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LEARNING IS STILL ON TRACK- Learning Railroad opened its doors in 1993 and is still enhancing the educational environment of the four state region. I was a teacher for ten years and I opened this store with educational fun in mind. "During my teaching career I lived in larger cities and came to depend on this type of specialty store. "When I came home (to Paducah) to visit, I discovered the closest store to Paducah was in Nashville, really not convenient!" Shortly after that visit, I decided to move to Paducah and open a specialty teaching resource store. After some investigation with trade representatives, manufacturers, and other store owners, I was advised against it. I was told that the population of the area just wasn't large enough to support this type of store. However, I didn't stop with the planning. After a lot of number crunching and research, it seemed that with careful product selection, the store could be appealing to a wide range of consumers, not just educators. |
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| Two years after the brainstorm, Western Kentucky's haven for educators opened under the name Learning Express. The four-state region had been long over due for this type of store. I specifically choose educational resources that were only available through educational specialty stores and catalogs. Teachers are now able to evaluate materials before making a purchasing decision. NO more "judging a book by its cover"! Learning Railroads materials, coupled with certified teachers on staff offered the right atmosphere for teachers and parents. This type of resource center has a lot of support because schools know its a wise practice to purchase from a local business that, in turn, supports their local tax base. "I personally would like to see a larger effort on the state level to spend Kentucky dollars with Kentucky businesses." It only makes sense. |
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| I opened my store with the intent of serving primarily teachers. However, I quickly discovered that parents are very concerned with educational topics and want to help their children prepare for an increasingly difficult curriculum. They want to make sure they provide a rich environment at home, but until our opening, had no source for specialized products. Learning Railroad's products selection now includes specialty toys such as Playmobil and Thomas The Tank Engine. The addition of a doll newborn nursery featuring Lee Middleton dolls has been extremely successful. Little girls to grandmothers come in, don a hospital gown, and adopt a doll. While dolls don't focus on ABC's or 123's, they do promote learning and imagination. Our unique selection encourages little ones to think literally "outside the box". We have items for learning colors to learning algebra, from birth to ninety nine years old! Child care facilities as well as residential care centers purchase our materials. Our entire product selection has evolved from the requests of local teachers and parents. |
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| Business in the beginning wasn't easy. Within the Month of July in 1993, three educational stores opened in Paducah, and two others in Mayfield and Murray. It must have been a really good idea!! Survival at that time meant many long hours with very little pay. Our saving grace was KERA (Kentucky Education Reform Act). The sweeping changes were to be implemented in 1993, and teachers from all over the state were searching for new ideas. The support we received from friends and former teachers is the element that insured Learning Railroad's success. (I am a graduate of Concord Elementary and Heath High School) In the early days, even a small purchase made by them kept our doors open! Another element critical to our success was a move to the Super Valu Plaza on Jackson Street in Paducah. While we had the destination shopper in our old location, we lacked foot traffic. This high traffic area gave us just that. We soon expanded and changed the store name from Learning Express to Learning Railroad. It is good to have a local landlord and be surrounded by locally owned businesses. We really support each other. Learning Railroad has grown dramatically over the years. The store is now four times the size of the original, and a day's receipts can easily total what used to be a month's worth of receipts. With federal funding for No Child Left Behind, and former Governor Patton's initiative for early childhood still being funded, the need for new innovative products will not end soon, and learning will stay on track! |
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