About Us
Jumpstart is working toward the day every child in America enters school prepared to succeed.
Every child enters the world with potential. Yet without the involvement of a caring adult, there is no guarantee that he or she will reach that promise. Enter Jumpstart. For over a decade we’ve been bringing at-risk preschool children and caring adults together through one-to-one relationships that focus on building literacy in combination with social and emotional readiness. Working alongside their parents and a strong community, we’ve seen how consistent, committed and caring one-to-one relationships between children and adults help to realize success not just in school, but also in life.
Before entering the pre-schools, Corps members are trained in how to work with pre-school aged children and how to implement the Jumpstart curriculum. Throughout the year, members improve their skills through an ongoing service-learning and training program.
Jumpstart Mankato is a local affiliate site of Jumpstart for Young Children, Inc. We are not just housed on the Minnesota State University, Mankato campus, but are also an integral part of the university community. During the program year, Jumpstart Mankato offers Corps members the opportunity to serve at early education centers in the Mankato and St. Peter area. Those individuals that commit to serving 300 hours in their community, may also be eligible to receive a $1000.00 educational award. That award can be used to pay for further higher education or it can be used to pay back qualified student loans. Participants may also utilize their Federal Work-Study award while serving with Jumpstart.
Jumpstart works to create an environment of life-long learning for children, build school success, family involvement and future teachers one child at a time.
