Children’s Center of Austin

This preschool is a true gem! They understand every child has different needs and goals and are completely accommodating to that. My daughter was not completely potty trained by 3 (separate story), where some other preschools could not accommodate that, CCOA welcomed us with support and understanding. They are all about what is best for your child. Nicole, the director of the center, is the heartbeat of the school. She keeps the parents well informed and cares for her school. My daughter is thriving and ready for kinder this year! So grateful for this school. I’m going to miss them, when it’s time. Ms. Christine and Ms. Taylor are fantastic teachers!

Three strikes and you’re out!
My little girl has been going to this daycare for about 3 weeks, but sad to say I am pulling her out. There’s a lot of good things here but I saw a couple of things today that make me want to write this review.
Good things:
1. Front desk staff seems friendly
2. Place seems clean, facilities seem nice
3. They seem to really want some structure and curriculum and seem to be trying hard to incorporate both in.
4. For the most part my little girl (3 years) said she had been having fun. But recently she’s been showing a little bit of reluctance to go to school.
The 3 strikes… more than 3 actually:
1. My daughter has a few food restrictions. Yesterday when I came into the classroom, she was seated at the snack table with those restricted items in her plate. She was the only one at the snack table, most of the other kids were sleeping. Both teachers were nearby chatting. They forgot to check the allergy list and didn’t seem to remember until I reminded them.
2. I wanted to have the teachers help me potty train my child. I brought in a potty training chart and stickers and told the teacher that I had prepped my little girl about the chart and the stickers. When I came in to pick her up this evening, the teacher said «Oh I asked her if she wanted to go to the bathroom, but even though she tried she didn’t do anything». I noticed that her diaper had not been changed since morning…5 hours in the same wet diaper. Not only had the teacher not asked her to go potty or given her stickers, she didn’t even check her diaper! Not acceptable at all.
3. This one takes the cake. I walked out of my daughter’s classroom and noticed this in the classroom right in front: The class is a toddler class… the kids are probably just about 18 months to 2 years old. What I saw was a teacher, throwing down a toddler’s shoe into a corner of the room, and plonking down a bawling child into the same corner. IN ANGER! She then walked back to the group of other children who were in the room and started reading a book. She caught my eye and smiled as though nothing were wrong. Not acceptable to do that to a child I think. The teacher was alone in the class with about 10 toddlers… looked like a case of frustration and maybe there was no one to give her a hand…
Now its not like these incidents don’t happen in the best of places… teachers do have their bad days, but it looks like this place does not have the right ratio of staff to children. Incidentally it so happened that one of the teachers in my daughters class was gone today b’cos of a personal emergency. The other teacher (who forgot to change my child’s diaper) told me it was just her in the class from 8 to 5 today. I had a brief chat with the director asking her why this was so… and she told me that the teacher would be having a helper and would not be alone. But that didn’t seem the case when I went to pick up my child at 3pm. And to add to that, the frustrated teacher in the toddler room was also alone (atleast when I saw her).
Does this indicate poor management?

This place is amazing. Everyone here is friendly and helpful… you can tell they genuinely love children! I think is very important. They are animated and my son learned so many things here — great teaching. I will recommend this place to anyone and everyone!

I can only speak of my experience and those I speak to daily. Let’s start with Ms. Tanya.
Ms Tanya — she is an asset. I am not speaking of just to this business. Ms. Tanya would be an asset to any business. She is simply wonderful. She handles any all issues like they personally effect her. She is completely compassionate to our needs and our daughter’s needs. We love her!
Ms. Cynthia — I wish Ms. Cynthia could move with my daughter as she gets older. She is the only teacher I know where I feel like she loves my child. I truly feel like she loves my child. I also feel like she loves all of the children in the class. My daughter is smart, but I know Ms. Cynthia has contributed to her growth like no other teacher could have. I hear the compliments on how respectful my daughter is, but I am positive Ms. Cynthia is responsible for that too.
Ms. Bell — Although she has another class at this point. My daughter still speaks of her. She is simply outstanding.
I do not know the owner. I have not met her at any point, but I can say this. I am a business owner and I can attest I suck at hiring the right personnel. I could learn a few things from the owner, because she knows what to look for when hiring staff to teach, nurture and protect your children.
No business is perfect. I’ve had my days I did not like a certain teachers actions, but Ms. Tanya JUMPED on the issue and resolved it quickly. I would recommend to any parent who wants their children to learn, grow and feel protected to bring them to CCOA.