DALLAS TWP. — An agreement between the Dallas School District and Building Blocks Learning Center will offer child care services to parents and create a revenue stream for the district, Superintendent Thomas Duffy said.

The Dallas School District will team up with Building Blocks Learning Center to offer one-stop before and after school childcare services at Wycallis and Dallas elementary schools for students in kindergarten to fifth-grade starting Jan. 2.

“A pilot program will start in January with internal Building Blocks clients,” sasid Zubeen Saeed, the president and chief executive officer of Building Blocks Learning Center. “At the moment, we plan to hold an open enrollment in March.”

Parents or caregivers who register for the program will be allowed to drop off their children at their school starting at 6:30 a.m. for morning programs, offered by certified Building Blocks teachers, Saeed said.

Students will be dismissed directly to their homerooms at the start of the school day.

If the start of school is delayed due to snow, the before-care program will still start at 6:30 a.m., Saeed said.

The after-school program will run from school dismissal to 6 p.m., she said. Childcare services will not be affected if the school closes early due to a snowstorm, Saeed said.

Even holiday vacation or a teachers’ strike should not prevent child care services from operating out of the schools.

“This will be viewed as an independent program,” Saeed said. “We (Building Blocks) will handle everything from A-Z.”

Both morning and after-school programs will feature a snack and structure focused on STEAM, which means Science, Technology, English, Art and Math, she said.

Monday would focus on Science activities; Tuesday, technology; Wednesday, English; Thursday, art; and Friday, math., Saeed said.

“We want to connect with teachers to see how to help academically,” Saeed said. “Our goal is to build a bridge between school and the home environment.”

The partnership will allow Building Blocks’ teachers the use of school resources such as a computer lab and gym for school-age programs, Saeed said.

The child care program will create a convenience for families by meeting a growing need for child care services while using school buildings at a time when they usually are empty, Duffy said.

“There are approximately 20 child care facilities in the Back Mountain,” Duffy said. “Many are full. This will serve a need.”

Duffy and Saeed agreed a fee structure would be built into Building Blocks agreement to pay the district for the use of its buildings and facilities.

Building Blocks Learning Center has several locations throughout Luzerne County, including one off Route 415 in the Twin Stacks Center in Dallas Township, which has been in existence since 2001.

Duffy said the idea to offer in-house childcare was something the school board has considered implementing for years. This summer the district advertised a request for bids from area child care centers.

“Building Blocks was the only one to respond,” Duffy said.

The childcare facility has operated a similar program in Solomon Plains, Kistler and Dan Flood elementary schools in the Wilkes-Barre Area School District for the past three years, Saeed said.

Wycallis Elementary School Principal Brian Bradshaw has not sent out any information about the new partnership and child care service but had some positive conversations with parents about the program.

Saeed said Building Blocks started sharing information with Dallas School District families.

“We received great feedback,” she said.

For more information about Building Block Learning Center’s services at the Dallas School District, call 570-674-5326.

Building Block Learning Center administrators Shay Higgins, director of School Age Programs; Lake Gemzik, vice president; and Zubeen Saeed, president and chief executive officer, will offer before and after-school childcare services at Wycallis and Dallas elementary schools starting in January.
https://www.mydallaspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/web1_Blocks-1.jpg.optimal.jpgBuilding Block Learning Center administrators Shay Higgins, director of School Age Programs; Lake Gemzik, vice president; and Zubeen Saeed, president and chief executive officer, will offer before and after-school childcare services at Wycallis and Dallas elementary schools starting in January.

Building Blocks Learning Center president Zubeen Saeed, along with Lake Gemzik, vice president, and Shay Higgins, director of School Age Programs, discuss how to utilize the resources in Wycallis Elementary School during a tour of the school.
https://www.mydallaspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/web1_Blocks-2.jpg.optimal.jpgBuilding Blocks Learning Center president Zubeen Saeed, along with Lake Gemzik, vice president, and Shay Higgins, director of School Age Programs, discuss how to utilize the resources in Wycallis Elementary School during a tour of the school.

Lake Gemzik, vice president, Shay Higgins, director of School Age Programs and Zubeen Saeed, president of Building Blocks Learning Center, tour Wycallis Elementary School.
https://www.mydallaspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/web1_Blocks-3.jpg.optimal.jpgLake Gemzik, vice president, Shay Higgins, director of School Age Programs and Zubeen Saeed, president of Building Blocks Learning Center, tour Wycallis Elementary School.

Zubeen Saeed, center, president and CEO of Building Blocks Learning Center, along with Shay Higgins, left, director of School Age Programs, and Lake Gemzik, right, vice president, talk about using Wycallis Elementary School library’s resources for an in-house childcare program.
https://www.mydallaspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/web1_Blocks-4.jpg.optimal.jpgZubeen Saeed, center, president and CEO of Building Blocks Learning Center, along with Shay Higgins, left, director of School Age Programs, and Lake Gemzik, right, vice president, talk about using Wycallis Elementary School library’s resources for an in-house childcare program.
Dallas School District and Building Blocks Learning Center to team up

By Eileen Godin

egodin@timesleader.com

Reach Eileen Godin at 570-991-6387 or on Twitter @TLNews.