senses of a child--new daycare in 16th street heights?!

[Anonymous]

PP from july 1 infuriarating...and that last post is the point I attempted to make.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Misleading information! Wow…First name a business without some form of tax issue at one time or another. And they seemed to have corrected this back in 2005. They can’t be that bad they haven’t filed bankruptcy.

Secondly, I looked up the court documents as well. The lady “Rissa” was the “NOT” the offender in that event; nor did she committed the offense/crime. It was switched around. She filed the complaint…and it does seem slandering and very personal to post smiley faces and what not in documented information.

As for the closing of the Fort Washington Daycare, it was a small building with few rooms. The owner voluntarily closed the facility to renovate and open a larger daycare & school facility; which is new 16th street facility, which happens to be the old British School of Washington. So what she closed a small “daycare” to open a “School” & “daycare” combined; that’s growth to me, not suspicion of bad service.

Trust you own research and information I’m glad I went back looked up these so-called things or I would have been highly misinformed. Visit the place and pass judgment for yourself.

"rissa"? no one ever addressed her with this name. Are you the owner sock puppeting again?

maybe you should look at the court records again!! Name AVENPORT, LATOYA was the complainant. she complained against Ms. Frost. That is why Ms. Frost stats are listed (age, address, etc.) and not the complainant. that is y Ms. Frost is listed at the DEFENDENT!!!

check the md business reg.

[Anonymous]

I do not work for Senses. I am a parent who enrolled their 2 year old son about 2 weeks ago after visiting 4 months previously. Even though he has already been accepted to JCC to start in August, my husband and I are now considering giving up our spot because we have been very happy with the attention and care he receives from this daycare. Dr. Lee and her staff consistently display warmth and concern for their kids and the parents who drop them off (i never saw this at JCC when our older son attended).

On the very 1st day when i dropped off my son, i felt sick to my stomach and was almost in tears because finding a daycare had been very difficult and I scrutinized everything about each one i went to visit to avoid the traffic down to the J. It was especially difficult that Senses was new and didn’t have an established reputation in the area let alone DC. Dr Lee could see how difficult the morning was going for me that she called me at the office 2 hours after dropping him off to tell me how my son was doing and assured me that they would call me if anything was wrong. She spent atleast 10 minutes on the phone with me that morning and every day after that she has taken time to tell me how his morning has gone if I call. I don’t call anymore. She even asked a staff member if they could come in earlier so that my son would be less shy and clingy when I drop him off because he is more attached to that staff member being new to that environment.

I had my reservations about Senses but since that day I too have noticed that he is learning to become more independent and now wants to do everything himself including brushing his own teeth, putting on his own shoes etc and seems to be more happy but EXHAUSTED at 6:30pm which makes a very early bedtime but downtime for us.

It’s a new place and they still have improvements to make (i.e. the playground and hopefully more powerful A/C units) so you have to give it time. The down side is of course you take a risk with your precious kids which sucks. If things change and we have a bad experience and post it here to alert everyone then we will simply look to JCC again.

At the end of the day if you decide Senses isn’t a good fit for you and your child, go with it.

Hope this helps parents considering this daycare.

[Anonymous]

PP - I'd love to chat with you if you're willing to provide your email address or phone number.

[Anonymous]

Please feel free to call me at 202-340-6063.....JF

[Anonymous]

I have my child there.

I must say; something does seem a LITTLE off about the place; but, I think, it's more a business issue, as if they might not be able to run a business well. As for the care my child receives, my child does seem happy, does seem attached to his caregivers, and I do like his/her current caregivers. They seem to sincerly care for my child.

I don't therefore have a problem with him/her attending daycare there, but, honestly, I wouldn't be completely suprised either to find out they were in financial trouble, or to end up finding out they are closing on short notice or something like that. But in the class (s)he is in now, I think he's being well taken care of.

[Anonymous]

I'm a mom with a child at Senses. This is what I like about the daycare: (1) the staff are loving, (2) there is a cozy-family like feeling there (as compared to some of the large daycare places downtown), (3) the rooms for the kids are very large--they have a lot of room to play, (4) when the children play outside, they play on grass in the church's backyard, (5) when the children go on walks, they see a neighborhood with trees and houses rather than a downtown atmosphere, and (6) I do not have to commute into the main part of the city with my child.

[Anonymous]

I recently started my daughter at this daycare ( 3 days). My first impression was that the employees were very warm and receptive to both baby and parents. The price is very reasonable and environment is spacious and clean. The caretakers to baby ratio is 2-3:1 so baby gets maximum attention. They will also be moving to a more modern building 2 blocks away in a few weeks.

[Anonymous]

I had my child at Senses of a Child but withdrew him/her after a few months. Believe me when I say, this place is NOT what it seems and I would NOT recommend this place for your child. They are loving and caring to your face, but they LIE to cover themselves. You can't speak with other parents nor can you speak to your child's teacher about anything without the Director or Principal being present. The principal doesn't have a say in anything. There really isn't a curriculum either. The teachers' hands are tied in what they're allowed to teach. My child always came home hungry and thirsty. And once you meet Ms. Larissa, you'll be turning right back out the door. The word "unprofessional" is an understatement.

Some things to ask when looking for a daycare:

1. Their business license
2. A copy of their curriculum
3. Tangible credentials to be able to run a daycare/school (i.e. Degrees, certificates, etc.) (5 daycare centers closing doesn't qualify)
4. Evidence of programs in place
5. Full names of teahcers to run your own background check

Hope someone finds this information helpful. That was the worst few months of my life.

[Anonymous]

Coming from a former "employee" this place is definitely not what it seems. Dr. Lee/Larissa are some of the most unprofessional people I know. Unfortunately I was bamboozled into working with her and after the school never got off the ground, she covered her self by "laying" us off for 'credential' issues. Please do not send your babies there-this lady is/has been in a lot of legal trouble and the well bein of your children is the LAST thing on her mind!!!! I'm hoping parents take heed of the pp's advice and mine as well!! Don't waste your money or time with this "daycare" -it's not worth it!!!!!!!!

[Anonymous]

Look elsewhere. I was in the building and overheard some very disturbing things. Verbal abuse - vicious, ranting, ridiculing of a toddler for taking something from another child. It was horrible.

[Anonymous]

Also want to add... I hear a lot of crying (babies?) but no comforting from the staff. I would not leave a child at this facility.

[Anonymous]

The place looks great! I went on Friday and was very impressed!

[Anonymous]

This place looked great to us last year when I was pregnant but something just wasn't right. I was given a list of references and I think out of 7 of them I got through to one valid number. The woman on the other end didn't even know she was being used as a reference and it had been years since her daughter was at the old PG County center run by Dr. Lee. The other numbers provided to me were disconnected, went to someone other than who they were supposed to, went to people who never called me back, etc. Given that Senses had just opened at the time, it seemed very odd to me that they wouldn't have their references together. I called and spoke to someone who said they must have given me the wrong list but the second one they provided wasn't much better. There is something very fishy going on with Dr. Lee and this whole operation and I can't put my finger on it but I certainly wasn't willing to leave my son there either.

[Anonymous]

The walls in this building are paper thin and my comments are not about noise, but rather about what it is I hear. This morning I awakened to someone yelling "Shut the f*** up". Not sure if the person was addressing a child or another adult but I think it was to another adult because I didn't hear any crying. Later in the day, a big fight between staff members or a staff member upset about something personal, but at any rate, lots of high volume yelling, a few curse words, and several times telling someone "Why don't you shut up!" Children were definitely present. Anyway, I am sure I was observed on the street speaking with a parent who had just picked up her child because soon after I returned, I received a knock on the door and a visit from Dr. Lee who came to introduce herself. I expressed my concerns and she assured me that she knew who the problem person was and that she would be let go. I took her at her word until I overheard her agreeing with a young woman who stated that she had to yell at the kids otherwise they didn't listen to her (or something to that effect) and telling that person that the woman upstairs (me) was going to be a problem and that they should play music to cover up the "craziness" that goes on (her words). Sorry, Dr Lee, but I am only going to be a problem if I think children are at risk. Run your daycare they way it's supposed to be run - with competent, compassionate, child care providers, and you'll have absolutely no problems with me.