Fort Myers Groundbreaking. -COURTESY PHOTO

Goddard School. -COURTESY PHOTO

Education is always of the utmost importance for children to learn, grow and become future leaders. For parents in Fort Myers, a new school is undergoing construction that is built to provide children six years old and younger with a place for development

Located at 13541 Goldenwood Drive, the Goddard School of Fort Myers recently had its groundbreaking event on Oct. 28 to start construction for the school to open its doors in 2026.

Owners Phil and Darlene Dubois, along with their team, have been excited for the creation of a school that will continue to enhance young minds.

“When looking at the childcare that’s available in the Fort Myers area, there really isn’t a premier education facility like the Goddard School,” Phil Dubois said. “We use the wonders of learning, and it takes teacher-guided inquiries and mixes it with the children’s curiosity and their interests. It (school) gives them the age-appropriate academic, social and emotional skills that will allow them to be prepared for further education and also for what they prepare to do in life.”

The Goddard organization has over 600 schools, and with this one is bringing a 12,500 square foot facility that includes 10 classrooms, a playground and an indoor gymnasium with a rock climbing wall. With all the utilities within the school, the Dubois’ are thankful for how smoothly the construction process has been.

“There haven’t been any delays or anything else. The city has been very accommodating, and it’s been a very smooth process,” Phil Dubois said.

Goddard School. -COURTESY PHOTO

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, hearing and seeing are extremely important to toddlers’ and younger children’s brain development. By the age of five, the brain is 90% developed. From the social interactions that become firsts at schools like the Goddard School of Fort Myers, ensuring these are positive and educational is important.

“We do want to have a curriculum that’s age appropriate,” Dubois continued. Believe it or not, we are teaching the six-year-olds. That’s different than how we teach the pre-K students, but they all get taught, and what one person comes into pre-K in the beginning versus someone that’s at the end of their pre-K, there’s a ton of differences.”

The school plans to enroll around 180 students from across Southwest Florida, who will learn early motor skills and be taught by highly trained teachers. With the new school underway, the founders hope to create a community where parents can support one another in the early stages of child care and help develop their young ones.

“I think what most parents care about is that their child is in an early development child care center that’s the safest, cleanest and most nurturing environment available,” Dubois said. “And that’s our goal. This is the place for them (parents) to come check us out and find out how we can help take care of their kids.”

Programs in place for the school will include the standard programs that Goddard schools provide, along with an after-school and summer program. With all of these programs comes the need for excellent teachers to educate the students.

“We’re also going to bring 30 teaching jobs to the community. So great for the Fort Myers area, expanding their employment,” Dubois said. “We talked about the 660 Goddard schools and with more than 20 of them in Florida, I think it’s important to know that we educate nearly 100,000 children from the age of six weeks to six years old.”

Opportunities for teaching roles are available by applying online on the Goddard School website, goddardschool.com.