Childrens Discovery Center

I waited so long to give a review so I could give an honest one. My kids have been at this center since they were 6 months old or so and now I have an almost 4 year old and an almost 3 year old. I am overall super happy with the care they receive. They aren’t perfect but who is? My kids are safe, they talk highly of their teachers, staff is always professional and polite, they keep my kids busy and I really feel like they care about my kids. My kids know their alphabet, colors, can count, know a million songs mostly because of the time they spend in daycare. We can’t take all of the credit! I would recommend them to anyone looking for child care. Take negative reviews with a grain of salt and remember that angry people embellish to justify how angry they are.

My sister and I went to this center when we were little and now both of our daughters attend. The teachers are loving, compassionate, thoughtful, and friendly. My daughter loves every teacher and is always smiling and happy. The rooms are always clean, the babies are clean and happy. The center is 5 star rated with DHS and nationally accredited and it shows. Most of the teachers have been there for many years and know their stuff. They recently got the brightwheel app so now I get daily updates and pictures of my daughter having fun with her friends and toys. I wouldn’t take her anywhere else, we love it.

I LOVE Children's Discovery Center. After having to leave my baby with a very questionable daycare, I was absolutely giddy when a spot opened up in this HIGHLY RECOMMENDED facility. I have had the best experience with this facility and all of its employees! I know that my child is well supervised and truly cared for. The center and playground areas are always clean and the meals are scheduled a month in advance. I have made several personal requests regarding the care of my child (no scented wipes, regulated sleep times, and regulated milk intake) and they have always been met without hesitation. While I am not a 'friend' of anyone who works there or is involved in its operation, the staff has always been so friendly to both me and my child. Ms. Clair and Ms. Mia are the main caregivers for my little one and they are both amazing!! I absolutely LOVE the Assistant Director, Faith! She is so fun and lovable. People like her are a fabulous perk to having to put your child in facility care. I know that she is always going to be real with me.

I am giving this review as someone who doesn't have a child attend, but toured the facility this week looking for childcare. I'm looking for care for my 1 year old. I called a few days ago and asked when I could take a tour and was told to just pop in whenever I want, which I love. They don't need to schedule me and prepare. Upon arriving I was already skeptical, just looking at the building and location. It is clean outside from what I could tell. Looks a little run down, and as I'm sure most parents do, I want top care for my child. But as I pull up I see a lady outside smoking on the side of the building. As a nonsmoker, I'm immediately turned off as I don't want someone holding my child when their clothing smells like cigarettes. She walks up as we're walking in and lets us in the building. She doesn't wash her hands that we could see. She sits down at a table outside of an office to talk to another lady. I tell the women there that I'm interested in touring the facility. They gesture into the facility. One of the first things that I saw were two women sitting in a hallway with various toys on a blanket cleaning them, which is great. But it smelled pretty strong of bleach, too strong. I couldn't get a visual of the classrooms. There were 3 in total. It was pitch black inside as it was naptime. There are curtains on the windows, so no light is filtering in. Personally, this makes me uncomfortable. I want teachers and directors to be able to peek in and visually see my child. We did turn down the hallway and walked to the 1 year old classroom. The lady opened the door and quietly gestured for a teacher to come out. She came out, cell phone in hand, pressed to her chest as if she had been on it. She was the "lead teacher". While the door was open, I glanced inside and there were several cribs, which I thought was odd. We've toured multiple daycares at this point and none of them have 1 year olds in a crib. It could have been a mixed class of infants and 1 year olds I guess, but they did look like toddlers in the cribs. I glanced at the meal plan for the day. Cheese toast and peaches for breakfast. As we're leaving, we walk to the front and the lady that let us in the door is talking to another woman about someone being in rehab. I tried not to listen in, but it was hard as she didn't even cut conversation as we rounded the corner and we're waiting to get a packet. Personally, this place was crossed off my list before we even finished the tour. And we only toured what we were told were "top of line" childcare facilities. This one somehow snuck onto the list by recommendation. I certainly wouldn't consider it good, much less safe for my child to stay at. If finances were an issue, I still wouldn't consider this place.

Do not recommend. High turn over rates. Lack of communication when children are being moved permanently to another classroom. Trash/food left on the playground while kids eat it off the floor. Missing clothes and jackets and had to hunt daily, where no one would know where they are. Toys do not get deep cleaned, high rate of illnesses. Teachers work when sick. As a former teacher, I worked in the childcare center my child attended so I could keep eyes on them, Because of horror stories, and this place has such great potential if only rules and regulations were followed. The following experience I had consist of... Unexplained injuries, teachers always on their phones, teachers using medical marijuana before work or leaving THC vape pen on cubbies, teachers vaping on the playground while holding toddlers, teacher's use the children's bathroom and leave supervision out of ratio or unsupervised, no teacher present at all. A 14 yo working without figure prints or background check, teachers walk in and out of the classroom for long periods of time, teachers mix multiple classes on the playground so teachers can socialize and gossip. (Before playground renovations) My child was bribed at drop off with sweets and popsicles before 10am and throughout the day. That made it conflicting at home for a 2 yo who does not understand. When addressing concerns to the director, Heather, I was labeled a conflicting parent that just needed to leave if I didn't like it there. As a mandate reporter and After being dismissed I reached out to DHS and was terminated for doing so. I spent my weekends improving my classroom and updated a lesson plan that was last updated 2 years prior. I remodeled the staff bathroom to inspire and show gratitude for a brighter and better place. Printed photos to send home with families, and host special events. I did my career above and beyond. For any place you take your child, take mental notes and observations, listen to your gut feelings, you'd be surprised at what you don't know. I am thankful for every day I spent educating and implementing development appropriate practices, for your children and mine. Thank you for letting me care for yours and my apologies for not saying good-bye. We deserve DHS regulations to be abided. Period.