benefit not only to our church, but to the city of Columbus and even to the state. We”re pioneers of this program. We”re very fortunate to have this program.”
“I was so surprised and delighted to be contacted by Dennis Erby, representing community leaders such as the 100 Black Men of Columbus, Wilbur Colom and the business community, the leadership of the United Christian Baptist Church, the mayor, the school superintendent and a representative of (Rep.) Travis Childers” office, that I traveled from Salt Lake City, (Utah) to meet these leaders and determined that we would contribute to helping this project succeed,” said Heuston. “The Institute is honored to be working with such a talented group and looks forward to a very successful project with the church. How extraordinary that we live in a nation where a distant Institute can link with visionary leaders in a Mississippi community.
“What a tribute to your leadership to seek out a program that can help your community be part of an important project in the history of American education!” he added.
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