Award-winning Local Preschool Celebrates 15th Anniversary

The Goddard School in Third Lake, established in 2004, is celebrating its 15th year of serving the children and families of Lake County this coming August. During those 15 years, The Goddard School in Third Lake has provided a school community to over 1250 families and over 1700 children. The school currently services over 200 children from 6 weeks to 6 years old, including Kindergarten.

The Goddard School is a nationwide franchise of Goddard Systems, Inc with over 500 schools. It is the fastest growing preschool in the United States.

David and Donna Raye opened the school in 2004 with the goal of introducing a high-quality center in Lake County. Fifteen years later the School is regarded as the premier Preschool in the area, and enjoys a great reputation for its quality, curriculum, facilities, and its Team of Dedicated Teachers.

The Raye’s grew up in New Jersey where David received a bachelor’s degree from Rutgers’s University and an MBA from St. John’s University. Donna attained her bachelor’s degree from Eastern Illinois University.

David became interested in opening a Goddard School after 25 years in the corporate world running a division that provided highly-specialized software to large Fortune 100 companies and executing a successful IPO of a startup company in 1997.

According to Raye, “The real inspiration to enter the early childhood education field came directly from my own children, Emily and Evan. They taught me the importance of high-quality education starting from birth.” When it came time to enroll their young children in preschool, David and Donna was surprised by the lack of quality, poor security, the relatively low standards and the seemingly high costs. That’s when they decided to introduce The Goddard School into the Chicago area.

The Goddard School in Third Lake has seen tremendous growth over the last 15 years; starting as a single building with 130 children, to its current footprint situated on 8 acres, with 16,000 sq ft of indoor space, multiple playgrounds, an indoor gym, an outdoor learning center and a unique nature trail.

The Raye’s have earned numerous awards from Goddard Systems, Inc., as well as awards from the community for their tireless work on behalf of Children-At-Risk and Special Needs children. David has been Chairman of The SEDOL Foundation, President of the Grayslake Exchange Club, Board Member of Bernie’s Book Bank, and is currently Vice Chair of The Hindustan Bible Institute in Chennai, India. David makes an annual trip to different locations throughout India working with Children-At- Risk.

Raye believes it is key to assemble a great faculty. “We hire, train and retain high-quality professionals.” Terry Brooks, Executive Director, has been with the school since the day it opened on August 16, 2004. According to Terry, "The teachers feel like family here. We have created a wonderful culture where we celebrate special occasions together. We also provide great benefits and work life balance- it's just a special place for children to learn and grow."

There will be a series of events at the school for current families, as well as Alumni. Raye states, “we love to keep in touch with the children that have graduated from our school and many have already begun their college careers. I believe we have been a big part of their future success and look forward to continuously celebrate their success.”

If you would like to learn more about The Goddard School in Third Lake, call 847-543-9075 or explore their website at Goddard Third Lake.