Tiny Tikes Academy is the newest preschool, kindergarten and daycare center for children ages 2 to 12 serving the western communities. With three locations in Palm Beach County, the academy’s goal is to give back to the communities it serves in a positive way.
The Loxahatchee location is the newest Tiny Tikes addition. There are also locations in Boynton Beach and West Palm Beach. The new academy opened at the beginning of the school year.
Academy Director Nora Huspek has been working for owner Mark Dorminey for more than 20 years and has seen the academy expand. “I have worked for him for much of my adult working life, and I really enjoy it,” she said. “He understands that childcare is not just a business, it’s about the children first.”
Tiny Tikes Academy is active in the community and has relationships with schools and sports teams. “Whether it be the school right here in the community, by helping them with their AYSO [American Youth Soccer Organization] program, to sponsoring Royal Palm Beach High School football or other sports, no matter what community we are in, we try to help and make an impact,” Huspek said.
The academy tries to address the needs of the communities it serves by bringing programs and services that benefit the community as a whole. For example, it is providing the Florida Child Care Food Program, which offers breakfast, lunch and snacks to children who attend the academy.
“The western communities is very unique, and most people transport far out of here for working purposes,” Huspek said. “We thought this could make their day easier, so every meal is provided to children without an additional cost.”
Programs such as the food program are important to the parents of the children who attend the academy.
“That is 20 more minutes at home,” Huspek said. “These are all the types of factors we consider when we think about how we help the entire family unit.”
Tiny Tikes Academy also partners with Family Central and the Children’s Services Council, and is still looking to partner with other organizations to provide the community much-needed services to make people’s lives easier.
“We are just beginning to step into the Quality Initiative Scale, where schools get rated,” Huspek said. “At the other center, I’ve also had a top-rated four-star school, and I have always strived to keep it that way.”
Huspek and the rest of the teachers at the academy hold the same philosophy of always doing their best to make the children feel comfortable.
“We see it as your best day should be your best day, and your worst day should also be your best day,” she said. “No matter what day you catch us on, we should be doing the best we can for your child, and that is what QIS looks at as well.”
Tiny Tikes Academy offers aftercare programs and summer camp programs for older children. “They go out daily on trips, and we go to places like the zoo and Cold Stone Creamery,” Huspek said. “We also partner with the Acreage branch library to bring books and services to the children.”
Tiny Tikes Academy is located at 16245 Okeechobee Blvd., Loxahatchee. For more information, call (561) 790-1780.
Above: Tiny Tikes Academy Director Nora Huspek inside the Loxahatchee Groves location.
