Excited to open

Jay County Early Learning Center is expected to open next month.

Now in the final stages of renovation, the new facility to be operated by Westminster Preschools of Marion in the former Judge Haynes Elementary School building has tentatively scheduled a community open house for 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 29, and an opening date of Monday, Sept. 9.

“We are very excited that Westminster Preschools is getting ready to open in the Jay County Early Learning Center,” said Doug Inman, executive director of The Portland Foundation. (The foundation has led the project to transform the elementary school that was closed in 2018 into an early learning facility.) “We are pleased that this vision has come to reality, this vision of providing an early learning opportunity for up to 150 children in Jay County that will enhance their quality of life, their parents’ quality of life and the quality of life in the entire community.”

The former elementary school at 827 W. High St., Portland, is in the final stages of its about $4.3 million renovation project.

The final portions of new flooring were being installed last week. 

The renovation process included removing the west side of the structure where there had been significant water damage, a new roof for the remainder of the building and new plumbing with restrooms installed in all of the toddler and preschool classrooms. Other upgrades included paint, LED lighting and new playground equipment. 

When construction work is complete, the building will undergo a deep cleaning. Furniture will then be brought in to set up the classrooms and offices.

The facility’s staff will then have a week of training before welcoming children to the new facility.

The open house planned for next week will be the public’s first chance to see the transformation.

“I think that people will be in awe of how beautiful it is,” said Dani Svantner, executive director of Westminster Preschools. “A lot of work’s gone into restoring it. … We’re really excited about it.”

The Portland Foundation announced in May 2023 that it had entered an agreement with Westminster to operate the early learning center, which will serve up to 150 children age newborn through 5. There will also be an after-school program available.

Once open — the date could shift based on construction — the facility will offer hours from 6 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Those interested in registering their children can do so via a form on the Westminster Preschools Portland page on Facebook.

Wendy Sullivan has been hired as the director for Jay County Early Learning Center.

The facility, which will have two classrooms for infants, five for toddlers and four for preschoolers, will accept Child Care Development Fund and On My Way Pre-K vouchers. (Details about qualifying for those vouchers are available online at in.gov/fssa.)

Svantner noted that Westminster Preschools is at Level 4 — the highest — on the Family and Social Services Administration’s Paths to Quality rating system. In order to reach Level 4, a facility must provide for the health and safety of children, provide learning environments, have planned curriculum and be nationally accredited.

“We focus on whole-child approaches,” said Svantner. “So we’ve developed our own curriculum that works with children on whole personhood — character development and social emotional learning, those things that they need to set themselves up for success in life and school.”

She added that there is a lot of focus on play-based learning. Children enrolled participate in a lot of hands-on activities.

“We just want them to fall in love with learning,” Svantner said. “The kids are learning, but they don’t know they’re learning because it’s fun.”

Westminster has been in operation since 1970 and now serves children ages birth to 12 in Grant County.

The Portland Foundation bought the former Judge Haynes building from Jay School Corporation in 2022 in order to secure it as a possible site for a childcare and early learning facility. It has worked to secure grants, including $1.5 million in partnership with United Way of Jay County from Indiana United Ways, $500,000 from Early Learning Indiana, $291,000 from the first round of Indiana Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative (READI) and $50,000 from the Ball Brothers Association of Muncie. Westminster also secured a $684,000 grant from Indiana Family and Social Services Administration. The foundation will cover about $1.3 million of the project.