Jumpstart is a Boston-based program that pairs federal Work-Study college students with children in Head Start and other programs serving low-income preschoolers. The volunteers work one-on-one with the children in their daily school activities.

The programs was founded by Aaron Lieberman in 1993 when he was a Yale University student. It now operates in 11 cities including New York, L.A. and Washington. The program, which serves more than 1,500 children this school year, has a $7 million annual budget that comes mostly from private funding and some government grants.

As Jumpstart’s CEO, Mr. Lieberman is shifting the growth of the program into high gear. He plans to form partnerhsips with more than 50 colleges and universities over the next five years– and, if that goal is met, he expects the number of children served each year to increase to 15,000. Jumpstart began setting up college partnerships in 1997 and now has seven universities involved.

Website: www.jstart.org

Excerpted from “”College Students Help Jump-Start Preschooler’s Learning”" by Linda Jacobson, Education Week December 13, 2000