Dr. Jandrucko Early Learners AcademyHistory & Facts
About The Academy
The Dr. Sarah K. Jandrucko Academy for Early Learners is an innovative school for pre-kindergarten children that takes learning beyond the four walls of the classroom.
The focus of the learning center is to promote literacy and numeracy development at an early age in an exploratory and engaging environment.
Centered around the research that children learn best through active, exploratory experiences, the Academy for Early Learners is structured to provide the following sixteen distinct learning experiences -- typically called classrooms:
- Navigation - Let's Get Going; Space; Wonderland; Journey in Time
- Investigation - Wonderful, Amazing Me; My Greenhouse; Pet Central; The Zoo
- Exploration - Tropics; Ocean; Savanna; Polar
- Interaction - Savvy's Market; Construction; Our World; Community
Our School Namesake
Dr. Sarah K. Jandrucko pioneered the early literacy initiative throughout the Mansfield Independent School District and was dedicated to making early childhood education a priority. She was a tireless advocate for students and paved the way for innovative early learning experiences and instruction throughout the district and North Texas.
Her passion for early education began when she observed a classroom of children during her senior year of college. It was then that she recognized the innate ability and opportunity in young children, realizing they were capable of doing so much more than mere play.
Dr. Jandrucko began her career in 1970 as an elementary classroom teacher in Wrightstown ISD in New Jersey. She was hired by Mansfield ISD as a fourth-grade teacher at Alice Ponder Elementary School in 1978. She then taught at Rogene Worley Middle School and was promoted to assistant principal of the school in 1985. Dr. Jandrucko later served as the principal of J.L. Boren Elementary School then Glenn Harmon Elementary School before moving into administrative district roles. She most recently served as an assistant superintendent of early education and area superintendent before her retirement in 2012.
During her 37-year educational career, 34 of those years being within Mansfield ISD, Dr. Jandrucko championed for a pre-kindergarten center and focused on the potential of the district’s youngest learners. The Dr. Sarah K. Jandrucko Academy for Early Learners is a vision that turned into reality, and Mansfield ISD is excited that the school will transform early education throughout the district for generations to come.
Our Mission
To improve the school readiness of young children using creative, hands-on and interactive experiences.
Our Motto
The Academy - Perfectly Designed for Inquiring Young Minds
Our School Colors
Red, Yellow, Green, Blue