eDragon News reporter Lisa O’Donoghue recently sat down with teacher and Site Director Becky Hausken to talk about the Extended Day Program (EDP) at Pennekamp and the exciting changes it has undergone in the past year.

EDP, until last year known as CDC (Child Development Center), began in 1942 under the auspices of the Lanham Act, a federal bill passed during WWII to help provide childcare for working mothers assisting in the war effort.  Originally contracted through the state, the program is now administered directly through the MBUSD, which oversees all hiring, food service and site maintenance.   All EDP teachers are state certified and all personnel pass rigorous security clearances.

Spearheaded by Site Director and teacher Becky Hausken, Pennekamp’s EDP has been through many changes in the past year.  Now a more integral part of the school district, and with a new name, their physical location has moved from a transition school across town to Pennekamp’s very own campus.  For many years, the EDP program for Pennekamp was located at the current site of the MBUSD offices, just south of Pennekamp on Peck Avenue, but it had to be moved to the transition school when construction on the district office commenced.

For those of you who haven’t yet investigated the three portable trailers at the southeast corner of campus that serve as the new home of EDP, it is worth a visit.  The rooms are bright and organized, with work and play areas divided, and cubbies for each child.  Pet turtles, plants and photographs lend a homey touch.

The program offers before school and after school care, opening at 7am and closing at 6pm.  Homework is a big focus, especially after school.  The teachers sit with the students each day and get them started on homework.  Healthy snacks are provided daily, and outdoor time is spent at the playground.

Students are divided into three classrooms by grade level, and each class has a teacher and at least one assistant.  Currently Becky leads the younger grades, assisted by Vivian Klaus.  Teacher Joanie Silengo and assistant Joanna Rocha take the middle grades, and the older grades are with teacher Carrie Eyre and assistant Carmen Rodriguez.

A big advantage of being on campus, apart from not having to get kids on and off buses, is the direct and regular communication now possible between the Pennekamp and EDP teachers, which makes for much better coordination on all levels.  The kids are met at their classrooms by the EDP teachers, who get a quick update on each one’s day so far, and then they are shepherded down to the site.  

Two new storage sheds were provided by the generous efforts of Eagle Scout Matthew Reeley, a recent Costa grad, and his fellow scouts of Troop 849, who raised money for all of the materials, and invested over 600 hours to the project. 

Donations of all kinds of things – books, costumes, games – are welcome.  In fact, the refrigerators were donated by friends of Becky, and delivered at great effort by her two sons.

Becky herself is as enthusiastic about teaching today as she was 38 years ago when she began her career in Manhattan Beach.  No surprise that she has won four (yes, 4!!) “Teacher of the Year” awards.  “I love my job”, she beams.  “I am not the least bit burnt out.  And I just love Pennekamp – the staff, the parents, the kids.  It has such a great community feel.”