Our Story....
Hello and welcome to Our Story.
Lil Scholars all started in 2007, when the founder was looking for a preschool / childcare center that provided more than just care for her children. Since she was a teacher at that time, she wanted her children to be learning, while she was teaching. She found that there were very few quality preschool and childcare programs that taught reading, writing, math and social skills by an accredited / licensed teacher. Our founder was disappointed in the size of the classes and the curriculum used. She wanted her children to learn the academic and social skills that would prepare them for kindergarten and give them that head start they would need to be successful! When she found out that other parents felt the same way, She decided to open Lil Scholars Preschool in her basement.
Lil Scholars Preschool continued to grow and burst out of the basement that it was started in. In order to better meet the needs of working parents and have a lot more room to learn, Lil Scholars Preschool opened up their first location on the south side of Des Moines in August of 2008. This facility was just minutes from downtown and was remodeled as a three classroom preschool and childcare center that could provide wrap around care for working parents that could not afford to leave work and pick up their child after 3-4 hours of preschool.
In August of 2012, Lil Scholars Preschool grew out of their south side building and decided to remodel and move to the current downtown building located on 9th and Keo Way. At this new location Lil Scholars Preschool was finally able to care for infants all the way up to school age students.
Just when the founder thought that Lil Scholars Preschool was done expanding, in 2016 she was given the opportunity to open up Lil Scholars Too in West Des Moines, right off of the 8th Street exit by the freeway. Lil Scholars Too was very excited to show West Des Moines what sets us apart from other centers. around them. Lil Scholars Too is now at full capacity and in August of 2019, they are expanding that center by 3,000 square feet.
And finally.... Lil Scholars Legacy is now open to the community of Norwalk. Legacy opened its doors in January of 2020. This facility was designed with the best parts of our previous centers, but with all of the same philosophies and standards that makes Lil Scholars what it is. Lil Scholars Legacy is located between Anytime Fitness and Pizza Hut, on Sunset Drive.
Our staff and founder can guarantee that your child will love his/her experience at Lil Scholars and you will not be disappointed in your child's education or individualized care that they will receive! AND... with our founder's own children now in high school, who knows...... maybe one day there will be a Lil Scholars College. Ha Ha!
Lil Scholars all started in 2007, when the founder was looking for a preschool / childcare center that provided more than just care for her children. Since she was a teacher at that time, she wanted her children to be learning, while she was teaching. She found that there were very few quality preschool and childcare programs that taught reading, writing, math and social skills by an accredited / licensed teacher. Our founder was disappointed in the size of the classes and the curriculum used. She wanted her children to learn the academic and social skills that would prepare them for kindergarten and give them that head start they would need to be successful! When she found out that other parents felt the same way, She decided to open Lil Scholars Preschool in her basement.
Lil Scholars Preschool continued to grow and burst out of the basement that it was started in. In order to better meet the needs of working parents and have a lot more room to learn, Lil Scholars Preschool opened up their first location on the south side of Des Moines in August of 2008. This facility was just minutes from downtown and was remodeled as a three classroom preschool and childcare center that could provide wrap around care for working parents that could not afford to leave work and pick up their child after 3-4 hours of preschool.
In August of 2012, Lil Scholars Preschool grew out of their south side building and decided to remodel and move to the current downtown building located on 9th and Keo Way. At this new location Lil Scholars Preschool was finally able to care for infants all the way up to school age students.
Just when the founder thought that Lil Scholars Preschool was done expanding, in 2016 she was given the opportunity to open up Lil Scholars Too in West Des Moines, right off of the 8th Street exit by the freeway. Lil Scholars Too was very excited to show West Des Moines what sets us apart from other centers. around them. Lil Scholars Too is now at full capacity and in August of 2019, they are expanding that center by 3,000 square feet.
And finally.... Lil Scholars Legacy is now open to the community of Norwalk. Legacy opened its doors in January of 2020. This facility was designed with the best parts of our previous centers, but with all of the same philosophies and standards that makes Lil Scholars what it is. Lil Scholars Legacy is located between Anytime Fitness and Pizza Hut, on Sunset Drive.
Our staff and founder can guarantee that your child will love his/her experience at Lil Scholars and you will not be disappointed in your child's education or individualized care that they will receive! AND... with our founder's own children now in high school, who knows...... maybe one day there will be a Lil Scholars College. Ha Ha!
Ms. MarciDirector
Lil Scholars Preschool, Lil Scholars Too and Lil Scholars Legacy 
Ms. Marci's Qualifications:
* Director of Lil Scholars Preschool Since 2007 * B.A. in K-6 Elementary Education from UNI * Minor in Learning Disabilities * Masters Degree in Special Education from Drake * Endorsements in Behavioral Disorders, Mild Disabilities and Instructional Strategist I * 2006 Excellence in Education Award Nominee * 2007 Iowa Character Award Nominee * Class featured several times in the Des Moines Register and on Channel 13 * Professor at Local College |
Ms. SusieDirector of Human Resources
Lil Scholars Preschool and Lil Scholars Too 
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Ms. KimAssistant Director
Lil Scholars Preschool 
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Ms. KaraSupervising Director
Lil Scholars Preschool 
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Ms. Kim's Qualifications:
* Assistant Director of Lil Scholars Preschool Since 2008 * Inhome Child Care Provider for over 15 years * Son Attended Lil Scholars Preschool in 2007 |
Ms. Kara's Qualifications:
* Supervising Director since 2018 * B.A. in Organizational Leadership and Human Services * Inhome Child Care Provider for over 13 years * Preschool Teacher and Assistant Teacher in a School District |
Ms. KellieSupervising Director
Lil Scholars Too 
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Ms. LindseyAssistant Director
Lil Scholars Too 
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Ms. Kellie's Qualifications:
* Assistant Director Since Lil Scholars Too Opened * B.A. in Communications / Public Relations * Substitute Teacher * Director of a Previous Child Care / Preschool Center for 12 years - Kellie spent twelve years building and leading programs for preschool through high school and writing curriculum. She rebuilt a preschool program that was on the verge of closing, to a successfully thriving program. She credits her success to the needs of each individual child, as well as building a strong and cohesive staff. Ms. Laura
Supervising Director
Lil Scholars Legacy Ms. Laura's Qualifications:
* Supervising Director Since Lil Scholars Legacy Opened *Bachelor of Science in Child, Adult and Family Services * Substitute Teacher * Director of a Previous Child Care / Preschool Center for 12 years *Previous Behavior Coach at an Elementary School and Counselor for Life Skills *Worked in childcare for 8 years |
Ms. Lindsey's Qualifications:
* Assistant Director at Lil Scholars Too Since 2019 * B.S. in Special Education * Endorsement in Developmental, Cognitive Disabilities and Autism *Been a lead teacher in an early childhood program for 2 years and the lead home school teacher for profoundly gifted homeschoolers. Ms. AbbyAssistant Director
Lil Scholars Legacy Ms. Abby's Qualifications:
* Assistant Director Since Lil Scholars Too Since It Opened *Bachelor of Science in Child, Adult, and Family Services *Previous Supervisor of a Before and Afterschool Program for 3 Years *Worked in childcare for 10 years |
Our Staff
Our staff are not your average childcare providers. They are NOT in this profession for a paycheck, they are here for the kids! Our 3-5 year old lead teachers are licensed teachers with a degree in education. Our teachers have tons of experience, CPR, First Aid and continuing education hours every year. We feel that that we truly have a gifted and wonderful staff at both of our locations.