PSU Preschool lab celebrates 50 years
Monday, September 22, 2014 2:00 AM
News
Pittsburg, KS
The Early Childhood Preschool Laboratory in the Pittsburg State University Department of Family and Consumer Sciences will celebrate its 50th birthday with a reception and tours from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 25. Visitors may gather in the lobby of the FCS building, located on the south side of the PSU Oval, where early childhood majors will lead the tours.
Amber Tankersley, associate professor of early childhood development and preschool director, said the preschool has had a significant impact on both children and university students in its first half century.
“The PSU Early Childhood Preschool Lab has been a great asset for both the children who attend the preschool and the university students who work in the lab,” Tankersley said. “Children benefit from the warm, friendly environment and low student-teacher ratio. At the same time, university students get invaluable experience under the supervision of experts in early childhood education.”
Tankersley said the preschool laboratory program at PSU began in the fall of 1964 with a group of five boys and five girls between the ages of 3-5 years old. The program, located in the basement of the old Chandler Hall, was initially open from 9-11:30 a.m. for two days a week.
The lab was discontinued for a short period sometime after 1968 and then was reinstated in the fall of 1971. At that time there were six boys and six girls enrolled.
In 1998, the enrollment was increased to 16 and the program was licensed to accept up to 24 children. The preschool’s week expanded from two to four days to serve the increase in students needing to take courses associated with the lab.
In the spring of 2001, the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences and the preschool program were relocated to other facilities on campus to make way for the demolition of Chandler Hall and the construction of a new building on the same site. During this time, the preschool operated in a farmhouse on the east side of campus.
The department and the preschool lab moved into their current home upon the completion of the new FCS building in 2003. In 2012, the preschool program was accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), a distinction held by fewer than 10 percent of preschool programs in the U.S.
Today, the preschool lab continues to serve children from both the campus and the larger community by offering a morning and an afternoon session. Each session runs Monday-Thursday and is limited to approximately 20 children each. Parents choose to send their child for either a three- or a four-day week.
University students in classes such as developmental planning, interacting with children, and preschool student teaching participate in the lab as part of their course requirements.
“This is an important experience for students who will find careers in public and private preschools, child care centers, before- and after-school programs, YMCAs, county extension programs and parent education,” Tankersley said. “Research continues to confirm the importance of high-quality early education, so we expect opportunities to grow in this vitally important area.”