Neighborhood Kids Preschool Now Offering A Kindergarten Program
Young Minds BY DEBORAH WELKY
Neighborhood Kids provides a safe educational environment for young children.
Wellington’s oldest preschools will soon be offering a new kindergarten program. When the upcoming school year begins on Monday, Aug. 10, Neighborhood Kids will be offering schooling for kindergarten-age children at its Greenbriar Blvd. location, courtesy of owners Frank and Olivia Toral. Previously called Little Place and Little Place Too, the Torals took over the longtime Wellington landmarks last year from founder Susan Russell, who opened the first location in 1978. They have since rebranded the two locations as Neighborhood Kids. “Until now, the school has served ages four months to pre-kindergarten and has graduated approximately 2,000 children from pre-kindergarten over the last 40 years,” Frank Toral said. “But we saw a tremendous need for affordable, private kindergarten education in Wellington. We will offer continuity of care by offering kindergarten. Since we’ve cared for them since they were toddlers, it only makes sense to hire a top-notch educator to get them more than ready for first grade in a loving environment.” As of July, Toral said that top candidates for the position were all “well-credentialed, well-trained and possessing significant experience.” In an occupation where staff turnover is often quite high, the average tenure of the current Neighborhood Kids teaching staff is 10 years. The school offers successful curriculums such as Abeka and Creative, as well wellington the magazine | august 2020 41