About Indianola Children's Center · Columbus
Indianola Children's Center (ICC) is a nonprofit childcare center in Columbus, Ohio, serving children aged 18 months to 5 years since 2003. It operates as a separate entity from Indianola Presbyterian Church, though it is housed there and collaborates closely. The center emphasizes peace-making, outdoor education, creative play, and community involvement, with a curriculum built around children’s curiosity and self-directed learning. It welcomes families of all faiths, races, and backgrounds and is committed to anti-bias practices and collaborative care.
Indianola Children's Center is a nonprofit childcare provider for toddlers and preschoolers, established in 2003. It functions as a learning community for both children and adults, valuing children’s creativity, families’ dedication, and staff’s professionalism. The center’s philosophy centers on peacemaking as a guiding principle, teaching conflict resolution, empathy, and responsible expression through its curriculum. It is housed at Indianola Presbyterian Church but operates independently with a non-religious, inclusive mission. Spaces are limited, and the center serves the OSU campus and surrounding area, offering full-time preschool openings.
- In business
- since 2003
- Serves
- OSU campus and surrounding area in Columbus, Ohio
About Our Mission
Indianola Children's Center is a quality childcare provider for toddlers and preschoolers, serving as a parent education center and community resource for the OSU campus and surrounding area. We are a learning community for children and adults, where children are valued for their ability to do meaningful work, their wonder and curiosity, their perspectives and ability to play. Families are valued for their bonds and traditions, their dedication to meeting the physical, emotional, social, and educational needs of their children, and their commitment to the dreams for their children. Staff are valued as professionals for their vision, their delight in children, their skill and heart.
Our Philosophy
We believe that all children are full of remarkable capabilities. They have a right to a childhood filled with play, exploration, and excitement about learning. We see children as enormously creative, and capable of complex learning through self-directed play. We build our curriculum around their questions, pursuits, and the skills they are trying to master. We pay close attention to cultivating their self-esteem, as well as their dispositions toward learning, risk-taking, and problem solving. We implement anti-bias and peace building practices that emphasize the value of diversity of the children as individuals, and as members of families, cultures, and communities. We seek a team approach in our care-giving and strive for collaboration with families and the wider community. Peacemaking is the underlying philosophy guiding what we do at Indianola Children's Center.
Peace-Making Model
Our peace-making model includes: 1. Stop and Think, 2. Listen and Talk, 3. Decide What to Do. These steps guide teacher/child relations, teacher/parent relations, curriculum development, and more. We encourage the development of these skills and processes in a context where both children and adults can learn.