WELCOME!

The Marie Shaw Dunn Child Development Center is a preschool program for three and four year old children. The center is a Tier III preschool center with an excellent rating that is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. The center is dedicated to provide parents, children, and university students with the best early learning environment possible.

Mission Statement

The NSU CDC believes in the importance of community, an enriching learning environment, and the significance of family involvement.

This is accomplished through an enriching community with partnerships within the university, community participation and delivery of high-quality early-childhood programming, teacher engagement, and cutting-edge research.

Parent Testimonials

”I have always felt that my children were safe, happy, healthy, and so loved by the CDC family. Two of my children have gone through the CDC and now my third is there. I can say with full confidence that this is the best place they could spend their pre-K years. They truly care for each child on an individualized level. Children are encouraged to learn through play. The staff work diligently to ensure children have a variety of hands-on activities to promote and encourage active learning daily. I love that parents or family members can be as involved with events and activities as they want. There are so many opportunities to be there and get involved. My children come home happy and excited to share what they are learning about at the center. It makes my heart so happy to hear, “Mommy, I love school!”

Carrie M.

CDC has been nothing short of amazing. From the staff to the learning methods, the experience is top notch! When your child runs into school every morning, excited for the day, you know you’re in the right place! I am so grateful for all that it has to offer!

Haley J.

We decided to send our child to the CDC not only because of the quality of learning and teachers that this school provides, but also because of its diversity, which I consider to be important for a child’s development into the world. From what I have seen, the children not only learn great concepts for personal growth, but they have a lot of fun too. My child always tells me how much fun he has at school with all his friends. As a parent, I am certain to say that I would recommend the CDC to anyone!

Carlos CP.

The Child Development Center, where my three girls attended, has provided an exceptional foundation for their growth. The center excels in teaching essential skills such as reading, writing, fostering positive interactions with peers, and instilling discipline. The experienced and caring teachers played a crucial role in educating the girls with love. The hands-on projects organized by the center are particularly commendable , allowing for practical learning experience. The involvement of parents in these projects adds a valuable dimension to the educational journey. Moreover, the center’s collaboration with Northwestern State University, facilitated through student interns, brings additional benefits to both the developing kids and aspiring future teachers. Overall, the center, coupled with the support from Northwestern State University, has made a significant and positive impact on my girls’ development. Thank you, CDC!

Ashwini W.

Both of our children vividly remember the CDC as one of the most magical times of their lives. The care and love that they received from staff, the safe, vibrant play areas, as well as the activities and friendships that they were encouraged to cultivate, have all served as a wonderful foundation for their educational journeys. The CDC made the transition to kindergarten incredibly easy by creating core memories of trust, comfort, and self-confidence in a school environment.

Joe and Melinda P.

How To Apply

The NSU Marie Shaw Dunn Child Development Center provides high quality early childhood programming from three to age four.

Applications are accepted the year prior to the year of attendance.

Admission to the NSU Child Development Center is NOT automatic admission to the Elementary Lab School.

Once the application is received, children are placed on the waiting list. When a space becomes available at the NSU CDC, the waiting list will be searched, beginning at the top, for the following criteria:

  • Age-appropriate, eligible child
  • Enrollment priority
  • Application date

Enrollment

Enrollment at the CDC is on an annual basis. Applicants with the priority status are selected for enrollment first. Priority status is considered in the following order:

  1. A child with at least one parent employed full-time at Northwestern State University (NSU) or the Louisiana School for the Math, Science, and Arts (LSMSA)
  2. A child with a sibling who currently attends, or has attended the Marie Shaw Dunn Child Development Center

Due to limited population (41 children), a waiting list for each age group is established as outlined below:

Children are placed onto the waiting list in the order in which the applications are received. When space becomes available at the NSU CDC, the waiting list will be searched, beginning at the top. The remaining seats in each class are filled by other applicants. Selection of students is based on dated order of application to balance group by gender and encourage diversity.

Admission to the NSU CDC is open to all children, ages 3 and 4 years by September 30, regardless of race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, disability, or if breast fed. Enrollment at the NSU CDC shall be offered to children of NSU students, staff, faculty, alumni, and for those not affiliated with NSU.

Children ages 3 and 4 prior to September 30th are eligible to enroll. Children who are 5 years of age prior to September 30th are considered kindergarten eligible and may not return to the four-year-old program.

An application form must be completed, signed, and received to apply for enrollment and Ages & Stages Questionnaire. Applications will be accepted the year prior to a child’s eligibility for school in that year. Applications are dated upon receipt. Completion of the application does not guarantee enrollment.

CALENDAR

HOURS OF OPERATION

The CDC is open Monday-Friday from 7:15 AM to 5:30 PM. The school follows the calendar of the Natchitoches Parish School Board.

Calendar:

NSU’s CDC closes for the following in accordance with Natchitoches Parish School Board:

  • Labor Day
  • Parent Teacher Conference
  • Fall Break
  • Thanksgiving Break
  • Professional Development
  • Christmas/Winter Break
  • Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday
  • Mardi Gras Holiday
  • Spring Break
  • Easter Break

CREATIVE CURRICULUM

Philosophy of The Creative Curriculum

Children learn through an active role in their environment; therefore, the environment plays a critical role in learning. Through The Creative Curriculum, children become independent, self-confident, inquisitive, and enthusiastic learners by actively exploring their environment. The planned activities for the children, the organization of the environment, the selection of toys and materials, planning the daily schedule and interacting with the children, are all designed to accomplish the goals and objectives of the curriculum.

Goals and Objectives

Teachers respond to each child individually, to build on strengths and target skills. Because teachers have a holistic approach and focus on the ‘whole child’ to promote learning, the goals interrelate and focus on all areas of development.

  • Social/Emotional Development: children’s feelings about themselves, the development of responsibility, and their ability to relate positively to others
  • Physical Development: children’s gross and fine motor development
  • Cognitive Development : children’s thinking skills, including the development of symbolic and problem-solving skills
  • Language Development: children’s ability to communicate through words’, both spoken and written

Assessment

Teaching Strategies is an authentic performance-based assessment tool. It helps classroom teachers document and evaluate children’s skills, knowledge, behaviors, and accomplishments across a wide variety of curriculum areas on multiple occasions to enhance teaching and learning and to keep track of each child’s individual achievement. Children are observed during regular classroom activities and their progress is recorded several times per year. A Developmental Checklist, a portfolio collection, and a summary report is used for assessment.

The Project Approach

The Project Approach refers to a set of strategies that enable teachers to guide students through in-depth studies of real-world topics. Project have a complex but flexible framework within which teaching and learning are seen as interactive processes. When the Approach is actively involved in their own learning, leading them to produce high-quality work and to grow as individuals and collaborators.

“Children learn through their play. Don’t underestimate the value of play. Children learn and develop: cognitive skills- like math and problem solving in a pretend grocery store, physical abilities- like balancing blocks and running on the playground, new vocabulary- like the words they need to play with toy dinosaurs, social skills- like playing together in a pretend car wash, and literacy skills- like creating a menu for a pretend restaurant” (Bongiorno, 2017).

CURRENTLY ENROLLED STUDENTS

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Below are answers to the most frequently asked questions that we are asked by parents researching child care options. If you are unable to find the answer to your question below, you can contact us at 318-357-6860 or email stanfieldf@nsula.edu.

SAFETY

The CDC has many safety procedures in place to protect children. Please see our handbook for more information.

No.

We do not offer transportation to or from the center.

LEARNING

Yes. Your child will thrive at the Child Development Center. We are all about creating fun learning experiences because we know that in the early years children develop and learn through active play. Each program at the CDC uses a research-based curriculum that is developmentally appropriate for the age of the child. The activities and lesson plans designed by the teachers, guided by the Creative Curriculum, encourage development in Language, Emerging Literacy, Math & Science, Gross Motor Skills, Creativity & Art, Social Skills, Physical Activity, Emotional Skills, Reasoning, Problem Solving and more.

When touring our school, you will see the curriculum alive in our classrooms with art on the wall, special learning centers in the classrooms, dynamic displays, and circle time activities.

FOOD & MEALS

The CDC provides an opportunity for a healthy morning snack, lunch and an afternoon snack for the children as part of your tuition and fees. Our menus are created using USDA guidelines and we prepare foods that are child tested and approved!

No. Because we provide for food service for all children, we do not allow children to bring food into the school. Menu exceptions are allowed for children with documented religious or medical reasons. If a special diet is required, you may speak to the director about supplying the necessary food.

TEACHERS

The staff at the CDC consists of teachers, administrators, and assistant teachers that are passionate about early childhood education. Your child will be in a classroom with 1-2 adults each day. Our teachers receive background checks before starting employment and teachers are CPR and First Aid Certified. All employees must maintain ratio in accordance with the LDOE.

The ratio in each classroom is dependent on the state requirements and age group. The CDC adheres to all guidelines and state standards.

We believe that discipline is the helpful guidance, encouragement, and support that adults use to influence children. It is not founded in punishment, rules and, restrictions, but in teaching children to resolve problems and seek solutions themselves. Appropriate discipline helps children learn how to interact and develop self-control. Our staff and teachers at the CDC understand these concepts and utilize and follow a developmentally appropriate and character-building strategy for handling classroom discipline. These strategies, as well as our biting policy can be found in our family handbook.

HISTORY

The center began as a nursery school in 1935, the first laboratory nursery school for a child development program in Louisiana. As needs changed, the program became the Child Development Center in 1971, coinciding with a new master’s degree program in early childhood education. About the same time, it became the first in the state to offer a full-day program for children. Then in 1992, it was renamed the Marie Shaw Dunn Child Development Center in honor of a revered faculty member and head of the Department of Home Economics, now the Department of Child and Family Studies. Dr. Dunn, the center’s namesake, had initiated the child development program at NSU and established the first nursery school laboratory in Louisiana to involve college students.

WHY CHOOSE THE CDC?

  • Nationally accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children
  • The NSU CDC is a laboratory preschool and is located on NSU’s campus and is a teacher prep school for the students of NSU
  • With the tier 1 curriculum taught by high-quality 100% certified teachers, the classrooms are implemented with project and play-based learning, alternative approaches, to meet the state’s Early Learning and Developmental standards

https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/articles/how-to-choose-a-preschool

NSU STUDENTS

Student Observers

Before arriving at the center there are licensing documents that need to be completed. Please carefully read all information posted in the links below and print out all documents that require personal information and signatures. No one will be allowed to stay at the center until this is completed. Forms need to be given to a staff member for review and filing upon first arriving at the center. At that time you will also receive a brief orientation of the center.

These documents will be kept on file for one calendar year as required for licensing. All information obtained will only be view by authorized Northwestern faculty, state licensing agents, and NAEYC Accreditation team members. This information is necessary to ensure all children enrolled at the Marie Shaw Dunn Child Development Center remain in a safe and developmentally appropriate environment. If you have any questions or concerns please contact the center’s Director, Faith Stanfield, at 318-357-6860 or email stanfieldf@nsula.edu.

Student Workers

STAFF

Faith Stanfield

Director, Lead Four-Year-Old Teacher

I received my Master of Education in Early Childhood Education from Northwestern State University. I have worked in childcare for 5 years. I love education because it is a place where you can make a difference in a child’s life. You are able to impact and mold a child into the person that they will become.

I love children, I love inspiring others to become their best self, and at NSU I get to do that with children and college students. I have one dog named Cooper. I am a daughter, student, teacher, creator, and dreamer.

A spirit of inspiration is something I hope to leave with every family and student that I meet.

stanfieldf@nsula.edu

Kelsey Collins

Lead Three-Year-Old Teacher

I have worked in childcare for almost 6 years, and I have a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and Addiction Studies. I also have a Master of Arts in Teaching degree. I am going back to NSU in the Spring to start on my Educational Leadership and Instruction Specialist Degree with a Specialization in Educational Diagnostics.

When I started as a student worker at the CDC in 2017, I fell in love with the teaching profession. I loved seeing the impact I have on students’ lives. To be able to shape their love for learning and growing at such a young age is why I do what I do. I have one daughter, Kyndall. I love to travel, read, learn, grow, and I aim to improve myself every chance I get. I enjoy being creative, and I am so blessed that my profession allows me the pleasure of expressing myself daily.

collinsk@nsula.edu

Joni Prewitt

Facility Coordinator, Director Designee

I have a Child Development Associate degree. I have been in childcare for 25 years as a director, assistant director, and preschool teacher. I love children and watching them grow. I have always had a desire to positively impact the lives of children. It is a rewarding feeling to see a child’s face light up when they understand a concept in areas they have struggled in before.

After being in childcare for 25 years, I have had the opportunity to care for children whose mothers I cared for when they were young. Children are a parent’s most treasured gift, so to be entrusted with your child is an honor. I have two daughters, Emily and Alyssa. I love being outdoors, riding horses, crafting, and spending time with my family.

prewittj@nsula.edu

CONTACT US

Hours of Operation:
Monday—Friday
7:15AM—5:30PM CST

Phone:
318-357-6860

Address:
116 Warren Easton Building
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, Louisiana 71497