Hiersteiner Child Development Center

Inspire a lifelong love for learning

Welcome to the Hiersteiner Child Development Center (HCDC)! Our child-centered program is designed to nurture young minds with an evidence-based curriculum that engages and excites little learners.

We’re here to support the efforts of JCCC students to pursue their educational goals and offer assistance for JCCC faculty and staff to achieve their work potential.

HCDC is licensed by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment Child Care Licensing and accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) since 1993.

Enrollment is open to children of JCCC students, employees, and the community! We are licensed for children who are ages 1 and walking through age 6 on September 1 of each year. The center provides child education and care on a part- or full-time basis:

Full Time (Monday-Friday, 7:30 a.m. -5:30 p.m.)
Part Time
- Monday/Wednesday/Friday Full Days (7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.).
- Tuesday/Thursday Full Days (7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.)

Ready to enroll? Fill out an application for admission.

Yes! The JCCC Child Care Access Fund Scholarship is awarded to eligible JCCC students at the beginning of fall and spring semesters. The scholarship pays 75% to 95% of childcare costs. Students may apply through the JCCC Scholarship Portal. Further information may be found at JCCC Child Care Access Fund Scholarship.

The Child Care Assistance Grant is also awarded to eligible JCCC students at the beginning of fall and spring semesters. Students may apply through the JCCC Scholarship Portal.

For basic JCCC Scholarship information, please connect with JCCC Financial Aid.

Additionally, for families that are not affiliated with JCCC as a student or employee, we accept subsidies from the Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF). Please contact DCF for more information on childcare subsidies. This is an outside subsidy and can only be completed with DCF.

We have 7 classrooms at HCDC. Each space is a colorful, whimsical environment designed for young minds.

The toddler classrooms are for children who are walking and ages 1-2.5 years old, with a classroom ratio of 1:5 and a maximum classroom capacity of 8 children.

The early preschool classrooms are for children ages 2.5-4 years old, with a classroom ratio of 1:10 and a maximum classroom capacity of 16 children.

The older preschool classrooms are for children ages 3.5-6 years old by September 1, with a classroom ratio of 1:10 and a maximum classroom capacity of 20 children.

Classroom staff consists of NAEYC- and KDHE-approved Classroom Supervisors (1 per classroom), full- and part-time lead teachers, assistant teachers, and classroom aides. All classroom teachers and staff are trained in curriculum and lesson planning, which includes:

KDHE childcare licensing regulations
Behavior management and discipline
Signs of child abuse or neglect, including shaken baby syndrome, and the reporting of suspected child abuse or neglect
Basic child development, including supervision of children
Prevention and control of infectious diseases, including immunizations
Prevention of and response to emergencies due to food and allergic reactions
Building and premises safety, including identification of and protection from hazards that could cause bodily injury, including electrical hazards, bodies of water, and vehicular traffic
Emergency preparedness and response planning for emergencies resulting from a natural disaster or a human-caused event, including violence at a facility
Handling and storage of hazardous materials and the appropriate disposal of bio-contaminants, including blood and other bodily fluids or waste
Adult and Pediatric First Aid/CPR/AED certification every two years

In addition to the onboarding and orientation trainings above, all staff are required to obtain 16 hours of KDHE-approved in-service (professional development), with 4 of those hours consisting of health and safety training annually.

As a center, we utilize the Creative Curriculum and Teaching Strategies Gold child assessment for guiding lessons, activities, and engagement with the children in classroom.

The Creative Curriculum builds children’s confidence, creativity, and critical thinking skills through hands-on, project-based investigations. Trusted for decades by early childhood educators, our curriculum respects and nurtures individual skill progression for the whole child, harnesses the power of play that engages learners, seamlessly connects families to their children’s learning, and provides intentional support for every teacher every day.

The Creative Curriculum is aligned to state early learning guidelines and the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework, helping our program meet all requirements while focusing on the needs of individual children.

The Creative Curriculum balances academic rigor with a whole-child approach throughout the curriculum, which helps foster all areas of children’s development and learning—from social-emotional and physical skills to literacy, math, science, and the arts.

In the Creative Curriculum, learning is focused on 38 research-based objectives across the following 10 content areas: