Our History

Our school was founded! A group of Sanibel parents founded the Children's Education Center of the Islands in June of 1974. Parents of three and four year olds wanted their children to have group social activities and preparing for kindergarten. They designed a self-sustaining parent co-op and obtained use of the old Bailey's General Store, then still on the bay at the end of Bailey Road (now restored and part of the Sanibel Historical Village)

The school moved to Casa Ybel Road in 1980. The Sanibel Lions Club and the Bailey family donated the five acres of land and the Casa Ybel Resort donated two guest cottages, which were then joined together to create our main building.

Sanibel's Island Preschool lost the use of its building during the summer of 1992. Since the Children's Education Center had always provided articulation and support for the Island Preschool, we decided to bring its 2-year-old program into our curriculum.

We added our second building in June 1997. Thompson Hall was originally an island home that was donated to the school in 1993. The building was named after Larry Thompson and his wife, Kathie, our Board President during the rehabilitation process. Today this building houses our Pre-K classes, and will hold after school activities for community members!

On September 28th 2022 our school and island community were devistated by the impacts of Hurricane Ian. The school campus sustained over 11 feet of storm surge and winds over 150 mph. During the recovery process our lower and larger school building was demolished and our smaller building, Thompson Hall, was gut renovated to house the school with limited enrollment. The school was closed for over 300 days reopening on in August of 2023.

The Children’s Education Center of the Islands celebrates 50 years of early education in our island community! Our team shores up our programs and is looking forward to building a new building in 2025 with the support of our community.