Media Coverage

One of the great privileges of modern life for parents is finding a preschool or childcare center where they can feel comfortable taking all of their children.

At the Children’s Center and Preschool of Ewing, there is a great deal of continuity among families, according to co-owner Jonathan Lamond. Many families send all their children to the Center, often starting in infancy and going straight through to “graduation,” after which the children move on to elementary school.

Jonathan Lamond, 32 and his wife Mara, 31, are lifelong Ewing residents. They graduated from Ewing High as well as The College of New Jersey. They had been neighbors since they were eight years old. In other words, they are pure Ewing people. Mara has worked in the field of childcare since high school. After graduating from colleges, she worked for DYFS inspecting centers.

“In her yearbook it says, ‘I will own a childcare center,’” says Jonathan, whose own background was in insurance. Though he always wanted to own his own business, he thought it would be an insurance agency.

“I got kind of hoodwinked into it,” he says wryly. “But it’s been fun.”

Jonathan and Mara have operated The Children’s Center and Preschool of Ewing at their Parkway Avenue location since March, 2001. Their other location, in Trenton, has been in operation since 1999. The Ewing center is licensed to accommodate 112 children, though they cap it at 104.

“It promotes more of a quality environment,” Jonathan says. “The children will have more space to operate. Removing one or two children from a classroom makes a big difference at this age.”

Most children arrive by 9 a.m. and, once they can be extracted from mommy or daddy, are trundled off to spend the day with the appropriate age group. From age six weeks to three years, children at the center are divided within six-month ranges until they reach the age of three. Then they have a class for three-year olds and a class for four-year olds. The Center is licensed to care for children through age six, but most youngsters enter kindergarten by the time they are five.

Some of the Center’s teachers are certified by the Department of Education, and some have childcare industry certification. Some are certified nannies, especially for the younger children. However, all are called teachers. Teacher-to-student ratios depend on the age levels involved. The ratio for the infants is one to four; for the older children, a one-to-eight ratio is more common.

Every age group is provided with age-appropriate activities, and classes are structured accordingly. Jonathan says the Center’s curriculum is designed to assist in the growth of the whole child, ensuring that he or she will be come self-confident and independent learner.

“It’s done in a fun way—we want kids to have as much fun as they can while they’re here,” says Jonathan. “But it’s definitely in a structured setting. The whole philosophy during the daytime is ‘learning through play.’ They may not know they’re learning, but they’re getting what they need to get to proceed to the next level.”

Whether it’s in the classroom or on a field trip to a pumpkin patch or a firehouse, the Center’s staff strive to complement each child’s home and family life and help prepare him or her for the years to come.

“Ultimately, we want to be partners with you in caring for your child,” Jonathan says.

The Center provides breakfast, morning snacks and afternoon snacks for the children, while the parents provide lunch.

Everything in the nine-year old facility is designed with the child in mind, right down to the bathrooms, which have toilets and sinks sized for youngsters. The eight classrooms all have big windows and large open areas. Outside, the facility includes close to two acres of fenced-in area, and the teachers try to spend as much time outdoors with the kids as possible. At the same time, the Center is a secured facility. Parents are welcome to stop by to see their children at any time, but no one can simply walk into the facility—each visitor must be cleared to enter.

Parents of prospective Center-attendees are invited to stop in and take a guided tour of the facilities. If they are interested, they can fill out an application packet. Upon enrollment, certain things such as medical and immunization records do need to be completed (there is a grace period), but there is no application fee or security deposit required.

In the competitive field of childcare, staff turnover is typically very high. However, says Jonathan, the Children’s Center’s staff of 23, including 17 full-time people, is very stable.

“We really go out of our way to look for the right people, people who enjoy being here with the kids and who are personally qualified with the kids,” says Jonathan. “This place would not work as well as it does without our staff.”

A stable staff is better for the Center, which doesn’t have to train new teachers, but more importantly, it’s better for the children. And there is a great deal of stability among the children as well.

“Most of the children who start here, finish here,” Jonathan adds. “We don’t have kids coming and going every week.”

One child who you can count on being a regular fixture at the Children’s Center and Preschool of Ewing is Jonathan and Mara’s five-month old daughter, Chloe. She spends much of her time in the infant room now, but it will only be a matter of time before she graduates the Center and heads for kindergarten.