El Campito is a high-quality, non-profit childcare center. We boast a long list of credentials, including being completely bilingual, Level 4 Paths to Quality (the highest of Indiana’s Quality Rating system), fully licensed, and Nationally Accredited (through the National Association for the Education of Young Children), which less than 10% of ECE centers have achieved nationwide.

In 1970, our founders, Concepcion, and Ignacio Niño, worked in the fields as migrant workers. They saw their coworkers and noticed they kept their children in their cars all day. Concepcion saw this and said to her husband, “They deserve better.” She convinced her husband to let her start watching the children in their home. Ignacio said, “OK, but only for a few months.” Little did he know over 50 years later, we would still be going strong!

They chose the name because of what it meant to the migrant families. The parents would go to “El Campo,” the field, and the children would go to “El Campito,” the little field. The focus was and continues to be on children of migrant workers and low-income families. They started out of their home, and it grew and grew until they bought a second house, then a tiny brick-and-mortar building, until 1986 when St. Stephen’s Church donated their old school building on Thomas Street, where we still reside today. We pride ourselves on providing the best quality of care to those in our community who otherwise would not have access to it.

We use the HighScope curriculum because it is research-based, whole-child-centered, and curiosity-driven. The focus is on hands-on learning and following children’s interests. It all goes back to the neuroscience behind children’s learning!

El Campito has proven to be a small yet powerful resource in South Bend’s West Side and the Latino Community. Without the support of sponsors, it would never have grown to what it is today. Gracias!

Art Auction 2025