Rocks, dandelions, hugs, and the occasional random, innocent one-liner are all part of the territory for Sharalle Arnold, the director of Grand Valley State University’s Children’s Enrichment Center.

The rocks? The children give them to Arnold as a way for her to remember them by and they rest along the windowsill near her desk. The dandelions? They are from the field out behind the building and serve as decoration for the office.

For Arnold and the other employees of theCEC, it’s these little things and many others that keep them coming back day in and day out.

“Children have a very genuine way of inspiring you and making you laugh,” Arnold said. “They say exactly what they want to say. It’s a very overwhelming experience. When you truly connect, that’s what it’s about.”

Having been a part of GVSU’s family almost from the beginning, the CEC is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year after starting from humble beginnings.

Originally started in a house on Lake Michigan Drive, located on the Meadows Golf Course, the center was moved onto GVSU’s Allendale Campus in 1995 to allow for major expansion and to avoid the golf balls that would sometimes hit the house.

Now divided into three classrooms and able to hold up to 64 children between the ages of 2 1/2 and 12, the CEC provides university faculty, students, and the public a safe place to send their children.

“For some, this is the first time for this separation,” Arnold said. “It can be very hard but when you have a safe environment, there is a sense of relief there.”

Open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m.-6 p.m., the CEC provides children with a place to have fun and learn while also receiving breakfast, two snacks, and lunch throughout the day.

The center runs a more traditional preschool setting than in the past and children are taught by three teachers and also GVSU students in education, social work, and child phycology majors.

Jessica Miranda-Bevier started working at the CEC as an undergraduate student. She continued work as a graduate student, abd is now the CEC’s assistant director. Miranda-Bevier said it’s the impact she makes on the children that keeps her coming back.

“To know that we are shaping future habits, whether it’s health habits or instilling a love for learning, that’s what it’s about,” Miranda-Bevier said. “Being on GVSU’s campus, we are preparing these children for future education.”

While working at the Center, Miranda-Bevier has impacted many children but she said they have prepared her for the future as well.

“It has prepared me for other stages of life,” she said. “Being a student and seeing what the other families go through has been very helpful.”

Now located at GVSU’s Allendale Campus on West Campus Drive, the CEC was started to help students at the college by providing a place to take their children at a discounted rate.

“In early care, it’s not often that you find programs with such a long history,” Arnold said. “It shows the university’s commitment to the staff and students.”

Along with providing the children with food and a classroom environment, the Center also has a playground for the children and takes the children to the GVSU farmer’s market where the children can use money they are given to buy snacks for the day.

As for the future for the Enrichment Center? Arnold would like to see it expand even further.
“If we experience a facilities enhancement, then we will have a great chance to impact the young children, the students, families, and the community,” Arnold said.

To celebrate the 40th birthday, the CEC will be hosting a birthday party today at 5:00 p.m.
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