For the Kokomo Family YMCA Early Learning Center, a burst pipe turned out to be a blessing in disguise. The flooding temporarily took a few classrooms out of commission but afforded the opportunity to take a fresh look at the center’s offerings and evaluate against the community’s needs. By reconstructing and reconfiguring the space, the center created 24 new child care seats by adding a second infant room and expanding capacity in the toddler rooms.
Staff and parents alike have reacted positively to the updates. “We had a parent of an infant enroll recently, and she said that after searching she felt that our program would be the best choice for her child,” said Kathryn Rice, Early Learning Center interim director and infant and toddler specialist. “After visiting and seeing the new rooms, she told us that we exceeded her high expectations. That’s a wonderful compliment.”
Additional classrooms and refreshed learning spaces are just a few of the improvements made possible by the Early Years Initiative. The center is also implementing a comprehensive, equity-focused infant and toddler development program, including health and development screenings and interventions, pediatric care support from community providers, professional development for educators and the addition of a full-time infant and toddler specialist. Training through ZERO TO THREE provides an enhanced level of support for not only the children, but for parents and caregivers too.
Embedding screenings and interventions into center programming ensures that all children have access to services. “Even if families have a pediatrician, this offers another set of eyes and gives more specialized attention to any developmental needs,” Rice said. “The goal is to identify any potential issues and offer early intervention, and the Early Years Initiative has provided us the tools to do so.”
Rice said the on-site screenings have already paid dividends for several families. “We’ve had three or four cases where a child’s hearing was flagged during a screening and it turned out they weren’t hearing well and needed ear tubes,” she said. “The parents may not have received that information as early as they did without the screening.”
Professional development from ZERO TO THREE is a key area of focus. Teachers recently completed training on brain development, diving into research about how the brain is built and the significant impact of the first three years of life in shaping a child’s future. In the classroom, newer teachers are paired with more experienced teachers to take strategies from training to implementation. Future offerings will focus on conscious discipline and incorporating those principles into real-word scenarios.
Rice believes professional development raises the level of quality care in the classroom and helps minimize employee turnover.
“We really want to effectively train our teachers so they feel empowered and valued, and so they buy into our curriculum and what we’re trying to achieve. By pouring back into our teachers, we’re changing the mindset from ‘just babysitters’ to ‘we are educators and the work we do is making a difference.”
Looking ahead, Rice hopes to add an outdoor learning space to provide additional outlets for experiential learning. She envisions a garden that the students could plant and care for, where they could offer produce to families at no charge and sell plants and flowers at a community market and invest proceeds back into the center. “We have big dreams and big ideas,” Rice laughs. “We’d also love to assist other centers in implementing programming. If we could serve as a pilot and help others roll it out, we’d love to do that.”
“We’re very grateful that the Early Years Initiative afforded us this opportunity. We’ve seen such a positive impact on our community already,” said Rice. “I say to our parents all the time that it takes a village, and we’re so honored and thankful that parents choose us to be part of their village.”
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