Community Partnerships
The Momot Pre-Kindergarten program serves 34 students in two half-day sessions. This targeted Pre-K serves a mainly low-income population, with many students also receiving special services through the school.
A Clinton County funded organization, North Country Kids, provides full-time speech and language and special education teachers, and part-time occupational and physical therapists to evaluate and provide treatment to Momot’s Pre-K students.
The goal of the Pre-K is to give the students experience in a school environment and to exercise early intervention strategies if physical or learning disabilities are diagnosed. This enables more students to enter Kindergarten with the physical, academic and social skills they will need to succeed.
Momot students greatly benefit from the School Psychologist interns that work at the school every year. This year, seven interns from SUNY Plattsburgh’s Master of Science in School Psychology program will spend time at Momot. These college students often return for several years, first as part of their course work, then again for a year-long internship.
Garret McLean, now in his 3rd year at Momot, is one such intern. He works with from 12-20 students each day, conducting small group or one-on-one sessions that develop social skills, work out behavior problems and provide support for Momot’s own school psychologists.
Among many duties, Garret works with the Banana Splits - students whose parents are divorced or separated. They meet regularly as a support group to discuss issues that affect their lives due to their home situation, such as the stress they may feel during the holidays. They work on self-esteem issues and emphasize the positives of their situations.
He credits positive outcomes to Momot’s team effort to solve problems and the unbelievable support for the students that he has witnessed over the years.