Little Learners Childhood Connections

Goal: $6,000.00

Specific Need

A New OAE Hearing Screening Machine

Picture a home visitor pulling into a gravel driveway in rural Clay County, a small foam-tipped probe and a machine in her bag. Inside, a mom holds her sleeping ten-week-old while the home visitor gets set up. In less than five minutes, without the baby ever waking up, they'll know whether that baby's hearing is on track — the very first step in making sure she has every chance to talk, sing, and learn right alongside her peers.

That same quick, gentle check happens in our Head Start classrooms too — for three, four, and five-year-olds getting ready for kindergarten, hearing is just as critical to catch early.

For more than 30 years, Little Learners Childhood Connections has been screening the hearing of children across north central Kansas, from our youngest Early Head Start infants to our Head Start preschoolers. It's a Head Start Program Performance Standard: every child, in every program, has just 45 days from the day they enter to be screened, and referred for follow-up care if needed. That 45-day window exists because early is everything — the sooner a hearing concern is caught, the better a child's long-term chances at strong speech, language, and social development.

We meet that standard using an OAE (otoacoustic emissions) machine — a simple, gentle test that plays soft sounds into a child's ear and measures the tiny echo their inner ear sends back. No needles, no waiting rooms, no drive to a specialist three counties away. Just a few minutes that could change everything.

Our current OAE machine has officially reached the end of its life — it can no longer be calibrated, which means we can no longer trust its results. And as our program continues to grow, one machine isn't enough to keep up with the number of children we now serve across Head Start and Early Head Start alike. We need to replace our current machine and add a second, so every child in every county we serve — no matter their age or program — is screened within that critical 45-day window.

A hearing screening only takes a few minutes, but catching a problem early can change the whole course of a child's life. For over 30 years, that's what we've shown up to do — and with your help, we'll keep doing it for every child who comes through our doors, because enriching the lives we touch starts with something as simple as making sure they can hear.

Mission

Our mission? Enriching the lives we touch.

Our purpose? Nurturing Hearts, Inspiring Minds—Right Here at Home

Profile

At Little Learners Childhood Connections, we’re proud to offer Head Start programs to help build strong beginnings for children and families across Clay, Cloud, Geary, Ottawa, Republic, and Washington Counties. As a Head Start grantee, our mission goes far beyond education—we support the whole child and the whole family.

Formerly known as Clay County Child Care Center, Inc., Little Learners has been serving the region since 1972. With more than 50 years of experience, we’ve grown from a small local program into a trusted resource for early childhood education and family support across six counties. Our work is deeply rooted in the belief that thriving children grow best in thriving families and communities.

Through our free preschool, center-based, and home-based programs, we provide essential early learning opportunities, nutritious meals, comprehensive health support, and family engagement services for income-eligible families. Our approach is deeply rooted in the belief that thriving children grow best in thriving families and communities.

• Head Start Preschool: Our preschool classrooms are vibrant, play-based environments where children ages 3-5 gain critical school-readiness skills. Our qualified educators guide each child through an engaging curriculum that fosters social, emotional, and cognitive development. We also offer transportation at select locations, helping to eliminate barriers to access.

• Early Head Start Home Visitation: For expectant parents and families with infants and toddlers up to age 3, we bring support directly to the home. Weekly visits include developmental activities, health and nutrition guidance, and parenting resources—all designed to strengthen the parent-child bond and promote healthy early development.

• Early Head Start Classroom: In Clay County, we offer two full-day, year-round Early Head Start classrooms for children ages birth to 3. Open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., our classrooms combine nurturing care with high-quality early learning experiences in a safe, supportive environment designed to meet the needs of children and working families.

  Families enrolled in either classroom must meet federal Head Start income and eligibility requirements. For one of the classrooms, families must also qualify for and receive the Kansas DCF Child Care Subsidy. Qualifying families enrolled in either classroom receive services at no out-of-pocket cost.

• Child Care Partnerships: We also partner with community daycare providers to expand access to high-quality early learning. Families receiving the DCF child care subsidy can access our services at no additional cost. Our team helps families through the application process and provides regular check-ins through dedicated family service workers.