A new building under construction in south Sioux Falls will be split between a new restaurant and a private elementary school.
They’re both owned by Molly Okerlund, who spent part of her career in the food service industry and most recently founded Creator’s Kids Learning Academy.
The faith-based childcare center opened five years ago at 6804 S. Lyncrest Ave. and cares for kids age 6 weeks through kindergarten. It will continue to operate in that building, while demand for elementary education convinced Okerlund to expand into an elementary micro-school serving students through fifth grade. The building is under construction along South Minnesota Avenue next to a retail center that includes T-Mobile, Jersey Mike’s Subs and other businesses.
“We have a very unique curriculum in which the kids can learn at their own pace, so the kids that can move faster are allowed to move faster, and it’s an accredited program, so they can move anytime,” she said. “If you do want to kindergarten and first grade at our facility and then transfer to a public school, you’d be able to do that.”…