PPNS was founded in 1961 by Wendy Pfeffer and Beverly Thurman, two teachers with young children who identified the need for a community-based preschool in our area. Working with Pastor Walter Coats, Wendy and Bev planned a school that would be an outreach to all local families and originally opened with classes for threes and fours. Over the years, additional classes have been added, including the first two-year-old program in our area, which opened in 1985 after the addition of a two new classrooms specifically tailored to the needs of very young children.
In 2011-2012 we celebrated our 50th anniversary with a year’s worth of special activities and concerts for students and their families. The culminating event was a huge party at Rosedale Park and the creation of a beautiful collage featuring a tile made by each student, teacher, and board member in the school that year! It’s hanging in our hallway to this date, if you want to take a look!
Throughout the school’s history, our philosophy and mission have stayed the same: a child’s work is play, and open-ended intentional play guided by caring and highly qualified teachers gives children the freedom and environment to think expansively and creatively, and gain the skills necessary for elementary school, both in traditional academic subjects and in social and self-help skills.