Summer Wrap-Up & Back-to-SchoolHighlights of our Early Education and Care Programming Our early education staff and teachers are committed to providing a fun, creative, and nurturing atmosphere, helping young children grow and thrive. We offer two childcare locations in Pittsfield with a social-emotional learning curriculum from infancy until Kindergarten.   Out-of-school care Kid's Clubs are …

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My name is Kyle, and I’ve been working with 18 Degrees for just over nine years now in the Healing Homes Comprehensive Foster Care program. We started in Hadley and later made a smooth transition into West Springfield, closer to the families we work with. I came into this field hoping to be a voice …

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18 Degrees is pleased to have been awarded a second $20,000 grant from the Mass Mentoring Partnership to support youth in the Pittsfield Community Connection Program (PCC). This matching grant is further supported by generous grant funding we received in 2022 from Berkshire United Way. 18 Degrees is honored to partner with our local and state …

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The 18 Degrees Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Stephanie Steed, MEd, will assume the position of President and CEO on January 1, 2023. Steed, a longtime employee of the agency and current Vice President of Programs, assumes the position following the departure of Sarah Cook, who is leaving Western Massachusetts to spend …

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Submitted by Sarah Cook, President and CEO We strive to make 18 Degrees an organization where we regularly welcome fresh ideas and new perspectives, introduce new skills, and provide learning opportunities to expand our knowledge. In this vein, we are thrilled to launch our first agency-wide leadership cohort this fall for a rigorous nine-month exploration of …

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Kids 4 Harmony is back in action for the school year. Earlier this month, Pittsfield’s Beginning Ensemble students got to choose their instruments at Morningside, while the Advanced String Ensemble and Elayne P. Bernstein Ensemble got back to work at Pittsfield High School. And new for K4H this year, we got a head start with …

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Download our 3-Year Program Report The YouthLaunch program was a three-year pilot that focused on early engagement for families with children zero to ten years old. Using a holistic approach with the EMPath Economic Mobility Pathways (EMPath) model, we further integrated a focus on parent and child interactions, as well as early and preliteracy skills …

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Emma Lenski, M.S., LGBTQIA+ Services Coordinator Submitted by Emma Lenski, M.S., LGBTQIA Services Coordinator Family Resource Center at 18 Degrees As Pride Month comes to a close, I wanted to make a statement about its ongoing significance. LGBTQ rights in this country have a long history, with the well-known Stonewall Riots being a catalyst for …

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    What's Happening at Kids 4 Harmony From special collaborations to where you can catch the next performance and everything in between, this issue is overflowing with all the exciting things happening at Kids 4 Harmony.  Eleanor Rigby       The Kids 4 Harmony string quartet and the vocal trio from Darrow demonstrated what …

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By Sarah Cook, President and CEO At 18 Degrees, we celebrate Black History Month by acknowledging that Black history is American history, and its celebration cannot, and should not, be confined to just one month. We hope that the wealth of information and activities available throughout the month sparks conversations, enriches experiences, and ignites a curiosity …

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