The Auburn University Kreher Preserve and Nature Center (KPNC) Woodland Wonders Nature Preschool (WWNP) will now expand with tuition-free access to the program’s first-class educational experiences thanks to extramural funding and a new Alabama First Class Pre-K designation. This long-conducted program is the first nature preschool in the state to receive such recognition. The designation marks a advancement for Alabama and the nature-based learning community.
A new frontier
The Alabama First Class Pre-K program provides pre-kindergarten programming for approximately 24,000 4-year-olds across the state. This platform is administered through the Alabama Department of Early Childhood Education (ADECE), the state agency tasked with giving high-quality care and education to young children across Alabama. Their program has received high ratings from entities such as the National Institute for Early Education Research for almost two consecutive decades.
“This milestone represents a significant advancement for both Alabama and the entire nature-based learning community,” said Michael Buckman, KPNC manager. “WWNP will be the first nature preschool in the state to receive this prestigious certification. It is noteworthy that, nationwide, very few state-level education departments recognize or license nature-based schools at any grade level.”
A natural fit
According to the KPNC’s staff, there is a natural fit for First Class Pre-K within the center. The KPNC’s mission is to ‘promote a sense of stewardship towards nature through quality environmental education, recreation, and outreach programs with Auburn University and its community partners.’ With aligned goals, the center was highly enthusiastic about the possibility of becoming a First-Class Pre-K school several years ago.
Sarah Crim, the education director at KPNC and director and founder of WWNP, learned about this designation while working with colleagues in Auburn’s College of Education.
“After the nature preschool opened and began to develop and evolve, we always had the idea in the back of our minds of applying to be a First Class Pre-K but it was never quite the right time,” Crim said. “With the opening of our new classroom in the Environmental Education Building, it just felt like the door was opening and we reached out to state representatives about our idea. We had very encouraging conversations with representatives from the First Class Pre-K program and found that our ideas and philosophies in education were very aligned. With encouragement from them, we applied for the opportunity to open a classroom in the 2024-2025 school year and are thrilled to have been accepted.”
The program has already received its first grant as First Class Pre-K for the 2025 award year in the amount of $135,000 that has enabled the KPNC to offer tuition-free education for enrolled students as well as hire two certified early childhood educators for the school.
A highly qualified team
To prepare for the inaugural First Class Pre-K program at the KPNC, the center conducted a search for a lead teacher who had experience with the rigors of first class pre-k programs and the pedagogy of nature-based education. After a thorough search process, the KPNC found their ideal candidate who will bring significant early childhood education experience to the program.
Elise Wilkins, an Auburn alumna in the College of Education and current WWNP teacher who served as a first class pre-k teacher in the Russell County school system, was selected to serve as lead preschool teacher. Wilkins has been involved with the KPNC since 2020 where she began service as a student teacher. Today, she has been in her WWNP role for more than a year and is excited to dive into this new endeavor for the KPNC.
“I think [learning outdoors] makes things come more naturally for kids,” Wilkins said. “You get to see their excitement a little more in their interests, build off that and see them become brave and confident more so than in a traditional classroom setting. They’re finding their characters. They’re finding their inner person.”
To accompany Wilkins, serving as auxiliary Pre-K teacher will be Amanda Prince. Also an Auburn alumna in the College of Human Sciences, Prince has been a lead teacher for the WWNP previously. She brings more than 20 years of teaching experience to the KPNC’s educational programming.
“I’m most excited about transferring over to First Class PreK so that we can provide this program to other children that could not have afforded it or are unaware that we exist,” Prince said. “ I think it’s great for an opportunity to be a pilot program for the state so that more children can be exposed to nature. I think the best thing we can do as teachers and parents is take our children outside and have an appreciation for the outdoors from a very young age. I was able to go to a farm school as a child, and it definitely affected who I was as a person as I’m out here teaching every day.”
Wilkins and Prince will assume their new roles in spring 2025.
A new era
This year begins a new era for the KPNC and its educational programming. New, state-of-the-art facilities in its Environmental Education Building, legislative support for education and highly motivated and invested team members make for endless possibilities. The team is eager to embark on this journey and are grateful to everyone who have made this feat possible.
“We are so excited to be the first nature preschool to provide a First-Class Pre-K in the state of Alabama,” said Crim. “We thank the representatives from ADECE for believing in the teaching philosophy of nature preschool and its benefits to the students of our state. We have seen these benefits firsthand through the last five years of the WWNP and it is truly an honor to be able to open another classroom at our facility. It is our hope that we can lead through example so that other nature preschools and future nature preschools will also apply to be a First-Class Pre-K.”
If you are interested in learning more about the first-class WWNP or the WWNP, please contact Sarah Crim at natureeducation@auburn.edu. Applications for the First Class Pre-K for 2024/2025 and 2025/2026 academic years are now available through the Alabama Department of Early Childhood Education website.
Those wishing to support the KPNC, its programs and new facilities with a naming opportunity or other tax-deductible donation may contact Heather Crozier, CFWE’s director of development, at vannhea@auburn.edu or by visiting https://kpnc.auburn.edu/eeb/.
