Our Mission
The Bartos Child and Family Center at Shippensburg University, a project of the Shippensburg University Foundation, provides a safe, enriching, and supportive educational program for young children and their families.
Our Philosophy
We believe that children learn about their world through active involvement, playing, exploring, and interacting with others.
We plan activities for and with children based on their developmental ages and individual needs.
We embrace and welcome families into our program, knowing that the connection between school and home is critical to children’s growth and love of learning.
We believe that the goal of discipline is teaching inner control. We guide children to become self-controlled by modeling caring behaviors, consistently enforcing logical rules, and emphasizing peace and tolerance.
We are part of a campus community that values research, teaching, and service. We welcome students into our program, guiding them as they work to learn about children and families. We participate in research projects that advance our knowledge about children and families. We work with others in our community and region to support children and families.
Children are able to grow and develop when they can make their own decisions about learning. Opportunities provided for children in a play oriented environment foster freedom of expression, promote uniqueness, build well-being, and build a healthy self-concept. The value of play encourages creativity, language development, and social interaction.