UCCS Family Development Center
| Address: | 1425 Austin Bluffs Pkwy, Colorado Springs, CO 80907, USA |
| Phone: | +1 719-255-3483 |
| Site: | uccs.edu |
| Rating: | 3.2 |
Location
Photos 1
Reviews 5
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Latasha Johnson
This place doesnt even deserve one star but I had to give it at least on star for my review to be accepted. The way the treated my 3 year old was atrocious. They had complaints about her and were vague about what was happening with her. My child has gone through much personal trauma the last several months at this childcare center with many changes and it is natural for her to act out more as she was afraid and seeking stability and trust which is 100% lacking in both of the classrooms she was in. Not only was the staff unprofessional but I really felt they was targeted my daughter . I have discussed it with other centers and will not recommend this place to anyone especially if you are a military family where children go through a lot (deployment, moving, ect.). I would also note that when they say the use redirection as a punishment that is only partly true. I walked onto the playground to hear an administrator ( she is not normally in the classroom but was filling in due to lack of staff) scream as loudly as possible at my daughter. She became fearful when she would get dropped off and all the behaviors they claim she had were not displayed at home. It was the biggest disappointment how they treated my child. If your child doesnt fit into their cookie cutter robot standards then they are not treated like the other kids and will feel left out and insecure. My daughter was clearly openly criticized by the teachers because she has a Polish/English (proper England English) accent, I realized this because she told me dont speak in that accent (well shes three so what does she know about an accent). I also witnessed a teacher completely ignore her for about 7 minutes while she was trying to show the teacher she was properly participating in the science project. The teacher was too busy with one on one time with another child although it isnt allowed and the child wasnt crying so there was no need for one on one time. At any rate my child should not have been ignored. She was doing the right thing and participating in the designated project. My final straw was the very next day when I asked the same teacher who was ignoring her why my daughter didnt receive an incident report because her arm was hurt by another child. The teacher began yelling at me and pointing just because I asked a simple question, well clearly she was in the wrong. I was already on the edge of taking her out of this place and after this incident she hasnt and never will return to such a hostile and uncaring environment. I am completely disgusted by this childcare center. This is only a small dose of all the issues that occurred at this place while my daughter was in their care. Dont go here military and all community FAMILIES BE WARNED!
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Jennifer Fisher
The FDC is a safe and loving place for kids! Both my daughter and son attended the FDC and I highly recommend this center for both day care and pre-school. The wait lists are long, so take a tour and fill out an application as soon as you are interested. The teachers are highly qualified in Early Childhood Education and have a lot of UCCS student workers in the room helping. The staff to child ratio is very low. The communication back to the parents about what your child did, ate, and potty habits are well documented. They send out a detailed lesson plan and a menu with all meals and snacks on Monday each week. The FDC was lovely at accommodating my son who is has special needs and equipment that must be monitored. They took special care to make sure he always was included in activities and supported us by learning about his challenges. Conscious Discipline is used to correct behavior and is very effective. They hold annual training for the teachers, student workers and parents to learn more about this technique. Many of the teachers have been at the FDC for over 10 years! They have such great reputations among the UCCS Faculty and Staff and there is a lot of stability and experience that cant be found in most childcare facilities. The price of quality childcare is high everywhere, so the rates here are very reasonable for the long hours ( 7AM to 6PM ) and the food your kids are given! Its an excellent value and students at UCCS who use this care center can apply for need based scholarships to help defray the costs. We were at the Giving Tree Montessori school before this and I loved that center as well. But, as a working parent, the hours werent compatible with my needs. Im so happy we switched and found a good fit for us.
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chriskarabwang
My daughter has been in every single classroom at the Family Development Center. She started in the Toddler 1 class as a 13 month old (they dont have an infant program) just learning how to walk and is leaving an independent, caring, intelligent, well spoken, and reading 5 year old, more than ready for kindergarten. And most of the credit for this, I can confidently say, goes to the loving, professional teachers and staff at this preschool. They pride themselves on not being a "daycare" and that shows. The school family is one in which parents and teachers work together to cultivate an environment of trust, safety, and caring. Most of the teachers hold professional degrees in early childhood education and the administration supports the staff with continuing education. The school doesnt have an infant program, classrooms start at 12 months and go through to 5 year old preschool class. The teachers helped to potty train her and used a curriculum called Conscious Discipline which helped my daughter use her words and control her emotions. They also offer a summer program for 6-11 year olds that is filled with field trips and exploratory learning. My daughter cant wait to come back to this school for summer camp. This has been the best school and we hope all of her future education lives up to the first years she has had. She has a true love of learning.
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Elizabeth Jones
Wasnt completely happy with our experience here, and we transferred here after being at a military CDC. We pulled her out of this school after only 4 months of being there. First, there were constantly different teachers or student teachers in the room, and there was never "consistency" with them, which made it difficult for my 2 year old to adapt. After a few months of being at the school my daughter went from easily being dropped off, to screaming the entire way to the school and not letting go of my leg when we got there, which makes me feel she had a negative experience that left a lasting impression in some shape or form. The room was dark and dingy, and looked like it hadnt been cleaned in a very long time. My daughter came home in different clothes that werent hers almost every day, and I hardly ever got the clothes that I had sent her in back. And last, they hardly ever completely cleaned my daughter when changing her diaper. I would pick her up and she would have crusted on feces in cracks that hadnt been completely wiped off, and was consistently getting UTIs because they werent cleaning her properly. Unfortunate, because its so easy if you are going to school at UCCS.
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Meghan Jackson
Our three year old daughter went here for about a year. We loved the higher adult/student ratio with the college students helping in the classroom. We loved that the staff were experienced and had been with the center for a long time. We loved that the center provided multiple opportunities for parents to engage: parent/teacher conferences, open house before students transition rooms, classes to learn their approach with children, days that parents are invited to have a snack with the students. We liked the one-way mirrors so parents can watch how their child is doing without being a distraction. Unfortunately this center ended up not being the best fit for our daughter. Our daughter thrives with one-on-one attention, which is not possible in a larger setting. She seemed to do better with some teachers over others. We tried everything they recommended, but we just could not make it work. This center was recommended to us by a friend who had nothing but good things to say about the older preschool classroom. Students and teachers at the university get priority for enrollment and then they let the general public fill open spots.