2020 National Teacher of the Year

At Little Sunshine’s Playhouse and Preschool, we are firm believers that our preschool teachers are the game-changers. They show up each day eager to educate, connect with and inspire their students.

To continually honor our passionate educators, we identify and award a National Teacher of the Month each month. This award is highly regarded among our staff and is just one way we continually invest in our educators who make Little Sunshine’s Preschool loved by so many families across the nation.

After receiving hundreds of nominees throughout the year and a ton of great feedback from families on the Teacher of Year Nominees, we are pleased to announce Ms. Niki as the 2020 LSP National Teacher of the Year.

Ms. Niki is from our Willowbrook, IL location. She started as the lead teacher in Land of Oz, the infant classroom in 2016 and in August 2020 was promoted to Head Teacher. Ms. Niki loved working with the babies! What Niki enjoyed most about teaching infants is she loved watching them reach new milestones every day. One day a baby might be rolling, and the next they’re army crawling. She enjoyed seeing how their personalities form at such a young age.

When asked what inspires her Niki responded, “Seeing a child’s face when they learn something new is such a great feeling. Their face lights up and it is an amazing feeling to watch them grow each and every day. The children get so excited and being a part of that, is just an amazing feeling.”

Here’s what LSP of Willowbrook’s Program Director, Pam, had to say about Ms. Niki, “We are so happy & proud that Ms. Niki has been awarded Teacher of the Year! Ms. Niki has been a dedicated teacher for us at LSP of Willowbrook since we opened our doors in 2016. Throughout the last 5 years, it has been easy to see her passion for teaching and her love for children in and out of the classroom. We all know 2020 was a hard year and Ms. Niki was our first teacher to step up & take the lead for us to keep our doors open for our essential working families. Seeing her drive and dedication to our families during this time made it a simple choice when we were in need for a Head Teacher. Ms. Niki was promoted to Head Teacher in August 2020 and we couldn’t be more thrilled to have her a part of our management team. It was always a joy to see her interact with children in her classroom and now she is shining even more as she helps lead our staff while continuing to make every child and family feel welcome and loved!! Congratulations Ms. Niki, we love you!”

Congratulations, Niki! Thank you for all you do for your students and their families. It is evident how much you are truly cherished. We are very grateful your path led you to Little Sunshine’s Playhouse!