JB Myer-Henderson Hall, Cody CDC?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
We were at the CDC from 2008-2012. We left just before the first round of allegations.
First, the latest accusation against Ms. Vanessa Taylor do not surprise me. She would have been the first I suspected. My son had her for a year. She is tough. I was in the room once and she didn't know it, and the tone she used with the children was different than the one she used in front of parents. I spoke to the Director, Ms. Murdock about it, only later to find out they were related somehow. When it was time for my older son to transition into that age room, I requested a different room (and got it). My older son told me not to let her take care of his brother because she was "mean". Hindsight being 20/20, I thought it was just verbal and assumed that someone monitored the videos - maybe not at all times, but periodically.
No, they never look until a parent makes a complaint.
When the first round of accusations came out, I was surprised. Ms. Rebecca Smallwood (affectionately Miss BB) didn't seem the hitting type. I have a video of my son crying FOR Miss BB during dinner one night. He really loved her. She was stern but calm, and usually the one that just sat with the kids and read to them or did toys at the table. She wasn't that interactive.
As others have stated, many childcare places have these issues. The pay is poor, and the requirements to get the job are minimal. It doesn't attract the cream of the crop. One reason I chose Ft Meyer was because they had all rooms under surveillance. Too bad no one ever looks at it.
Personally, I had numerous issues over the four years we were there. I frequently emailed Arleta Briner, and later learned that she and Monique Murdock were the best of pals. I took to emailing the base CO only to be blown off. Twice I submitted IG complaints on the place. Each time I submitted an IG complaint, the issue was quickly resolved.

the pay is low for a labor intensive job, but if you love the job as many of us caregivers do then its not that bad. I agree that many are not suited to work with children in the same way that every parent is not a good parent. I transferd to Myer becuase that commute would be shorter tht the one i had and with all this talk and speculation, i wondeer if i made the right decision to come here. how is what is happening on the CDC side going to affect the SAS side ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
We were at the CDC from 2008-2012. We left just before the first round of allegations.
First, the latest accusation against Ms. Vanessa Taylor do not surprise me. She would have been the first I suspected. My son had her for a year. She is tough. I was in the room once and she didn't know it, and the tone she used with the children was different than the one she used in front of parents. I spoke to the Director, Ms. Murdock about it, only later to find out they were related somehow. When it was time for my older son to transition into that age room, I requested a different room (and got it). My older son told me not to let her take care of his brother because she was "mean". Hindsight being 20/20, I thought it was just verbal and assumed that someone monitored the videos - maybe not at all times, but periodically.
No, they never look until a parent makes a complaint.
When the first round of accusations came out, I was surprised. Ms. Rebecca Smallwood (affectionately Miss BB) didn't seem the hitting type. I have a video of my son crying FOR Miss BB during dinner one night. He really loved her. She was stern but calm, and usually the one that just sat with the kids and read to them or did toys at the table. She wasn't that interactive.
As others have stated, many childcare places have these issues. The pay is poor, and the requirements to get the job are minimal. It doesn't attract the cream of the crop. One reason I chose Ft Meyer was because they had all rooms under surveillance. Too bad no one ever looks at it.
Personally, I had numerous issues over the four years we were there. I frequently emailed Arleta Briner, and later learned that she and Monique Murdock were the best of pals. I took to emailing the base CO only to be blown off. Twice I submitted IG complaints on the place. Each time I submitted an IG complaint, the issue was quickly resolved.

the pay is low for a labor intensive job, but if you love the job as many of us caregivers do then its not that bad. I agree that many are not suited to work with children in the same way that every parent is not a good parent. I transferd to Myer becuase that commute would be shorter tht the one i had and with all this talk and speculation, i wondeer if i made the right decision to come here. how is what is happening on the CDC side going to affect the SAS side ?

What do you mean by affect the SAS side? So far they have not had the same issues on that side and the work on the SAS is considered less demanding on the caregiver (I don't think that they are full time either).

[Anonymous]

I am not accustomed to people transferring to Myer for SAS. Did you switch schools?

[Anonymous]

Shocking to me that these daycare workers knew they were being videotaped and still behaved like this. Makes me wonder what goes on in daycares without videotaping.

[Anonymous]

SAS is completely different. The kids can talk. They don't need diapers changed or help eating. The caregivers there are there to assist with homework and make sure the kids behave. That's pretty much it, and very standard for after school care. The kids have been in school all day and just want to play while waiting for their parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:SAS is completely different. The kids can talk. They don't need diapers changed or help eating. The caregivers there are there to assist with homework and make sure the kids behave. That's pretty much it, and very standard for after school care. The kids have been in school all day and just want to play while waiting for their parents.

Kind of agree with this. SAS doesn't really have a dog in the fight here. It is a completely different world than a toddler without the abiility to speak.

[Anonymous]

It is disappointing that so few parents showed up. We weren't at the center for the first round of this, but was the tenor of this town hall any different than the previous ones? Have things really changed?

I want to believe that the changes are working, and Sunny really seems to have a grasp on this, but the post commander...at what point is she held accountable? Has she been there since this all started? I did not get a feeling of compassion from her. She seemed very scripted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is disappointing that so few parents showed up. We weren't at the center for the first round of this, but was the tenor of this town hall any different than the previous ones? Have things really changed?

I want to believe that the changes are working, and Sunny really seems to have a grasp on this, but the post commander...at what point is she held accountable? Has she been there since this all started? I did not get a feeling of compassion from her. She seemed very scripted.

I was at both meetings. The first town hall the place was packed. People were infuriated and little to know information was given prior to the town hall or even during the town hall. The base commander had just come in right before all the abuse allegations came to light. So she did not create the situation in how the center used to be run (and it is a LOT better now) but she did create how poorly the whole thing was handled and how long it took to get the center righted. 18 months is a VERY long time for a place to fall apart. And it fell apart under her watch.

She does not have any child development experience - and she implemented policies of rotating the child care givers around and the whole tape on the children's back since they did not know our kids names. It took the outrage of the parents to stop that practice. I think she wanted DoD to reopen the Pentagon Center but not enough parents brought that up in round tables or made a stink about it (I think one parent was pushing for it now that force protection is not an issue). DoD hired Sunny and I think that has helped tremendously. The woman communicates. Prior to her we had little to know information. Now they are trying to communicate and it appears that they might put out even more information.

We have a base commander who is trying but probably does not have the correct skill sets for this particular job.

The Center has changed but Va Nessa Taylor was one of Monique Murdock's people and that is telling. Not that the Center knows which of the employees are from that old regime and which were on the outside of it. But bascially those associated with Murdock are generally going to be a problem. If they set up a system where they even allowed the employees to anonymously say which people are problems they probably would have been able to weed the bad apples out. I know from talking to the staff that they sort of know which are problem people and have steered me away from certain classrooms as not being a good fit - yea, 109 was one of them (Taylor's room).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is disappointing that so few parents showed up. We weren't at the center for the first round of this, but was the tenor of this town hall any different than the previous ones? Have things really changed?

I want to believe that the changes are working, and Sunny really seems to have a grasp on this, but the post commander...at what point is she held accountable? Has she been there since this all started? I did not get a feeling of compassion from her. She seemed very scripted.

I was at both meetings. The first town hall the place was packed. People were infuriated and little to know information was given prior to the town hall or even during the town hall. The base commander had just come in right before all the abuse allegations came to light. So she did not create the situation in how the center used to be run (and it is a LOT better now) but she did create how poorly the whole thing was handled and how long it took to get the center righted. 18 months is a VERY long time for a place to fall apart. And it fell apart under her watch.

She does not have any child development experience - and she implemented policies of rotating the child care givers around and the whole tape on the children's back since they did not know our kids names. It took the outrage of the parents to stop that practice. I think she wanted DoD to reopen the Pentagon Center but not enough parents brought that up in round tables or made a stink about it (I think one parent was pushing for it now that force protection is not an issue). DoD hired Sunny and I think that has helped tremendously. The woman communicates. Prior to her we had little to know information. Now they are trying to communicate and it appears that they might put out even more information.

We have a base commander who is trying but probably does not have the correct skill sets for this particular job.

The Center has changed but Va Nessa Taylor was one of Monique Murdock's people and that is telling. Not that the Center knows which of the employees are from that old regime and which were on the outside of it. But bascially those associated with Murdock are generally going to be a problem. If they set up a system where they even allowed the employees to anonymously say which people are problems they probably would have been able to weed the bad apples out. I know from talking to the staff that they sort of know which are problem people and have steered me away from certain classrooms as not being a good fit - yea, 109 was one of them (Taylor's room).

Thank you so much for your insight, it is invaluable.

[Anonymous]

This was my child's teacher. He had severe behavior problems at this center and it was blamed on us. I finally had enough and asked them why they weren't doing anything to proactively help my child. My child was so incredibly angry at the time. He later told me the caregivers called him stupid often. He was also neglected there. I picked him up when he was 2 (in this woman's classroom) and he had dried poop on his bottom and wasn't wearing a pullup. We complained. That caregiver still works there. They asked us to leave after asking to see surveillance tapes. We were given 2 days to find alternate care. My spouse and I are both military. They treated him terribly then kicked him out of a center and didn't even try. Do not send your kids there. Please. My son is doing much better. We took him to a psychiatrist and psychologist and had family therapy and hired a nanny for 5 months to help him. All because of this place.

[Anonymous]

22:31, how long ago were you there? And what's the teachers name if you don't mind saying?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This was my child's teacher. He had severe behavior problems at this center and it was blamed on us. I finally had enough and asked them why they weren't doing anything to proactively help my child. My child was so incredibly angry at the time. He later told me the caregivers called him stupid often. He was also neglected there. I picked him up when he was 2 (in this woman's classroom) and he had dried poop on his bottom and wasn't wearing a pullup. We complained. That caregiver still works there. They asked us to leave after asking to see surveillance tapes. We were given 2 days to find alternate care. My spouse and I are both military. They treated him terribly then kicked him out of a center and didn't even try. Do not send your kids there. Please. My son is doing much better. We took him to a psychiatrist and psychologist and had family therapy and hired a nanny for 5 months to help him. All because of this place.

I am so sorry that your child went through this (and you and your husband as well). My kids are at the Center currently (but were never in this woman's class) and the new administration is amazing and I know that they do not ask kids to leave and now have extra resources (full time nurse and will pull in behavioral psychologists to help). And, for all my complaints about the new base commander she is the first one that will go to the tapes if there is any sort of issue.

Va Nessa Taylor always tried to charm the parents but I guess she was super strict with the children and was mean -- particularly when not around.

[Anonymous]

She wasn't "mean", she was a child abuser. I would never send my child to a center with such a history of abuse.

[Anonymous]

Like a PP said, my guess is that a lot of centers and homecares have some level of abuse. Without cameras you will never know. I have had two coworkers pull their babies from two different homecare places because EVERY time they popped in their child was in their carseat.

I would never put my child in a place without cameras. I also think that centers would be better if they had cameras that you could log into over the internet. I can do that with my dog in doggy daycare, I should be able to do so with my children.

[Anonymous]

What's the point of having cameras if the parents can't watch in real time?