Quest for a New Daycare: The Reasons

About 6 weeks ago, the process began for Kaleb's daycare to come under the control of new ownership/management.  When I first got the news, I seriously considered looking for new arrangements because the director that Kaleb has known and adored since he began daycare there at 6 weeks old was going to be leaving the when the new ownership came in.  Within a few weeks, however, that director and the new management had come to an agreement that would keep her on as a co-director, so I felt comfortable staying where we were.

However, as the new owners have implemented changes over these last weeks, I have begun to seriously reconsider my decision to stay.

For starters, the new owner seeks to put parents at ease by telling them that he has been working "in the industry" for 8 years.  However, after only 5 minutes of research online, I discovered the guy is only 21 years old (born the summer of 1990)!!!  Maybe he doesn't keep it a secret, but he doesn't publicize the fact either, and I certainly didn't know.  What this means is that he considers his "industry" experience to have begun when he was only 13 years old (8 years ago).  That's the age most of my students are now.  Maybe I'm getting old prematurely, or maybe it's just me, but I don't really consider experiences at the age of 13 or 14 to count toward real-world grown-up experience.

Unfortunately, from what I have seen, this 21-year-old guy—who is not a parent himself, to my knowledge—has gained neither the wisdom nor the humility to be an effective owner of a business in such a vital service industry.  I bet he would make a great daycare employee and would be excellent at working with any age of children within a daycare facility, however I do not feel that he is capable of dealing with an entire clientèle of concerned and protective parents who are nearly all older than he is and who demand a certain level of satisfaction from any business which receives such a large percentage of their income.

The entire atmosphere of the daycare center has changed as well.  I used to be greeted by smiles and happiness when I would arrive to drop Kaleb off each morning.  These days, the long-time employees are generally whispering secretively to one another.  Meanwhile the newer employees are loud and brash, in stark contrast to the longer-time employees who have always been quietly pleasant.

Before the change to new management began, Kaleb was always excited to be getting ready for "school" every morning.  He looked forward to going to school to see his teachers and friends.  When I would pick him up, he would always be bubbling over with excitement and would chatter all the way home about the day's adventures of playing with his friends and reading stories and making crafts with his teachers.  He adored his teachers and friends and would tell me all about them, calling them all by name.

But no more.  Over these last weeks, Kaleb has stopped being excited about "school."  When I wake him up each morning, he's excited to see me and rushes to give me hugs and greet me with a chipper "Good morning, Mommy!"  Then he asks me what we're going to do that day.  When I tell him we're going to have breakfast and get ready for school, he no longer gets happy about that.  Instead, he'll say "I don't want to go to school," or "Let's do something else," or "No! I don't like it!"  I could understand this reaction if he were in middle school, where school is actually work, but this should not be the standard response for an almost-3-year-old getting ready to head off for a day of daycare.

In addition to these other issues, Kaleb's behavior, both at daycare and at home, has steadily worsened.  It might just be that he's reached a certain age or is going through a phase, but the timing seems, to me, to be too similar to the timing of the daycare being put under new ownership to be simply coincidence.

All of this adds up to only one thing: We're on the hunt for someplace new, someplace better, someplace where I feel good leaving my child, and someplace Kaleb looks forward to every day.  I haven't decided 100% that we're going to switch, but I am seriously considering it for the first time since Kaleb began daycare nearly 3 years ago.  He will soon be turning 3 and is fully potty trained, so that should make it a little easier to find someplace with an appropriate opening.

I'd like to begin by researching places where my friends have had good dealings, either currently or in the past, or places where friends have worked and might recommend.  I do not want to send Kaleb to a Montessori program...those are not even an option.  I'd like to find someplace that is not church- or religious-affiliated, but I'm not ruling them out entirely.

I'm hoping to find a daycare that also offers a Pre-K or VPK program, so that Kaleb can stay at the same place until he starts Kindergarten in a few years.  I had hoped he could stay at his current daycare all the way through their VPK program, but I just don't think that is going to work out.  However, I want him to get to stay in any new place long enough to develop stability and consistency.

I work near Olive Rd. & Davis Hwy. and we live just off Michigan Avenue, so I'd like to find a place that it not too ridiculously out of the way.  My current daycare is 4 miles from our house, in the wrong direction, so that's not an unreasonably out-of-the-way distance.

I plan to go and tour places before making any wort of switch, so I'll post here on the blog about any daycare tours I take.

If you have a daycare you think I should check out, please post your suggestions in the comments section below!  I'd love to have your input!

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Update, January 12, 2012

We toured 4 facilities and have enrolled Kaleb at a new school!

Read all about it by clicking here!