Jewel graduated with her B.A. from Iowa State in 1992 which lead her into the human services career field where she worked in several adult long-term care facilities, working her way up to the Directors position for Friendship Manor and then at New Horizons.

In 2001, upon hearing Ascension was looking for a Director for the new Child Development Center they wanted to build, and after many conversations with God through lots of prayer, she decided to quit her job and pursue the necessary requirements to fulfill the position for Open Arms, which included working for a licensed center and college work in early childhood education.  She has been the Director of Open Arms since it was established in January of 2002.

Jewel believes that children learn in all aspects of their lives. By allowing them to experience life first hand, they gain the knowledge and confidence nessesary to accomplish tasks independently, which builds self-esteem.  Her daily goal is to help the Open Arms Staff keep the children safe and secure while their parents are away at work.

Jewel enjoys spending time with her family and friends on the pontoon in the summer.  Her free time is spent taking care of her children and their home, and in her own time, she loves to ride her horses.  She participates in LWML and plays in the bell choir at Ascension.

Throughout the course of the day, the Open Arms Staff are called upon to be actors, friends, nurses, doctors, coaches, detectives, taxi drivers, psychologists, substitute parents, salesmen, politicians, maids, food servers, groundskeepers, janitors and keepers of the faith.  WE ARE MOST FORTUNATE OF ALL WHO LABOR.  And we must thank the parents, who entrust us with their greatest contribution to eternity, their children.  Our past is rich in memories.  We have a gift that is adventurous, challenging, and fun. Because we are allowed to spend our days with the future.  We are teachers and we thank God for it everyday.

Erica earned her A.A. in Early Childhood Education from Wichita Area Technical College in 2001.  Erica started in child care in 1993, at Hesston Community Child Care Center as an Assistant teacher for two year olds.  She moved to Sunshine Academy in her hometown of Newton, KS, where for 5 years, she worked as a Lead Teacher with the Pre-K children and had part time duties as Assistant Director.  After being a stay at home mom for a few years, she found her way to Open Arms where for almost 4 years, she was the Lead Teacher for the Preschool Two class.  She was promoted to Assistant Director of Open Arms in the summer of 2007.

Erica believes that children respond best to consistency.  In the classroom, routines are key.  When the children know what to expect and what is acceptable, the discipline takes care of itself.  It is also very important that each child and teacher feel valued and accepted. Modeling kindness and respect are tools to achieve these goals.

In the classroom, Erica likes to create an environment where each child can excel on their own level and at their own pace. 

Erica enjoys spending time with friends and family.  She enjoys catching the latest flick and checking out new, local restaurants.  Reading and sudoku are her favorite quiet time activities.  Erica is engaged to be married in August of 2008 and plans to expand her family.

Awards & Certificates

• Who's Who Among American Teachers - 2005
• Who's Who Among American Teachers - 2006
• Love & Logic Training - 2007

Danielle has worked for Open Arms for 5 years, in every classroom in the center.  She has been working with children in either a daycare or home setting for 15 years.  She is currently seeking her B.A. in Elementary Education from Butler County Community College.

Danielle believes that children learn through experimentation and that it is the job of the teacher to re-direct the children and teach them proper behaviors. She believes that older children can understand why certain behaviors are not okay, so it is important to talk with them about their actions and make a plan with them to correct any inappropriate behaviors.

Her personal goals are to maintain her current 4.0 GPA.  For her classroom, she has a daily goal of maintaining a fun and safe environment for the kids to continue their learning.

Danielle enjoys spending time with her husband and playing with her infant daughter.  In her own time, she likes to scrapbook.

Stephanie has been with Open Arms for 5 years, and has worked in the infant room, toddler rooms and preschool classrooms.  She is currently enrolled at WSU, seeking her Bachelors Degree in the Elementary Education Program.

Stephanie believes in making play the center of a child's day.  Children learn through play and using it as a focal point for the classroom, children will be able to grow intellectually, socially and physically.  She applies her philosophy in the classroom through the use of circle time, centers, art, music and free play.

Stephanie enjoys scrapbooking, photography, watching her husband coach soccer and spending time with family.  Stephanie and her husband are expecting their first child in May of 2008.

Nichole has been with Open Arms since it opened in 2002.  She is currently taking classes in Early Childhood Education, working toward her Bachelors degree as well as getting her Directors License. 

Nichole believes that even as adults, we all learn and react in different ways, so we should not expect children to all act and learn the same way.  They need to be risk takers and successful for themselves, not what we believe they should achieve to be successful for adults.  She feels it is important to remember that children are all unique, and in our environment, we will get more accomplished and be more successful, if we are open to different teaching styles.

Nichole's daily goal is to keep Open Arms the best child development center in Wichita.

Nichole is married to Isaac, a Staff Sergeant in the United States Army and they have daughter and son who enjoy spending time with family and friends.  They are also very involved in ice skating.

Michelle's education is in Business Administration, but she spent 7 years working with mentally handicapped adults as a Case Manager.  To make a career change, she returned to college and took the necessary classes to obtain her Directors License.  She became the Business Manager for Open Arms in the summer of 2007.

Michelle believes that every child has great potential and it is our responsibility as adults to nurture their potential to the greatest extent.  She believes we also have a responsibility to teach not only children, but anyone who doesn't have knowledge of Jesus and how he changes lives.

Michelle enjoys teaching Sunday School to 3, 4 & 5 year olds.  She is also a member of the Ascension Bell Choir.  Michelle is married to Cris and they have a daughter and a son who are actively involved in ice skating at Wichita Ice Sports.

Adriana has been with Open Arms for 4 years.  Prior to serving the children of Open Arms, she worked for La Petite Academy in Kansas and Arizona for 9 years and was a stay at home mom for 14 years. 

Adriana believes that children just want to be loved.  Love for children is spelled T-I-M-E.  She would love to design a special art class where children learn to work with all mediums of art.  Acrylics, oils, clay, pottery, paper mache, etc.  Adriana provides a special service to the children here at Open Arms, she is our music teacher, and she visits with the children teaching them songs and music.

Adriana has been married for 25 years to a pilot from Kentucky and they have 4 kids and 2 grandchildren.  She enjoys the theater, movies and music which she shares all of those loves with her children.

Sandy has over 20 years of experience being a lead teacher in the Infant room.  She's been with Open Arms since it opened in 2002.  Prior to coming to Open Arms, her experience includes Nursery worker and Sunday School teacher, as well as caring for her own children and grandchildren.

Sandy believes that infancy is the most important time in a child's life so therefore, this is the time when you need to bond, build confidence, make the baby feel secure, be loving and caring, nurtering them with a trusting relationship.  She believes in redirection as opposed to discipline.

Her goals include continuing to make each infant feel loved and secure and to provide them with a loving, caring environment.  To continue to build a strong and trusting relationship between infant and parents.  To create an atmosphere for bonding, exploring and learning. 

Sandy loves children and becomes attached to the ones she cares for.  She treats them with respect and love.  She bonds with infants and parents and looks forward to building a trusting relationship with them.

Her hobbies are fishing, boating and camping with her husband.  She has 20 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren.

Debbie has been working for Open Arms since 2004, prior to that she worked for the Goddard School in Easthampton, New Jersey beginning in 1998, where she was responsible for children ages six weeks to 3 years old.

Debbie believes that all individuals responsible for the care of children should provide support and encouragement which allows each child to build good self-esteem and a positive attitude.

In the classroom, she is committed to providing a loving and caring environment where all children can grow and develop at their own pace.  She believes in redirection of a child's behavior.

Debbie was born in England and moved to the United States in 1992.  She is happily married with 3 boys of her own.  She enjoys walking, cycling, gardening and reading.

After being in the medical field for 12 years and with her move to Kansas, Karen decided she needed to do something different.  Being a mother of 2 and a grandmother, she felt that working with and assisting in child care would be a very uplifting experience.

Karen believes in giving lots of TLC and making sure to meet all the needs of the babies.  Helping them to learn how to interact with each other, and watching them grow and learn everyday is something she truly loves.

Karen enjoys reading, exercising, traveling, cooking, shopping and spending time with her family.

Kayla has been with Open Arms for 4 years and her experience includes working at the Westlink Christian Church Nursery and babysitting.

Kayla believes that every child develops at their own pace and modifies each classroom activity to the specific needs of the individual child.  She feels that the children should be treated fairly and that they respond the the energy that is created in the classroom, either good or bad.  She strives to have a positive environment to create an energy that maximizes the potential of the kids and to have fun.

Her professional goals in her classroom are to increase the kids knowledge in colors, shapes and focusing on table manners, proper use of their flatware and cups.

Kayla is currently seeking her Elementary Education Degree and in her spare time she enjoys reading and relaxing with her family and friends.

Jenni has been with Open Arms for a year and a half.  She believes in treating the children she cares for the way she would want her own kids treated.  She strives daily to help her students to prepare for the Kindergarten classroom. 

Jenni enjoys spending time with her family and friends, and is hoping to be in a new home in 2008.

Brad has been with Open Arms for over 3 years.  He believes in treating the children with equality and as he would would like to be treated. He enjoys being humorous and making the kids laugh.  Brad believes that in order for the children to respect him, he must also respect them.

Brad enjoys anything to do with music and he's working on starting his own business in music distribution, in hopes to bring more of the less popular musicians to Wichita. 

Cathy has been with Open Arms since July of 2007.  She believes in educating the children on what is expected of them behaviorally and setting reachable goals using beneficial guidelines to help them reach those goals.  She strives to teach the children the basic value of love, trust, and respect.

Cathy enjoys all different kinds of sporting activities and has been involved in them since a very young age.  She also enjoys spending time with her family and friends by going to the movies, amusement parks and riding four wheelers at the sand dunes.