Sandwich Children's Center welcomes new director

SANDWICH — This winter, the Sandwich Children’s Center welcomed a new executive director, Susan Rozelle, who has long had a connection to the community but wasn’t planning on taking the lead role at the early childhood education center.

Both she and her husband had grown up spending summers in Sandwich, and her husband, Chase, had long ago purchased land in town. The two were slowly building a home on the property when they could get away from their professional lives in Connecticut, where Rozelle was working as the director of the child care center at Wesleyan University in Middletown.

“Chase and I have been building a house for the last four years," she said. "We have done a lot of the work ourselves.”

They were thinking about moving permanently to Sandwich in January 2020, but when Sandwich Children’s Center board member Patsy Slothower told her about an opening, it seemed to be the right time.

“I wasn’t looking for a job, as I had a good job at Wesleyan University, but I was intrigued by the prospect of the offer, Rozelle said. "I came up to see the center and talked to a few of the board members and teachers. After that, I knew it was the right move for me.”

Rozelle’s appointment fills the vacancy created in the fall of 2018 when previous director Karyn Ames resigned in order to take a position in the Moultonborough School District. Sandwich Children’s Center teacher Shayna Hidden, lead toddler teacher, served as interim director before Rozelle could transition to Sandwich.

Rozelle, a graduate of Wheelock College in Boston, has 27 years of experience as a director of early education programs.

She said she saw several things at Sandwich Children’s Center that persuaded her to take the job. Staff members are supportive of each other and many have been at the center for years. They emphasize kindness and creativity, and they embrace a philosophy of using the outdoors and nature as their primary classrooms.

“This approach to education allows children to be children,” Rozelle said. “It is a place that respects how children learn and fosters further development. It is a place that sparks the creative process instead of squashing it.”

As the new director of the nonprofit center, she intends to continue the effort to further incorporate art, play and hands-on learning through the natural world. She also wants to help children develop their social and emotional skills, and to share those educational tools with the center’s teachers.

Meanwhile, she hopes to address the challenge of making child care affordable for families while still paying teachers a livable wage. She also wants to further integrate gardening into the daily life at the center, especially as spring has arrived.

“I have loved gardening my whole life and I can’t wait to be creative with the outdoor space once the snow melts,” she said.

The Sandwich Children’s Center is located at 54 Maple St. in Center Sandwich. It is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization offering early childhood education and day care for up to 48 children, aged 6 weeks to 12 years.