TWC designates Harlingen day care as Texas Rising Star

HARLINGEN — Certainly generations can recall a life which began with hope and love and gentle instruction.

So many have benefited from their early experiences at Great Beginnings and the success of that program. Now the Great Beginnings day care program at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church has been designated as a Texas Rising Star by the Texas Workforce Commission.

“I am proud of my teachers and all their hard work,” said Carla Wisdom, director.

“Their love for the children and teaching really shows,” she said.

Great Beginnings is a faith-based program which recognizes each child as a child of God and carries a commitment to help enable persons to live life in the fullness that Jesus proclaimed, said a statement from St. Paul.

The Texas Rising Star program is a quality rating and improvement system for child care programs in Texas. All child care programs serving children in the Texas Workforce Commission’s Child Care Services (CCS) scholarship program must participate in the Texas Rising Star program, says the Texas Workforce Commission website.

Great Beginnings opens its doors each day at 7 a.m. to serve children ages six months to four years. The program lasts until 6 p.m. and includes chapel, meals and instructional activities to lay a good foundation to a child’s life.

Wisdom said the program had to make some changes in order to apply and receive the designation. Previously Great Beginnings used its own curriculum. It has now implemented the Frog Street curriculum.

“It’s more of a developmentally comprehensive curriculum,” Wisdom said. “It hits on more of a developmental area for every child. We’re making sure that we are doing more individualized curriculum.”

A group of children attend the church’s daycare chapel service Wednesday, April 26, 2023, at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Harlingen. (Denise Cathey/The Brownsville Herald)

As an example, she pointed out a teaching segment about circles.

“In our center they’ll put out circle paper and then encourage the children to draw circles,” Wisdom said. “In the kitchen area they’ll put out round place mats and round plates and round cups and saucers.”

The Rev. Nathan Wendorf, pastor at St. Paul, was delighted the program had earned this designation.

“Great Beginnings is an incredible ministry that day in and day out partners with parents, helping children to grow in mind, body and spirit,” Wendorf said. “I am thankful that all four of my children had a great start in Great Beginnings. I am excited how they seek to become the best center they can be for all the children they serve.”

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