About
Our Story
Hello and thank you for your interest in Scotty’s Kiddy Korner. My name is Lillian Lanz and I am the Owner and Director of Scotty’s. I was born in Quito, Ecuador and came to America in 1973 after I graduated high school. While living in New York City, I attended Baruch College and graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree. After I got married, I moved to Connecticut with my husband, Michael, and together we started a family. We have two wonderful sons, Scott and Steven. Scott graduated from Babson College with a degree in Business Administration and Finance. He has worked in New York City as a Financial Analyst in Investments for AXA Equitable and Merrill Lynch. Steven graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a degree in Civil Engineering. He is currently a Major in the United States Army Reserve, as well as a Service Manager for Otis Elevator in Hartford. Steven is married to Moira and has three beautiful children, Weston, Jameson & Mattingly, who I love being a Grandma to (and whom you will see throughout the photos on this site).
After Scott was born, he attended a local daycare center. After only a few months, the center closed and I was unable to find another daycare that met my expectations. It was then I decided to open my own daycare. With this decision, I went back to school and obtained my Child Development Associate Credentials from Capital Community Technical College in Hartford, CT.
With all the love and support from my husband, I opened Scotty’s Kiddy Korner Preschool & Day Care, LLC in 1984. Originally a home based program licensed for six children (infants to school age). After several years, I expanded to a Group Day Care Home licensed for twelve children (all ages). In 1992, Scotty’s moved out of my home and into a facility, where we were licensed for 54 children (ages 6 weeks to 12 years). Scotty’s made one final move to where we are now in 2002, where we were able to accommodate 85 children (6 weeks to 12 years). After expanding the center to the second floor in 2017, we are now able to accommodate 112 children ages 6 weeks to 12 years of age.
I do not have enough words to express my feelings toward children. It is a wonderful and rewarding experience to see these children grow physically, mentally, socially and emotionally, knowing that what I impart to them contributes to help form their lives, understand the world around them, and acquire a feeling of competence.
A question I am always asked by parents and children is, “Why are you so dressed up?” I tell them that they are very important clients to me and that I believe my appearance, and that of the Center’s, should be neat and clean. I believe that the way you present yourself to the children tells them how important they are and that you care.
Every day, I am here at Scotty’s at 6am to make sure everything is perfect for the children’s arrival. Every morning I welcome the children, eager to see them and start a whole new day of learning. I am happy to have wonderful teachers and caregivers that have been with me for so many years, and that have helped to make a positive difference in so many children’s lives. Included in this great staff is my husband, Michael, and daughter-in-law, Moira, who run the Administrative side of the business. I am truly blessed to have all of these people with the same passion for the business as I do.
My goal for the future is to continue and maintain a loving, caring and nurturing environment where the children feel secure, socially accepted and have a positive attitude towards learning.
Mission Statement
At Scotty’s it is our mission to provide children with a nurturing, healthy, loving and safe environment that promotes learning, a positive self concept and a secure sense of well being. Scotty’s staff will work with parents/guardians to address any special needs of the child.
Learn more about our school policies here.
Philosophy
Scotty’s Kiddy Korner Preschool & Day Care, LLC believes that each child is an individual with unique abilities, likes and dislikes. We are sensitive to each child’s emotional, intellectual, physical and social needs. The program is designed to provide developmentally appropriate practices that focus on the process of learning, to help children acquire feelings of competence and to capture their natural interests. We meet each child’s individual needs by recognizing and nurturing cultural, language and developmental differences. Each child will be provided with a warm and caring approach to the center’s varied activities.
Staff
The strength of our program is the dedication of our professional teaching staff. Our staff is given the opportunity and is encouraged to continue their education through seminars, workshops and self study programs that will give them the knowledge and freedom to create a unique learning experience for the children. We provide many opportunities for the teachers to continually share ideas and grow. Our teachers are sensitive to each child’s emotional, intellectual, physical and social needs.
Each employee at Scotty’s goes through a standard interview and also a working interview so that we can see how their teacher to child interaction is. If the working interview goes well, the prospective staff member is put on a trial period of employment. During their trial period, they work closely with our existing teachers while they learn the ins and outs of Scotty’s. During this time, each potential employee must submit fingerprinting to the State of Connecticut Office of Early Childhood in order for a federal, state, and DCF back ground check to be performed.
While management and some staff possess their CDA (Child Development Associate) credential and/or degree in Early Childhood Education, others have varying levels of education. We take level of schooling into consideration during our hiring process, but are just as importantly focused on each person’s love of children and their abilities to successfully care for and teach them.
