Brown County Early Education Center leverages READI 1.0 funding to add high-quality learning environment and increase capacity.
From riding around the race track on trikes and striders to using an outdoor play kitchen, small students are achieving big developmental goals.
In August, the Brown County Early Education Center (EEC) opened a new outdoor learning classroom that is already enabling toddlers and preschoolers to play, explore, discover, and learn in new ways. Not only is this outdoor classroom a critical piece to early development, but it will also enable the center to serve more students and families in Brown County.
Brown County EEC opened in August 2022 in the former Brown County Intermediate School. While the former school was remodeled for use as an early education center, the outdoor space had not yet been updated, and the existing playground equipment was not safe for children under the age of six.
According to Deborah Harman, Brown County Schools Director of Student Support Services, a new playground and outdoor learning space were critical to EEC’s licensing requirements. “Child care centers must have designated areas outdoors appropriate for each age group,” said Harman.
While Brown County Schools knew it would need to update the outdoor space to comply with safety requirements for licensure, Harman and others in the community hoped to create an enriching learning environment with high-quality playground equipment to encourage “child-initiated, teacher-supported play activities.”
Fortunately, community support has been strong to make the high-quality outdoor classroom a reality for early learners. To get the space ready, Brown County Schools used bond funding to refurbish an old brick wall, which had been in place for at least 50 years. The Brown County Rotary Club awarded grant funding to help clear the old playground equipment and remove a concrete sidewalk. Then, in late 2022, the Indiana Uplands READI Steering Committee and ROI’s Board of Directors awarded $229,040 in Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative (READI 1.0) funding for the purchase and installation of high-quality playground and learning equipment.
Today, preschool and toddler classes enjoy the outdoor educational area several times each day, with morning and afternoon classes scheduled on the playground. After-school care students also spend time on the playground and outdoor educational areas.
“Students really enjoy the music and art areas of the playground,” said Jayne Jones, the Brown County Early Education Center Director. “If you are outside the EEC, you can hear the drums.”
“The bike path provides a great area to ride bikes and engage in pretend play, including a gas pump, mailbox, and drive-through. The mud kitchen is an area that everyone enjoys. The pretend play with the outdoor mud kitchen – equipped with water, mud, grass, and dishes – provides endless opportunities for imagination, role play, and problem-solving skills.”
“The climber, slides, and obstacle courses allow the children to strengthen their movement skills and balance,” added Jones.
“We currently have older toddlers and preschool-age children using our new playground and have a place for infants that we can fence off as required when we are ready [to expand to one-year-olds and newborns],” added Harman.
The EEC has filled its preschool and toddler rooms for this school year. Families still looking to enroll their children ages 3-5 are referred to the preschool sites in the county’s three other elementary schools.
Harman shared that “Brown County families need early care and education options across the county,” Harman said.
“Families loved taking their child to preschool at the same location as their school-age child. But some families needed something different. They needed a program with extended hours. They needed a program that took toddler-age children, not just preschoolers,” Harman said.
EEC provides a centralized location in Nashville, and Harman said the goal is to eventually add more seats in the EEC toddler room, which serves children 22 to 35 months old, and to create additional seats at the EEC for infants.
“The location was intentionally selected to address the needs of families working in and around Nashville and to capitalize on an opportunity to offer high school students an Ivy Tech dual credit program of study at Brown County High School,” Harman said.
In addition to READI 1.0 funding, ROI also previously awarded a Ready Communities grant in 2020 to help with some initial EEC facility remodeling costs and to enable Brown County High School to expand its Child Development Associate (CDA) educational pathway with opportunities for high school students to gain real-world experience working with young children at the center.
Currently, the early childhood pathway at Brown County High School has 57 high school students enrolled, ranging from freshmen to seniors. According to Jones, students who choose this pathway typically have an interest in early childhood education, elementary education, counseling, psychology, the medical field, or coaching.
The pathway has eight students who have committed to working toward their CDA certificate, with several other students considering certification in the future. Over the summer, 10 students worked at the EEC as interns to gain experience and hours needed for the CDA process, Jones said.
Making sure families have access to affordable, high-quality early education is also important, Harman said. Providing affordable early education allows children to benefit while parents and guardians are able to attend school, work, or do both.
“Our goal in Brown County is to make sure that every family eligible for Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) vouchers or On My Way PreK vouchers knows how to apply,” Harman said. “We keep our rates low so that Brown County families have choices. We want every child in Brown County to have some kind of high-quality early learning experience before enrolling in kindergarten. Making that affordable makes that possible.”
ROI President and CEO Tina Peterson said that the new outdoor classroom exemplifies the profound impact that strategic investments like READI 1.0 funding can have on communities.
“By creating engaging and safe spaces for exploration and play, we’re not only fostering early education but also empowering families to participate in the workforce and developing the next generation of childcare providers, teachers, and educators,” said Peterson. “This project highlights our region’s dedication to ensuring every child in the Indiana Uplands has access to high-quality educational opportunities while also bolstering workforce development and regional economic prosperity.”
About READI
In May 2021, Indiana Gov. Eric J. Holcomb and the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) launched the Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative (READI 1.0), a transformational initiative with $500 million in state appropriations to promote strategic investments to make Indiana a magnet for talent and economic growth. In the Uplands region, 27 projects received READI 1.0 funding. For more information on Indiana Uplands READI 1.0 projects and to learn more about READI 2.0 in our region, please visit: https://regionalopportunityinc.org/readi/