Writer / Pat Carlini
A groundbreaking ceremony took place May 20 at 10408 Olio Rd. – the site of the first Rainbow Station preschool to open in the state of Indiana.
Geist area couple Steve and Debbie Ramos and longtime friends Jay and Becky Brammer have been working on bringing Rainbow Station to the Fishers community for more than eight years and are excited to see their new venture become a reality.
“It’s exciting to see the construction underway,” says Steve with a smile. “It’s been a long time coming.”
Debbie will be the Director of Curriculum for Rainbow Station at Geist. She has been teaching with HSE for over 20 years and is an award-winning Teacher of the Year for the HSE School District.
She left her longtime post as a second grade teacher at Geist Elementary at the end of the school year to focus on the opening of Rainbow Station – a move that still brings a tear to her eye.
“It’s really hard leaving what I love to do after 32 years,” says Debbie. “But, this is a great new adventure and something needed in our community.”
Family friend Adam Gilliatte of Gilliatte General Contractors was also on hand for the groundbreaking with his family and says he is glad to be a part of bringing the new school to the community.
“This school represents our community’s desire to continue investing in our families,” says Gilliatte. “Children will receive the highest quality education from one of the best local educators, Debbie Ramos.”
Rainbow Station at Geist will offer a wide selection of programs: Full-Day Nursery School (Infants), Full-Day Preschool and School Age Recreation. What sets them apart from other school is Rainbow Station offers sick childcare at their “Get Well Place,” a unique program that offers care for mildly ill children from birth to age 14 that offers much needed support for families with parents who work. Staffed full-time by a pediatric nurse, the Get Well Place provides emergency backup care for children with common childhood illnesses such as colds, chicken pox or the flu.
Rainbow Station is among the few preschools and school-aged recreation programs to achieve national accreditations based on stringent standards set by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and the National After School Association (NAA).
Steve and Debbie will be employing up to 40 part- and full-time employees at their new location. They hope to open more Rainbow Station schools in the future including Carmel, Westfield and Zionsville.
Rainbow Station is now enrolling for infants to pre-K.
You can visit Rainbow Station at Geist’s Facebook page for more information or rainbowstation.org/geist or email Geist@rainbowstationindy.org.
