Catherine Hershey Schools for Early Learning (CHS) is not designed only to benefit young students.

The mission is to assist the entire family with a "two-generation approach," said Jessica Bailey, the director of the CHS New Danville Center, which is slated to open this summer.

It is primarily for students in the Solanco, Lampeter-Strasburg, and Penn Manor school districts. "Our program does identify school districts that we prioritize that are near to each site," said Bailey. "And the goal is that families not just go to school or live in the area, but they could be getting an education in the area themselves or just working in the area to qualify for a program. Those are the three school districts that we focus on."

The New Danville Center, located at 393 Long Lane, Lancaster, is accepting applications. Catherine Hershey Schools are for students between the ages of 6 weeks old and 5 years old and operate year-round. Go to http://www.chslearn.org to register or for more information.

"We're considered an early childhood education facility," Bailey said, noting that the New Danville location is hoping to welcome 100 students from low-income or underresourced families. "We really look to support families to make sure that they are thriving when they leave our program. Our big goal and our big mission is to help the entire family. Not only do we provide that early childhood education and care for students during the day, but we're also providing support for our families, (finding) resources for them to help families set goals, and to really support them to be in a position where they are making the most out of all that they can."

No closing date for applications has been established. "We do work through our application process here in the start of the new year," Bailey said. "We're accepting applications for our families, and we'd love to be able to see families all throughout our three districts applying. Once they fill out their application, we will be connecting with them and following through with the process until we've been able to determine the appropriate amount of students to be able to fill our building."

Bailey stated that the application process is straightforward. "There's an online registration where we would ask for some information that comes to our admissions department," she said. "From there, we would reach out with phone calls and connections in person to be able to make sure we have the most up-to-date, most accurate information to be able to make the best decision for our families. Since we do have to make certain qualifications, we do make sure we really have those deep conversations with families to ensure our process is just."

Catherine Hershey Schools is a nonprofit organization and a subsidiary of the Milton Hershey School. "That's part of where we come from and the long line and legacy of the Hersheys and all that they created," Bailey said. "A lot of people aren't familiar with the fact that Milton Hershey owned a candy company here in Lancaster. That's part of the reason we've opened in Dauphin County, and Lancaster is really to build on the heritage and the legacy that both Milton and Catherine left in those areas. It's exciting to be able to do that."

The New Danville location will be the fourth Catherine Hershey School and the first in Lancaster County with more to follow. "Currently we have three operational centers in Dauphin County," said Bailey. "Our first to open was in Hershey, the second was in Harrisburg, and our third one opened just this year in Middletown. We have our first site in Lancaster, us here in New Danville, and then following us will be a site in Elizabethtown and a site in Lancaster city, hopefully by 2027."

Bailey stated that Catherine Hershey Schools' subject matter is a draw "We focus on a play-based curriculum," she said. "Kids need play at this age, and we all hear in the education world how that trickle-down effect of development and skills has an effect on our youngest generation. We really focus on that play-based (curriculum), leaning into children's interests and creating projects that are meaningful to them that they can explore throughout their time here."

A key objective is preparing students for the rest of their schooling. "Our goal is to get them ready for kindergarten, and 'ready' for each child is a little bit different," said Bailey. "Some children are ready and raring to go with more information, and some kiddos just need to learn how to exist in their own beautiful space. We have the opportunity to build and create that and really support the children individually and also make sure the families know how to support their children individually, which is really a key part too."