About Us

Our History

In 1961, the Mayflower Nursery School was begun as an outreach of the Mayflower Community Congregational Church. For 50 years, we have served thousands of children from Minneapolis and the surrounding communities. We are known for high quality programs, dedicated staff members, and supportive families.

For our first 49 years of operation, we offered a preschool that operated 3 days a week, 9 months a year. In 2009, the Mayflower congregation saw an opportunity to build on decades of success while extending access to children previously unable to take advantage of part-day, part-year programs.

Mayflower Early Childhood Center was formed as a separate non-sectarian, not-for-profit organization in order to serve the broader community through both a part-day, part-year program and a full-day, year-round program.

Our first five-day Montessori learning environment opened in September 2010. Due to high demand, we opened a second five-day Montessori classroom in September 2011 and will further expand in 2012. It is the intention of MECC to become fully Montessori in the fall of 2012. We are currently in the process of seeking accreditation from Association Montessori Internationale.

As an outreach program of Mayflower Church, we at MECC seek to include all families in our program. We offer tuition assistance and full or partial scholarships for families who qualify. We actively seek connection with families in need who live in our area. Our program was born of a greater mission of Mayflower Church to serve diverse socioeconomic families. We seek to provide a healthy, loving, and productive start for children, ages 3-6.