About
Evergreen Learning Center is a preschool program that focuses on developmentally appropriate learning for children through hands-on activities. The program emphasizes all aspects of a child's experience, including social, emotional, cognitive, physical, and creative areas, and encourages children to use the language of their feelings as they work and play with one another. The approach is based on respectful and cooperative relationships between adults and children, with a strong focus on cooperative conflict resolution and responsive relationships between child and adult.
• Ages: 18 months–6 years old, with after school kindergarten care available
• Schedule: Open Monday–Friday with full-day hours from 7:30am to 5:30pm
Evergreen Learning Center opened its doors in June of 1997 under the name Evergreen Discoveries Learning Center. In 1998, Evergreen Discoveries became an independent program and was renamed Evergreen Learning Center. In 2003, Loretta Smargon purchased the program and property from the Forrest Foundation and became director/owner. The leadership team has included Loretta Smargon (director/owner), Marilynn Jorgensen (executive director), Jill Shervym (director), and Morris Squire (owner via the Forrest Foundation). In 2019, Evergreen enrolled its first second generation child and hired its first alumni teacher.
The program’s philosophy states that it is based on respect and appreciation for each child and each family served, with a belief that learning happens most effectively through respect for each child and responsive relationships between child and adult. The philosophy describes a direct and ongoing link between caregivers, parents, children, and the environment as the circle in which learning takes place. Evergreen Learning Center states that it has been building relationships in the community since 1997 and that thousands of children and families have come through its doors, with many relationships continuing into young adulthood. The program reports that it continues to meet child care and early education needs in the community, including during a pandemic, and plans to welcome many more children and families in the future.
Last updated July 10, 2026.
• Ages: 18 months–6 years old, with after school kindergarten care available
• Schedule: Open Monday–Friday with full-day hours from 7:30am to 5:30pm
Evergreen Learning Center opened its doors in June of 1997 under the name Evergreen Discoveries Learning Center. In 1998, Evergreen Discoveries became an independent program and was renamed Evergreen Learning Center. In 2003, Loretta Smargon purchased the program and property from the Forrest Foundation and became director/owner. The leadership team has included Loretta Smargon (director/owner), Marilynn Jorgensen (executive director), Jill Shervym (director), and Morris Squire (owner via the Forrest Foundation). In 2019, Evergreen enrolled its first second generation child and hired its first alumni teacher.
The program’s philosophy states that it is based on respect and appreciation for each child and each family served, with a belief that learning happens most effectively through respect for each child and responsive relationships between child and adult. The philosophy describes a direct and ongoing link between caregivers, parents, children, and the environment as the circle in which learning takes place. Evergreen Learning Center states that it has been building relationships in the community since 1997 and that thousands of children and families have come through its doors, with many relationships continuing into young adulthood. The program reports that it continues to meet child care and early education needs in the community, including during a pandemic, and plans to welcome many more children and families in the future.
Last updated July 10, 2026.
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