Students return to Nugent Child Development Center in Gulfport

As more people are returning to work, the need for childcare is on the rise.

Empty playgrounds, a common site in the wake of the COVID-19 threat, but Nugent Child Development Center in Gulfport is back in the swing of things and the kids at this daycare center have plenty to jump up and down about.

But it’s not all fun and games.  There’s an extra step for these youngsters before starting their day at the Nugent Child Development Center. Nugent Child Development Center Assistant Director Pamela Elliott said, “The only thing we really added to it, is stopping them at the door to take their temperature. Everything else, they know to do. It’s second nature to make sure their hands are washed all the time.”

And they now have to say goodbye to their parents at the door, many who work as caretakers themselves in the health and medical field. Nugent Child Development Center Director Brenda Anderson said, “We disinfect. We sanitize. The children wash their hands all the time all day, and so do the teachers.”

Dozens of children attend here daily, but there’s still room for children ages six weeks to 4-5 Pre-K. “We are here. We did put our now enrolling sign out. We did lose just a few children. We are accepting new children into the center at this time. We do have some of our parents that have not brought their children in that are coming back next week.”

As for these little ones, they return each day to familiar faces from their classmates to their teachers while also stepping back into a normal routine.

For more information or to sign your child up you can call Nugent Child Development Center at 228-831-2520. It’s located on John Clark Road in Gulfport.