Childcare - EmBe

Staff Spotlight: Kayla Skufca, Lead Infant Teacher – Mitchell

Ngoc Thach2022-02-09T20:48:16-06:00

Staff Spotlight: Kayla Skufca, Lead Infant Teacher of Mitchell As EmBe parents, program participants, and staff, you already know that we do things differently at EmBe. Thanks to our nonprofit model, we serve the mission of empowerment in order to enrich lives, and that mission extends to each of the children we serve and their families. And thanks to hundreds of team members like Kayla, our Lead Infant Teacher in Mitchell, EmBe serves more than 800 children each day. This month, we get to know Kayla through her EmBe journey, and learn what has kept her here for nearly three [...]

Staff Spotlight: Kayla Skufca, Lead Infant Teacher – MitchellNgoc Thach2022-02-09T20:48:16-06:00

Staff Spotlight: Michele Leiferman, Lead Teacher of Nursery One

Ngoc Thach2022-01-03T14:49:58-06:00

Staff Spotlight: Michele Leiferman, Lead Teacher of Nursery One Michele Leiferman has been in the business of childcare for about 30 years. With more than five of those years spent caring for the kids of EmBe, she has worked closely with many kids and families, helping them transition in big and small ways. But whether a child is graduating from bottles to solid food or from her room to another, she knows all changes are big at this stage. And she knows the weight of her role. "When they grow out of my room and go to 2s, they still [...]

Staff Spotlight: Michele Leiferman, Lead Teacher of Nursery OneNgoc Thach2022-01-03T14:49:58-06:00

Staff Highlight: Rebekah Warmbrand, Lead Teacher 5B

Melissa Carter2021-10-20T09:41:12-05:00

At EmBe, we are proud to serve the community by providing quality educational opportunities to inspire children to be confident, independent thinkers. Without our amazing team of teachers, this wouldn’t be possible. Our teachers help provide a safe and fun environment to facilitate the growth and development of children in our community. Teachers like Rebekah Warmbrand, 5B Lead Teacher at EmBe South, are the heart and soul of our organization. Rebekah’s responsibilities involve caring for a classroom of 4- and 5-year-olds. She also completes lesson plans and prep each week and works closely with her assistant teachers and other staff [...]

Staff Highlight: Rebekah Warmbrand, Lead Teacher 5BMelissa Carter2021-10-20T09:41:12-05:00

Alex Helvin: South Childcare Site Manager

Melissa Carter2021-04-16T15:25:29-05:00

We are so excited to highlight and welcome Alex Helvin, our new South Childcare Site Manager, to the EmBe team. As the Childcare Site Manager, Alex provides daily management to the childcare site, leadership, supervision and development of childcare staff, along with parent communications and admissions. Alex is certainly not "new" in the sense of joining EmBe's team. Helvin started at EmBe when she was young and grew up within the company. "I have learned and developed both personally and professionally through my experiences with EmBe," Helvin started. "A lot of the foundational skills stem from what I built with [...]

Alex Helvin: South Childcare Site ManagerMelissa Carter2021-04-16T15:25:29-05:00

Kerra Wallace: Lead Teacher in 2C

Melissa Carter2021-01-20T10:58:38-06:00

Kerra Wallace is the Lead Teacher in 2C at EmBe South and has done amazing things to continue to evolve our curriculum and ensure our classrooms are a fun and safe environment for the children. Her job entails seeing over the children and daily activities of her classroom. Creating lesson plans, craft prepping, recording information about each child in KidReports and so much more! "I love seeing the kids explore through daily play and watching the lightbulbs turn on when they figure something out," Kerra said. EmBe has helped Kerra in my professional development by giving her the opportunity to [...]

Kerra Wallace: Lead Teacher in 2CMelissa Carter2021-01-20T10:58:38-06:00

EmBe awarded Bush Foundation Community Innovation grant for collaborative project

Melissa Carter2020-12-22T09:33:29-06:00

EmBe has been awarded a Bush Foundation Community Innovation grant. The $200,000 award provides funding for a two-year collaborative project to develop a framework for a shared child and school age care substitute staffing pool. This pool of trained staff will meet day-to-day needs across multiple organizations. The project grew out of the Sioux Falls Childcare Collaborative, convened and facilitated by Sioux Falls Thrive. The group has been meeting for several years with a focus on advancing sustainable child and school age care. COVID has propelled the group into the spotlight as the essential work of childcare providers has affected [...]

EmBe awarded Bush Foundation Community Innovation grant for collaborative projectMelissa Carter2020-12-22T09:33:29-06:00

The Challenge of Finding Childcare

Melissa Carter2020-08-10T12:56:57-05:00

Finding childcare can pose a challenge to any parent. Finding childcare that prioritizes children’s learning, health and safety is often much more difficult. Megan Koppen, a working mom, knew she wanted a center with these qualities and more. Koppen began her search for childcare with Google. “We literally did a Google search, and EmBe was the first one that popped up,” Koppen said. Koppen scheduled a tour and was impressed with what she found. “We really loved the security of it,” she said. “I’m kind of a neat freak, so cleanliness was a big thing. You could tell it was [...]

The Challenge of Finding ChildcareMelissa Carter2020-08-10T12:56:57-05:00

Shelby’s Childcare Experience

Melissa Carter2020-07-06T13:59:12-05:00

Shelby Hartung noticed a difference in EmBe’s childcare from the moment she met the downtown location staff. “Everybody felt like friends. That was the biggest experience we had on our tour.” Hartung discovered EmBe shortly after moving from Bismarck, North Dakota. She began her search for childcare with Google, and EmBe’s name appeared at the top of the list. After scanning EmBe’s web page, Hartung called to set up a tour. On her tour, she met Desiree Wolfe, EmBe’s Downtown Childcare Site Manager. Wolfe led her through the facility, showing Hartung the spaces for learning and play. Hartung felt an [...]

Shelby’s Childcare ExperienceMelissa Carter2020-07-06T13:59:12-05:00

EmBe Vehicle Fund Drive

Melissa Carter2020-01-21T11:59:22-06:00

Sioux Falls (January 13, 2020) -- Friday, December 13th held true to its reputation for EmBe, when two vans and a bus were disabled in the parking lot at EmBe South, just off of 69th and Louise in Sioux Falls. EmBe uses the vehicles to safely carry children on field trips, to transport them to EmBe for care, and to support programs like FIRST LEGO League, Girls on the Run, and swimming. That day, these vehicles were taken out of service through thefts of the catalytic converters. The vans were repairable, but the bus was not, creating a needless expense. The [...]

EmBe Vehicle Fund DriveMelissa Carter2020-01-21T11:59:22-06:00

Preschool Partnership with Sioux Falls Hope Coalition

Melissa Carter2019-07-02T16:57:33-05:00

EmBe begins preschool partnership with Sioux Falls Hope Coalition EmBe is honored to join forces with the Sioux Falls Hope Coalition alongside six additional major partners, in a collaboration to bring affordable preschool education to everyone in the Sioux Falls area. EmBe serves nearly 1,000 children through childcare for infants through elementary school, providing enrichment and the security of safe, reliable child care for working families. South Dakota is one of only five states that do not financially support preschool development at the state level. “Joining the Hope Coalition’s efforts is a great fit for our mission. Opening educational doors to [...]

Preschool Partnership with Sioux Falls Hope CoalitionMelissa Carter2019-07-02T16:57:33-05:00