Spanish
Katie McLain is a seasoned child care provider and early childhood educator with a lifelong commitment to nurturing young minds in Louisiana. As a director on the Wonderschool platform, she brings her extensive experience to create impactful learning environments. Katie's career has been dedicated to providing exceptional care and education, and she recently founded Thrive Early Family Childhood Center in West Monroe, Louisiana, to support first responders and their families during the pandemic.
Katie McLain is a seasoned child care provider and early childhood educator with a lifelong commitment to nurturing young minds in Louisiana. As a director on the Wonderschool platform, she brings her extensive experience to create impactful learning environments. Katie's career has been dedicated to providing exceptional care and education, and she recently founded Thrive Early Family Childhood Center in West Monroe, Louisiana, to support first responders and their families during the pandemic.
In today's episode of Childhoods By Wonderschool, we talk with Katie McLain, an early childhood educator and the founder of Thrive Early Family Childcare Center, about the enormous impact of childhood experiences. We'll look at how Katie's background in a rural Louisiana town, surrounded by her loving family and community, influenced her desire to work with children.
Katie grew up as the youngest of three children and the youngest grandchild on both sides of her family. She had a lot of people looking after her because she lived within walking distance of her entire family, both family and community members. Even yet, her mother, an admissions clerk at a nearby hospital, struggled to obtain continuous care for her as she was required to work longer shifts. Her mother lobbied the hospital to develop a daycare, creating the first community daycare program in their small town. Katie had a natural affinity for working with children since she was a child herself, so her own ventures into leading a preschool program came effortlessly.
We'll also talk about Katie's decision to transition from center director to establishing a home-based program, which was encouraged by her husband, a local law enforcement officer who recognized the critical need for childcare for his coworkers and other emergency shift workers during the pandemic. Learn how Katie incorporates the essence of her close-knit Louisiana neighborhood into her approach to childcare, as well as insights from her professional lessons, the impact of her parenting experience, and the importance of the Wonderschool platform in managing her thriving program. Don't pass up this chance to learn from an educator who has turned her childhood experiences into a life of service and creating a lasting effect.
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