May 17 marks Elaine Schladoer’s first open house for her Hill Country Early Learning Center, one of the newer daycare facilities and opportunities in the Boerne area.
Hill Country will offer early childhood education and care for children ages 6 weeks to 5 years, according to Schladoer, who brings more than 29 years of experience in the early childhood education field to Hill Country Early Learning Center.
When Thrive Early Learning Academy abruptly closed its doors in February, hundreds of parents were left high and dry, scrambling to find immediate childcare for their children.
And while Hill Country Early Learning is in the same building Thrive occupied, at 28 Sisterdale Road, Schladoer is quick to point out: That wasn’t me.
“Thrive closed abruptly, and it was not a good situation for the parents that were there,” she said. “The man who owned (Thrive) was looking to get out of the day care business. I submitted a bid, and now I am the owner.
“This fell in my lap, at just the right time,” she added.
The invitation then went out for prospective parents and potential employees to visit Hill Country Early Learning for the May 17 open house, ahead of the center’s May 27 opening.
The center will be open 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday for children 6 weeks old through pre-K, with after-school and summer camp for kindergarten through fifth grade.
Schladoer, a longtime Boerne resident, said her facility offers a variety of programs, including infant care, toddler programs, preschool and pre-kindergarten, with full-time and after school care enrollment options available.
Hill Country hosted a Greater Boerne Chamber of Commerce ribbon-cutting on May 14, welcoming the establishment into the city and the chamber.
Schladoer said she has already re-enrolled some of the parents who were left without care when Thrive closed.
“It was a bad situation, but I had nothing to do with that. I was not part of that ownership,” she said. “The opportunity (to own this) presented itself, I talked about it and prayed about it with my husband — and here I am.”
The center’s curriculum, she said, combines playbased learning with early academic skill-building, fostering creativity, curiosity, critical thinking and confidence. Enrichment activities such as music, art, STEM, outdoor exploration and Spanish language exposure are integral parts of the program.
“Boerne is growing so fast, we need to have more quality childcare. And that’s why we’re here,” she added.
Hill Country Early Learning Center can be reached online at www.hillcountryELC.com, by calling 830-331-2030, by emailing Schladoer at: [email protected], or by stopping by at the 28 Sisterdale Road location.
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