About

Our Mission

Our mission is to serve as a quality provider of childcare, for toddlers and preschoolers, to be a parent education center, and to be a community resource for the OSU campus and surrounding area.

Indianola Children's Center is a learning community for children and adults, where:

• Children are valued for their ability to do meaningful work, their wonder and curiosity, their perspectives and ability to play.

• Families are valued for their bonds and traditions, their dedication to meeting the physical, emotional, social, and educational needs of their children, and their commitment to the dreams for their children.

• Staff are valued as professionals for their vision, their delight in children, their skill and heart. We value their knowledge, commitment to families and the ability to play.

• We recognize and appreciate what we learn from each other. We are continuously committed to our roles as peace keepers.

Our Philosophy

We believe that all children are full of remarkable capabilities. They have a right to a childhood filled with play, exploration, and excitement about learning. We see children as enormously creative, and capable of complex learning through self-directed play. We build our curriculum around their questions, pursuits, and the skills they are trying to master. We pay close attention to cultivating their self-esteem, as well as their dispositions toward learning, risk-taking, and problem solving.

We implement anti-bias and peace building practices that emphasize the value of diversity of the children as individuals, and as members of families, cultures, and communities. We seek a team approach in our care-giving and strive for collaboration with families and the wider community.

Peacemaking is the underlying philosophy guiding what we do at Indianola Children's Center. It is not merely a set of activities that help children learn to resolve conflicts constructively. It is a general concept that will guide all teacher/child relations, teacher/parent relations, curriculum development and more.

Skills in peaceful resolution of conflicts, the ability to develop strong relationships with others, the development of concern for other people and the earth we share, and the ability to express oneself honestly and responsibly are all skills and values best introduced in the formative years. With a focus on peacemaking, Indianola Children's Center offers an environment where these qualities can be modeled, reflected, and encouraged. We encourage the development of these skills and processes in a context where both children and adults can learn. Below is the simple model used in the classroom:

1. Stop and Think
2. Listen and Talk
3. Decide What to Do

Indianola Children's Center is a non-religious mission of Indianola Presbyterian Church.

Though we are housed at the church and we work closely together, we are a separate entity.
Our curriculum is not religious in nature and we welcome and support families, children, and staff of all faith backgrounds, races, creeds, income levels, sexual orientation, languages, abilities, and national origin.