Ellicia Lanier to receive Stellar Performer Award at 37th Education Salute

Ellicia Lanier relies on the standard greeting of the Masai people to start each of her staff meetings. In the African tribe’s native language, it is “Casserian Engeri.” But Lanier presents it in its English translation as a simple question. 

“How are the children?” 

“That is the single most important thing about this work,” said Lanier, Founding Executive Director of Urban Sprouts Child Development Center – a nationally recognized early childhood learning center in University City. “I think so many of our children are robbed by not having good early childhood experiences.” 

Lanier will receive Stellar Performer honors at The St. Louis American Foundation’s 37^th Annual Salute to Excellence in Education Scholarship and Awards Gala on Saturday, October 12 at America’s Center. Among this year’s honorees include Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Jackie Joyner-Kersee. David and Thelma Steward will serve as event co-chairs. 

“Going from a GED to getting an education award for ECE (early childhood education) is something that, honestly, I can’t even describe in words,” Lanier said. “This recognition holds great value in our community, and in my field. I don’t take it lightly that I come behind some incredible men and women who have been honored with this award.” 

It’s impossible to hear about her journey – both personal and professional – and not be inspired. She was born in St. Louis, but spent most of her childhood in California. They relocated back when her mother fell ill with Lupus.  She was a straight A student when she had to leave high school to take care of her mother, and become a provider for the family. 

“There are so many young people, like me, who had to choose between school and their family’s survival,” Lanier said. “And when you are at that intersection, sometimes you have to choose the family.  I hope that young girls – or anyone – feeling like they are in a hopeless situation are inspired by my story to keep going. The things that gave people something to talk about back then are now a part of my testimony.”

Her mother passed away, and she found herself pregnant at 19 with limited access to support.  She became a resident of Coleman House within Missouri Baptist Children’s Home, now known as Martin Youth Center.

“It was a place where single mothers could go and stay with their child,” Lanier said. “While pregnant, I was attending college there. I began to take some early childhood courses, and quickly fell in love with it.”

After becoming a single parent, her quest to give her child the best resources and opportunities led her further down the path of early childhood education research. She began to understand it as a neuroscience. “I just became so intrigued when I found out that early childhood is not just caregiving,” Lanier said. “There is a real science behind what we do. And it has been an amazing journey to be able to take the care and love that I have for children and give it to our community by way of early childhood education through Urban Sprouts.”

Growing Urban Sprouts

After working for several years as an early childhood teacher, she founded Urban Sprouts In 2009. Her vision for the school that focuses on children from infancy to pre-K was to give children of the community – including her own – a place where they could live, grow and learn. And also, a place where they could have voice, freedom and agency.

As her family grew to include four children, so did the school her motherhood inspired. She started with less than 30 students. Urban Sprouts now educates more than 100 students using the child-centered Reggio Emilia education model – and is on its third location with a major expansion currently underway. 

“That school to me is the gold standard,” said Alison Ferring, philanthropist and early childhood education advocate. “She’s getting things done and she has this amazing vision. She doesn’t just want to take care of 100 kids. She wants to take care of 500, and have a campus and teach people.” 

Urban Sprouts is wrapping up the first rounds of renovations with the preschool expansion scheduled to be completed in the first week of December. 

“This is somebody that can make stuff happen and make a huge difference long term,” Ferring said. 

These days Urban Sprouts provides the same type of early childhood classes that introduced Lanier to the field through a partnership between the school and St. Louis Community College. 

Lanier has been recognized for her achievements within the community, and given a Distinguished Director Award from ARCHS (2012). She is a member of the North American Reggio Emilio Alliance, Urban League of Young Professionals, National Black Child Development Institution, and the National Association for the Education of Young Children. 

Fifteen years after Urban Sprouts opened its doors, Lanier has educated all four of her children there – and several hundred others. 

“I built this for my children, but the hope is that it will continue to live on and that my children’s children and their children,” Lanier said. “We haven’t done it alone – and we are really paving the way for so many children in the future.”

In collaboration with Webster University, Lanier organized a conference attended by 20 Reggio Emilia providers based in China highlighting advanced interaction between children, teachers, and their peers. In addition, she developed a charter to launch the National Black Child Development Institute (NBDCI) chapter in St. Louis. Lanier recently hosted Chelsea Clinton’s visit to St. Louis in partnership with Child Care Aware of Eastern Missouri. 

Lanier says that the next chapter for Urban Sprouts is a focus on the entire family.

“We have a whole unit that needs support,” Lanier said. “We are spending this next phase of our work really thinking about how we make sure that the whole family is thriving and that they are able to attain physical, mental and financial health and wealth opportunities on our campus.”

Her vision for those opportunities includes walking parents through home purchases and making the unbanked fully bankable. 

“We want to give them hope – and help to care for their families.”

Though often an unsung element of a child’s learning experience, Lanier sees investment in early childhood education as a critical solution for community empowerment – especially in communities of color – in terms of providing youth with the tools they need to thrive. 

“I wouldn’t choose any other age group to work with,” Lanier said. “I’m completely amazed by what children can do before the age of five and I’m grateful that I’m blessed to be able to show up here every day.”

The St. Louis American Foundation’s 37^th Annual Salute to Excellence in Education will take place on Saturday, October 12^th at America’s center. Stay tuned to stlamerican.com for future details on the event as more honorees will be announced online and in print in the coming weeks.