91����

After 25 years, founding Director Keira Durrett ’88 reflects back on her baby—the 91���� Northampton Children’s Center

With four classrooms, 50 infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, and 14 staff members, there’s a lot going on inside the 91���� Children’s Center, and by extension, the mind of its director, Keira Durrett ’88. But amidst the happy sounds of kids all around her, there’s a moment of Zen for Durrett when she’s asked about her baby—the Children’s Center.

“It all started with this picture,” Durrett says, motioning to a framed, faded photo of 11 smiling kids—the first cohort of students who led to the center’s founding 25 years ago. In 1999, there was a baby boom on campus. With a lack of local childcare options, and a need for teachers to, well, teach, the school decided to start a childcare center. At that time, Durrett happened to be on the lookout for a job in early childhood education and relished the idea of running her own learning center.

It turned out to be a match made in heaven. Just before the 25th anniversary celebration in March—which 300 people attended—we sat down with Durrett to talk more about the Children’s Center and its impact on the wider 91���� Northampton community.

When did you know you wanted to work with kids?

I always knew I wanted to be a teacher, and when I was at 91����, during January term, I got to go and volunteer in a second grade classroom—and I absolutely loved it. I knew I wanted to major in education in college, and at Wheaton College, I was able to do a four-year work study program in the nursery school on campus. I absolutely fell in love with preschoolers, and thought ‘This is where I belong.’ I then went to University of Massachusetts for a master’s in early childhood education. I had a job at the time working in a family literacy program and was teaching infants and toddlers and I knew infants, toddlers, preschoolers was where I needed to be.

What was your reaction to being offered the job by your alma mater? Were you hesitant at all? Excited?

Honestly, my first reaction was “I’m 29 years old, I’ve only been teaching for six years, why are they letting me do this?” But I couldn’t pass up the opportunity because they were saying “Start something with your vision.” I don’t think I really realized how big it was at the time. I just thought “Of course I’ll do this, it’s fine!” Plus, I had a lot of support from people like Chuck McCullagh, the CFO, and Jen Fulcher, who interviewed me for the job.

When did you start to feel like the Children’s Center was going to be successful?

I think it was probably when I started hearing feedback from the community. Prospective families would call and say, ‘I’ve heard your program is great, I would like my child to be involved.’ I think that’s the point when I felt like, oh, this, this is a real thing. This isn’t just a couple of classrooms—this is actually a school with a philosophy and a real niche.

What’s your philosophy of educating young children?

Our philosophy is that children learn through play, so we set up the environment so that they can figure out what they’re passionate about, try new things, and learn how to learn. Then the teachers observe the children, look for themes in their play, and build a curriculum around that. In educational terms, it’s called emerging curriculum, where children lead the play and then the teachers are there to support. Our hope is that children leave here with a passion for learning, an understanding of their own sense of learning, and confidence. Eighty-five percent of what we do is social skills—so, teaching them to be in a group together.

You referenced the picture on the wall—I’m curious, what’s it like seeing those kids graduate? And what is it like now seeing current 91���� students walk around that were in the Children’s Center?

Couper Gunn ’18 was one of the kids in that picture and he comes back every couple years to visit us just to say hi and reminisce about things. For a 25-year-old to come back to their preschool to talk, it’s just amazing. And when we see the things that former students are now doing, we can see those were skills that they had as a 2-year-old. At the beginning of each school year I go through the student directory and count how many students in the Middle and Upper school were Children’s Center alums, and right now there are 28 students who went through the Children’s Center. It’s amazing to see them in the dining hall. Some of them are super friendly and excited to see us and some of them, you know, they’re teenagers. My son [Jackson Ayres ‘25] is about to graduate from 91���� this year. I feel super connected to his class, which has five former Children’s Center alums. That feels pretty big to me.

What does a “typical” day look like in the Children’s Center?

Every classroom is a little different, but basically the day is broken up with blocks of free play, then more structured times, like meals and snacks, bathroom breaks, and nap time. Every day is the same in terms of that routine, but every day is also different because we’re bringing all these personalities together. The biggest piece is—and one of the things I talk about a lot—is my office is in the middle of all the four classrooms so I can hear things going on at different times of day. And the biggest things that stand out are laughter, singing, and a happy buzz. It’s busy, it’s crazy, it’s nutty, and I get to hear it all from here. I can hear the staff celebrating because some baby took its first step or a toddler peed on the potty and everyone sings the potty song. Things like that are so fun.

What do your days look like?

Part of what I love about my job is that every day is completely different and I never know what to expect. I start by going into each classroom and saying good morning to all the kids and teachers who are here. The rest of the day depends on who’s out and if we have a sub and that kind of stuff. I cover teachers’ breaks, so I’m often in classrooms lunchtime and story time because I love to read to the kids. I’m constantly making decisions and problem solving, so by the time I get home, if someone says “what’s for dinner?,” I’m like ‘No’ because I’ve made 250 million decisions today. and I can’t make another one.

What can you say about your staff?

“They are amazing! And you can feel it in moments, like when child takes their first step, and everybody celebrates together. And we work really hard. We talk a lot about teaching philosophy about how young children learn and build connections with each other and about why we’re in this field. The root of it is we’re all here for the kids and doing it because that’s what we enjoy. And I think just like families come here because it’s an educational setting, teachers come here because they want to teach children.”

You are celebrating 25 years now—are there any long-term goals or things that you are working toward for the future of the Children’s Center?

Right now we have a waiting list of 150 families, and we’ve had that for probably five years. Easthampton has had an amazing�� growth of families with young children, and there’s just not enough care. Someday, I would love to be able to expand our program and build a new building.