Naperville’s Celebration preschool celebrates 20 years

There’s school pride, and then there’s the kind of school buy-in that Naperville’s Kelly Gilligan witnesses as director of Celebration Children’s Center preschool, which is celebrating its 20th year in operation in 2024-25.

“We have parents who love this school so much that they come back to work here after their kids have graduated, or even before,” Gilligan said. “I think it’s really a testimony to the kind of environment that we work to create for students and staff alike.”

Celebration Children’s Center, located at 919 S. Washington St. in Naperville, opened its doors in September 2005. The preschool is a ministry of Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, which is a member of the Chicago-based Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

With an emphasis on kindergarten readiness and a curriculum built on the Illinois Early Learning Standards, Celebration Children’s Center offers programs for children ages 2-5 ranging from two-days-per-week Parents’ Day Out to four-day prekindergarten.

Last fall, the school also debuted Friday enrichment classes for 3- to 5-year-olds in topics such as STEAM and literature to allow students to extend their learning time each week. Summer camp sessions are available to students who have completed a year at Celebration Children’s Center, as well.

Meredith Schaffer is among those who joined the preschool’s staff after a great experience with the school as a parent. “I have three kids, and all of them went through or are currently attending Celebration Children’s Center,” she said. “My friend recommended this program when my kids needed preschool, and we were fortunate enough to get in. We’ve had such a fabulous experience that I wanted to work here.”

Starting her first year with the preschool this fall, Schaffer will be one of the Parents’ Day Out teachers, welcoming Celebration Children’s Center’s youngest students. “It’s really neat, I think, to see the growth between ages 2 and 3,” she said. “That socialization is so important.”

Schaffer’s oldest child, who is starting first grade in Indian Prairie Community Unit District 204 this year, was “more than prepared” for kindergarten after attending Celebration Children’s Center, she said.

“The transition was seamless,” Schaffer said. “I think they do such a tremendous job here of getting kids ready.”

More than that, Schaffer says she appreciates the overarching themes of “play with a purpose” and teaching children that God knows them and loves them. While Schaffer and her family are Roman Catholic, she says she would make the decision to enroll her children at Celebration Children’s Center time and again.

“The message here is always kindness and love, and why wouldn’t you want that?” she said. “We never had any bad days here, and as a parent, that’s huge.”

Prekindergarten teacher Karen Petersen echoes the sentiment. She joined Celebration Children’s Center as a Parents’ Day Out assistant after working in education programs at Brookfield Zoo for 17 years; her daughter, too, graduated from the preschool.

“The kids feel the love from every place, every person, every interaction here,” she said. “Preschool is an opportunity for kids to start learning about what it means to be a person in a community, and this is a warm and inclusive community where everyone is invited.”

Throughout the school year, students participate in service-oriented activities such as soup and cereal drives for Loaves & Fishes Community Services and baby-clothes collections for Our Saviour’s Baby Care ministry. The preschool also hosts several musical events for families, including an annual Christmas program.

Gilligan, honored in 2019 as the Evangelical Lutheran Education Association’s 2019 Early Childhood Director of the Year, is grateful for the joy that both new teachers and longtime staff bring to the school.

“We are so thankful for the love that our teachers and staff pour into their work,” Gilligan said. “We just have the best team, and we truly can’t wait to get back into our classrooms every fall. Families and students can sense that; they get what we have worked to build over 20 years — I think that’s why we continue to have more than 200 children enrolled with us each year.”

While most of the preschool’s programs are full for the 2024-25 school year, there are limited openings still available in the three-day morning preschool class for 3- and 4-year-olds.

For more information on Celebration Children’s Center, visit www.celebrationchildrenscenter.com or call (630) 281-4300.