Memories & Milestones Academy, Belle Plaine

Our Mission Memories & Milestones Academy will provide high quality consistent care to each individual child and family and will maintain a welcoming environment that gives families security while they are away from their child. Memories & Milestones Academy strives to provide meaningful employment to each employee. Our Philosophy Child care builds a child for a lifetime; Memories & Milestones Academy believes that each and every day we dedicate ourselves the environment will be positive, consistent and welcoming to each individual child. Our Vision To be acknowledged as the superior child care option in our community as well as an asset to families, employees and our community. Our Code Ethics Our code of Ethics offers guidelines for responsible behavior for each of our employees. We believe we must be honest and respect all individuals each day. Children: Provide the best care and educations possible in settings that are safe, healthy and nurturing to each child. Families: Families are the primary importance in child’s development. We must communicate, and cooperate between home and school to enhance children’s development. Co-workers: Establish and maintain settings and relationships that support productive work and meet professional needs. Community: Meet the needs of families, assisting them to gain access to agencies and professionals and or other needs when needed, cooperate with agencies and other professionals who share responsibilities for children and assist in developing community programs if needed. Meet Our Infant Staff *About Ms. Sarah-Infant Teacher Est. June 2012 I am 25 almost 26 years old and have a four and a half-year-old, Lukas. I grew up in Cottage Grove and moved to Belle Plaine 6 years ago. I have an Associate Degree in Child Development for infants and toddlers and have been teaching for six and a half years. I just got married on May 3, 2014 to my high school sweet heart, Nick! We bought our house three years ago! My free time is spent watching my child grow up and making memoires with family and friends! I also like to make photo books, shop, and travel! I have been to the Bahamas, Mexico, Wisconsin dells, drove to Florida twice and am planning a driving trip to Las Vegas! I enjoy being a teacher because I love knowing I help children develop and learn new things. I started working in Child care in South Dakota at 18 as just a job but it was there I found a career! *About Ms. Julie-Infant Assistant Teacher Est. August 2014 I am 37 years old and I live in Le Sueur with my husband Joel and our 2 boys. I was born and raised in Cologne Minnesota. Graduated from Norwood High school in 1996 and attended Hennepin technical college in Eden Prairie with a degree in Child development careers and graduated in 1997. My family and I enjoy going to my parents cabin in Crosby Minnesota and going jet skiing and fishing. My boys are also in hockey in the winter, so we are very busy with that. I always have and still enjoy working with Infants. I was and infant teacher for 10 years and have worked with children for 11 years. *About Ms. Kayla-Infant Aide Est. September 2014 I am currently 16 in 11th grade at Belle Plaine High School. I’ve been a vegetarian for four years , I started when I was a freshman in High School and hope to stay one. I have one brother who is 18 named Kyle he is a freshman at St.Thomas. In my free time I like hanging out with my friends and playing with my pets and babysit. I have seven dogs and a guinea pig named buddy who I love very much. I am a big animal person and love working with kids and watching them grow up and learn new things. *About Ms. Bekah-Preschool Aide Est. May 2014 Hello! My name is Bekah! I was born in Indiana and moved to Belle Plaine when I was just “3” months old. As a child I enjoyed many activities such as “House,” I would gather all the neighborhood children and we’d play. Of course I was always the mother because I loved taking care of all the “babies” or “children”. I guess you could say that’s where my love for children came from! I am currently attending Hennepin Tech. College for music education. I am also expecting my first baby girl in September *About Ms. Sue-Float Teacher Est. January 2014 I graduated from University of Wisconsin - Stout with a degree in Home Economics Education with a concentration in Family Living / Child Development. After working with middle school students for a couple years, I began to work with 4 year olds as the lead teacher at a different child care facility in Illinois. My career changed in another direction when we moved back to Minnesota. I went into the business field. Now after many years I am back to working with children. I have always loved working with children. My interests went from raising my son, to helping raise my nephew and great nephew whenever possible, to taking care of other children whenever I could , to teaching Sunday School, and now being back in the childcare field. Every child is a new adventure and every day is a new journey. Meet Our Toddler Staff *About Ms. Monica- Co-Toddler Teacher Est. October 2012 and again August 2014 Hello everyone! My name is Monica Nelson I am 33 years old. I went to Belle Plaine High School. I graduated from Hennipen Technical College with my childcare certification. I am from a family with 7 siblings so I had a lot of experience with children growing up. I started babysitting when I was 11 and continued with childcare after graduation. Now I am married and have 5 children of my own, Four boys Izak, Ian, Emmett, Quinton and my only daughter Mikayla. I am excited to teach your children and get to know each of them very well. Hope your children all have a great experience here! *About Ms. Casey-Co-Toddler Teacher Est. November 2013 I am 25 years old and have a 4 and half year old son, Ayden. I was born and raised in Minnesota and live in New Prague. I have an Associate Degree in Medical Assistant, but I Love working with children. I enjoy watching them grow and learn. Helping them succeed is a great feeling. I love to spend my free time with my son, family and friends. I love being outside doing anything. We spend most of our summer days at the lake fishing. Just being with family is so rewarding, and I am happy to be part of your child’s life. *About Ms. Bekah-Preschool Aide Est. May 2014 Hello! My name is Bekah! I was born in Indiana and moved to Belle Plaine when I was just “3” months old. As a child I enjoyed many activities such as “House,” I would gather all the neighborhood children and we’d play. Of course I was always the mother because I loved taking care of all the “babies” or “children”. I guess you could say that’s where my love for children came from! I am currently attending Hennepin Tech. College for music education. I am also expecting my first baby girl in September *About Ms. Autumn-Toddler Aide Est. November 2014 Hi! My name is Autumn! I moved to Belle Plaine in my 6th grade year. I am currently a senior at Belle Plaine High school. I plan on attending either St. Cloud State University or Luther College. I have 3 other siblings and a wonderful family! I have always loved babysitting, ever since a young age! I love spending my free time reading a good book or being outside as much as possible! Meet Our Preschool Staff *About Ms. Charlette-Preschool Teacher Est. December 2014 Hi! My name is Charlette Bunkers. I live in Henderson, MN with my boyfriend and our two children. I have wanted to be a teacher ever since I was in third grade!! I am so excited to work with everyone at Memories and Milestones! Some of my favorite pastimes include doing crafts with my kids, cooking and baking for my family, going sledding in the wintertime and hanging out in the pool in the summer. When I’m not at work, I love to be with my family at home or visiting my brother and his children. We have a lot of fun! It is very rare that I’m not spending time with my family. We do just about everything together! My own children have made me even more certain that I want to work with children… they make life much more exciting. Teaching them to read, write and be creative has been so much fun! There is nothing more precious to me in the world than the love of a child. *About Ms. Gretta-Preschool Assistant Est. October 2014 Hello, my name is Gretta Schultz! I’m 21 years old and live in Henderson, Mn. I have a year and a half of school done at Mankato State University. One of my favorite things in the world is hanging with my seven amazing little cousins, soon to be eight though. I’ve worked at two daycares before Memories and Milestones, one in Belle Plaine and one in Mankato. Some of my favorite hobbies include softball, volleyball, and basketball. Let’s just say I don’t like to sit still for that long. Last but not least, if you don’t see me hanging out with friends, playing sports, or going on adventures, you’ll find me with my family. I believe that family is the most important thing that’ll be in your life forever. Meet Our Pre K Staff About Ms. Tabitha-PreK Teacher Est. February 2014 I have grown up in the glorious town of Belle Plaine from the age of 4. I graduated from Belle Plaine High School in 2008. After that I attended North Dakota State University in Fargo North Dakota, majoring in Social Studies Education. After 2 years of schooling, I moved to Cleveland, Ohio where I worked as an infant teacher at a child care facility. In my third year in Ohio I decided to coach a volleyball team where we were one game away from Nationals. After spending 4 years away from home I decided to move back to Minnesota where I live right in town with my parents. I again am coaching volleyball at Northern Lights in Burnsville. In my free time I love being with my family, my uncle especially who is expecting a new addition in August! *About Ms. Ali-PReK Assistant Est. November 2013 My name is Ali Brainerd, I'm 18 years old. I'm the oldest of five. I have 3 sisters and 1 brother. In my free time I love to shop or do things with friends and family. I currently live in Lonsdale and have for almost 7 years. I just graduated last spring from New Prague High School. My goal is to continue my education in the fall of 2014. I plan to go to school for early childhood education. I have taken care of kids in a job setting for 4 years. Two of those years were spent working at a daycare center as an aide for preschool and the other two years were spent nannying two little girls. I enjoy working with young kids and I'm very excited to be working with toddlers! *About Ms. Marie-PreK Aide Est. September 2014 I am a senior at Belle Plaine High School. I have 4 siblings, one is in College. I am 17 years old and I love kids, my favorite part of working at Memories and Milestones is seeing the kids smile when I walk in. I want to be a preschool teacher when I get out of high school; it has always been my dream to work with kids. I love hanging out with my friends and family. I have a really big family. I have for parents and they are amazing. My favorite color is purple and neon green. *About Ms. Laura-Toddler Assistant Teacher Est. May 2013 I am 20 years old. I went to Cleveland High School and live outside of St. Peter. I am currently a junior at Crown College in St. Bonifacius. My major is in elementary education with a concentration in preprimary education. That means that I will have a license to teach K-6 and an endorsement from birth to 3rd grade. I love to not only watch kids learn and grow, but to help them do that, so being at Memories & Milestones Academy has been a great experience. I enjoy spending time with my family, my boyfriend, and my friends. *About Ms. Mary-Preschool Teacher Est. October 2013 Hi, My name is Mary Pauly and I am a life-long resident of Jordan. I have three daughters and one granddaughter. I received my child care specialist certification from Rassmussen and have worked as a preschool teacher and as a special education paraprofessional through MRVSEC. I enjoy working with children and am so excited to see them learn and grow. At home I like to cook, read, crochet, and watch “CSI-type” shows. I have found working in a daycare/preschool setting is rewarding and ever-changing “Adventure”.