Programs

Fundamentals Early Learning Center - Central

6 hours ago

They were the very first baby class at Fundamentals... then they came back dressed for their freshman homecoming ❤️

(And, yes, they are banging on the door to be let back in in one of the pictures 😂)

These girls started at Fundamentals as babies the day we opened our doors in 2013. They grew up here together, became some of each other's very first best friends, and all these years later, they're still friends.

When it was time to take pictures for their freshman homecoming, they came back to where their story together started.

MJ's mom, Katrina Ward, shared this with us:

“Fundamentals will always hold such a special place in our hearts. It was so much more than the place I trusted with my baby girl, MJ, it became part of our village.

The staff loved my baby. They truly knew her, her personality, her moods, what made her smile, and even when she just wasn’t having a good day. They knew when she needed a little extra love, a different approach, or simply someone who understood how to refocus her and help turn her day around.

And Fundamentals gave her something else that has lasted far beyond her time there: some of her very first best friends. These girls started out as babies growing up together, and all these years later, that friendship continues.

Fundamentals helped raise our babies. They loved them, taught them, redirected them, celebrated them, and gave them a place where they belonged.

It really does take a village and I will forever be grateful that Fundamentals was part of ours.”

As we celebrate 25 years since Wyatt first stepped into childcare, these are the stories that put those years into perspective.

You can count years.
You can count classrooms.
You can count how many children have walked through the doors.

But then the first babies you cared for show back up as high school freshmen, still best friends, suddenly you can SEE what all those years mean.

We couldn't think of a better picture of the legacy we're celebrating this month. ❤️ ... See MoreSee Less

Fundamentals Early Learning Center - Central

1 day ago

13 years ago TODAY, Mrs. Elaine joined the family. ❤️

But by then, she had already spent 30 YEARS cooking at LSU.

After retiring at 50, Mrs. Elaine took nine months off before spotting an ad in the newspaper looking for a cook. She called, interviewed with Wyatt on a Wednesday, and he asked her if she could start the next day.

She told him no 😂

But she DID start the following Monday -- and 13 years later, she's still here.

For more than a decade, Mrs. Elaine has been the woman behind countless breakfasts, lunches and snacks for our Fundamentals kids. And somehow, after cooking all day at work, she still goes home and cooks for her own family. Every Sunday, she invites everyone over and cooks for them, too.

Apparently, some people really are just born to feed people ❤️

Mrs. Elaine has been here through so many children, families, teachers and changes over the years, and she's become part of the fabric of Fundamentals.

And eventually, she says she IS going to hang up the apron. She and her husband have plans to travel when they're both retired.

When asked where they're going, her answer was very Mrs. Elaine “We are just going to throw a dart at the map!”

After 13 years with Wyatt -- and 30 years at LSU before that -- we'd say she's earned quite a few darts.

Happy 13 years, Mrs. Elaine. Thank you for feeding and loving our babies all these years. ... See MoreSee Less

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