Meet Wendy Miller, head of Good Neighbor Place preschool
NAME – Wendy Miller, administrator and lead teacher for the Pre-K class at Good Neighbor Place in Newcomerstown. Miller also is an ordained deacon in the Church of the Nazarene.
EDUCATION – Bachelor of arts in Christian ministries, with concentrations in Christian education, theology, and biblical literature, with an English minor from Malone University.
LOCATION – Good Neighbor Place, a preschool at 363 Neighbor St., Newcomerstown.
SERVICES – Preschool, ages 2.5 through kindergarten entry. Before and after-school program, ages 5 -11.
HOURS – Preschool, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; extended care from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. School-age program runs 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.
PHONE – 740-498-4800
ONLINE – Newcomerstown Church of the Nazarene, Nazarenenct.wixsite.com; and on Facebook as Good Neighbor Place.
FAVORITE QUOTE – “But seek first His kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” – Matthew 6:33
WHAT IS SOMETHING READERS WOULD BE SURPRISED TO KNOW ABOUT YOU? – “I played in the New York State quarterfinals in soccer and the New York State finals in basketball in the same school year. We lost both by one point (1988-89).”
PLEASE TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF, YOUR FAMILY AND WHAT YOU ENJOY IN YOUR DOWNTIME – “I married (Newcomerstown High School Biology Teacher) Paul Miller in 1995. We have two children Roston, 19 who is an N.H.S. graduate and a sophomore at Mount Vernon Nazarene University, and Brittyn who is a senior at Buckeye Trail High School. We are currently hosting a foreign exchange student, Sofia, from Madrid, Spain who attends Buckeye Trail. We live on a farm in Peoli where we raise Grass Fed and Grass Finished Beef that we sell direct market at Farmer’s Markets and from off the farm. I am a huge high school sports fan and also enjoy gardening and baking. I served as Children’s Pastor at the Newcomerstown Church of the Nazarene for approximately 18 years.”
GOOD NEIGHBOR PLACE IS CELEBRATING ITS 25th YEAR IN 2022. TELL US OF YOUR INVOLVEMENT IN ITS BEGINNINGS – “Paul and I began attending the Newcomerstown Church of the Nazarene early in 1997. At that time, I was working at a different preschool. One night after an evening service, our Pastor at the time, Mark Lail, asked me, “So when are you starting a preschool here?” I assumed it was small talk, but Paul and I discussed the possibility on our way home and I could not stop thinking about it. I called Pastor Lail the next day to see if he was serious. He said he was all for it, and we researched licensing procedures and formulated a plan that we shared with the church board. The board took a huge risk and step of faith entrusting me with this project. I had only been attending the church a year and was just 23 years old. We opened in the fall of 1998 with four employees and about 15 children. By the second year, we were able to open another classroom.”
TELL US ABOUT GOOD NEIGHBOR’S SERVICES, AND A TYPICAL DAY FOR YOUR STUDENTS – “We hold preschool Tuesday through Friday for children 2.5 through kindergarten entry. Our Early Learners Class is for children ages 2.5 to 3; and our pre-K class is for children who are 4 before the school year begins. We offer half and full day Pre-K class as well as extended care hours 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. so that we can provide children with a consistent environment. We try to help families avoid bouncing children from home to school to babysitters to home. Our school motto is “Where Love and Learning Meet.” We offer a safe, loving and family-centered atmosphere where children can experience all elements of a quality early childhood education from a faith-based perspective. We incorporate all the learning standards from the Ohio Department of Education into a day that is a balance of child-centered play and teacher-directed activities. We focus on and develop social skills, problem-solving skills, self-regulation skills, and autonomy as well as pre-math and early literacy skills. We are blessed to be able to offer seven early childhood education grant spaces through the Department of Education, which makes our program available for families who financially qualify and are also contracted to receive tuition vouchers through the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. Most of our families are private pay.”
HOW HAS THE DAILY OPERATION CHANGES OVER THE 25 YEARS? – “When we first opened, we had toys, furniture and equipment that we scrounged from friends, family and yard sales. We tucked ourselves away in whatever church space was available. My husband graciously built most of our shelving, and we made do with what was available. God has provided in many ways. We were able to receive a large grant from the Reeves Foundation in 2001 that allowed us to completely remodel our building. From there, outside funding from various sources has allowed us to continually upgrade our toys, teaching materials and playground space while keeping our tuition relatively low compared with other centers. This year we have record enrollment with an average of 30 preschool and 10 school-age children per day.”
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT YOUR PROFESSION? – “My favorite part of my profession is my school family. From our employees and their families to our students and their families, we take care of one another. Cammy Cooper and I were the first teachers here 25 years ago, and we are still here! Our other remaining staff members are all parents of former students. We have been doing this long enough that we now have a second generation, and I tell the families: “Once you are my kid, you are my kid forever.” Our school doesn’t have a lot of specific rules. We basically follow three – 1, we take care of each other; 2, we take care of our school; and three, we listen to each other’s words. I believe that if the whole world followed those three rules, most of life’s problems would be solved.”
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT FOR US? – Our center is a very special place, and it has always been a group effort; I am just the face. The Good Neighbor Place has been a ministry of our church from its inception. The church has supported us, encouraged us and been generous and tolerant of our use of space and scheduling. My husband has been my partner throughout this journey. He has sacrificed so much of his time to remodel our building, repair and maintain everything, loan us money when we were short for payroll, and shop for supplies. Most of all, he has empowered me to serve God where He has called me, even when it was not financially beneficial to our family. My children grew up in this building, attending from the day they turned 2.5 and spending 50 hours a week here while I took care of other children. They have learned to serve God and others, and I could not be prouder of them. My staff is wonderful. They are not only terrific caregivers and teachers, but some of my best friends. They understand our ministry and give their hearts to our kids and families. No one gets rich teaching preschool, and yet it doesn’t seem to matter. We believe in what we do. While we have not been able to help every child the way we would like, I am confident that we have made a difference in children’s lives and in our Village of Newcomerstown. Children will love school when they know school loves them. For some families, walking into our center is really their only interaction with a church. We want it to be a positive one, where God’s love is not only spoken, but shown.
This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: Meet Wendy Miller, head of Good Neighbor Place preschool
