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Sunday, March 01, 2015

A Viewer Writes: Delmar Needs a New Daycare Establishment

Hi Joe, Who in their right mind determined that Lil Red Hen in Delmar was a "5 star daycare" Or was it determined that way because the owners, Anne and Tom Atkinson, are extremely close to Karen Schrieber and a few of the other Delaware Stars workers who visited the daycare for weeks prior to their evaluation? ( Instructing the staff on what to say, what not to say) Either way, Lil Red Hen should barely qualify as a 2 star daycare.

We can start by the fact that neither one of the owners are hardly ever there. But yet the staff are treated like crap when the owners do decide to show up, even though they basically run the place.. ( Hence the reason why they can never keep any good employees for more than a year, if they're lucky) These two literally talk to their employees like dogs. The same employees who work sometimes 10 hours a day.

The rooms are way over licensing capacity, with not enough staff members. Take the infant and toddler area for example. The infant room is supposed to be just that, THE INFANT ROOM. Who wants their non mobile child in a room with toddlers who are walking and falling over them, potentially hurting them. Wasn't there an incident a few years ago where a 2 yr old bit an infant in the face? That child was pulled that day and never returned. Charges should have been filed then. But did they learn their lesson there? Nope.

And what about when Anne Atkinson instructed a staff member to discipline her own child, as the staff could not deal with him anymore. That staff member took her child in Anne's office with Anne present where she repeatedly spanked him. Two brand new employees ( one being my sister) who had to witness that, never came back to work there. Not only did the staff witness it, so did some of the other children. If you have children that attend Lil Red Hen, Joe, I advise you to let these parents know they should unexpectedly visit their "5 star daycare" and see just how these "5 star staff" speak to and treat our children. Don't get me wrong, there are and have been some great employees over the years, but any one of them who are great, aren't there anymore. Have any of you asked to see lesson plans for your child's class? There aren't any! 

Delmar needs another daycare, period. The office of childcare licensing will be visiting this establishment over the weeks to come due to issues I have had with them over the past few weeks, ( and obviously I have multiple inside people who inform me of a lot) so who knows how long they will be open. And apparently I am not the only person that has had issues with this place.

Thanks,
Delmar Mom

49 comments:

Anonymous said...

Delmar Mom - Why don't you open one if it is needed?

Anonymous said...

You may have to travel a little farther than Delmar to find another competent daycare. So many parents don't want to inconvenience themselves to go out of their way for a better daycare. Or better yet stay home with your kid.

Anonymous said...

My experience was not as bad as the writer's, but I wasn't overly impressed either. Tom Atkinson has no patience with children and really should be doing something else. A "teacher" there threatened to spray my child in the face with a bottle of cleaning fluid if he didn't stop talking. I think they have such a great reputation because they push school readiness on the kids and they do that pretty well, but the environment was not a friendly one.

Anonymous said...

I feel bad for the people who have to work at these Daycares.

They often get paid so little and have so much responsibility.

I know of a young 20 year old woman who worked at Stepping Stone. She is 5 months pregnant and was just fired because a sippy cup fell off a shelf and bumped a child in the head.

The child was not harmed but the mother of the child was out for blood and insisted that this young lady be let go or she would take her child out of the daycare.

Now this young mother is without a job and who is going to hire a pregnant woman ? Her career as a day care provider is ruined and now her and her future husband will have a hard time paying their bills let alone being able to afford the needs of a child.

From what I understand Stepping Stones only let her go because this mother was out for blood.

Now I understand the importance of child safety but when you deal with young children they are going to get bumps and bangs no matter how much you try to shield them from such event.

This young lady's whole life is now turned up side down. I certainly would never want to have a job where I could be treated in such a way.

I do hope that mother eventually realizes that she took so much from the mouth of a new child just because her baby got a boo boo.

Anonymous said...

Dear Mom,
Why would you tell all this on a blog, do you not realize Day Care Centers have to be licensed, and what you have described would be a violation. Why would you not report this to the licensing agency.

Anonymous said...

5 stars? Are you serious. 9:21 is right. Parents don't want to inconvienance themselves. Well guess what, its totally worth it to go anywhere else!

Anonymous said...

They are not the only ones that are WAY over room capacity. Stepping Stones by the YMCA also has way too many kids per teacher. Usually at the beginning of the day and at the end when all the staff is not in yet, half have left for the day. The regulatory inspections are a joke because everyone knows when they are coming so they have plenty of time to fix the issues then once they are gone they go right back to how things were. Teaching our children is not easy, and a business is just that and needs to make a profit but it shouldn't come at the expense of not having proper care for the children.The pickings are slim as far as choices go.

Anonymous said...

I feel sorry too for the parents that have to leave their kids at a day care facility such as this. Like Delmar Mom said, parents please circle back around after you let your children off and go back in and see how your children are treated once you are out of sight. And for the person who stated stay home with them, staying home doesn't pay the bills these days, and isn't an option. Both parents have to work to make ends meet.

Anonymous said...

I've heard that tom Atkinson not only has tons of debt and creditors call the business that he is never at daily trying to get ahold of him, but that he's had a bunch of dui's too. A person w his personality is def not someone I want around my children

Anonymous said...

I do believe it was stated that she did report this to licensing.

Anonymous said...

Sorry but staying home is an option for everyone. But its one that takes more sacrifice and hard work than the other options. Like keeping you bills low and not buying crap you dont need.

Is it hard yes, but it is worth it.

Anonymous said...

Word of advice, don't work where the employees are related to the owners.

Anonymous said...

If anyone is unhappy with the day care center that their child goes to, there are plenty more that you can take your child to. A person can even open up their own home-based family child care without a degree, just follow the simple steps that the Delaware Office of Child Care sets forth. But, a person cannot open up a center unless there are credentials met and is a degreed person. And yes, everyone has to have a background check before opening up either one and the Office of Child Care is made aware if any offenses that have occurred. Karen was a technical assistant for Delaware Stars. She comes into the facilities and helps meeting the standards and the environmental rate scale. A separate group comes in to do the assessments, grades and then issues the star rating. So stating that the owners received a 5-star rating because of knowing Karen is very false. You, as a parent, have every right to report anything and everything to the Office of Child Care that you do not like or think is an offense. You are your advocate for your child. You even have the right to address the issues with the staff and owner. The website for the Delaware of Office of Child Care has a search engine for parents to search all licensed day care facilities in and around your area. And for the records, just because the place is a center, does not make it better for your child. Home-based child care have to abide by the same regs as centers and many have curricula that the provider follows. Do your research.

Crystal ritter said...

There are many daycares in delmar area. Home daycares are smaller in group settings and most time cost little less in the pocket. I have been a provider for 21 yrs and I know things have changed over the yrs. Centers are more worried about numbers , keeping kids over staff. And in am and end if the day combined children in a room is so that staff can leave and cost of staffing is lower, doesn't matter then what ages they are in 1 room. In a home daycare you have mixed ages also for this is a good learning experience for most kids.
I don't think charging a arm and leg for daycare is right , goes hand in hand. If parent can't work child can't go to daycare, if daycare is too high parent can't afford care and child won't be at daycare. If no kids can come to daycare ...no work for the daycare provider. I try to stay little lower then avg.cost. it is more important to me that children learn , shown love and cared for in safety and feed .
Cost of daycare has gone up a lot in last few years mainly because state requires more out of the provider . State has many rules and regulations. We have learn them and they change a lot. It is not easy to become licensed either. Many hoops to get thru before you can get licensed. This is also why many people watch children so called under the table.
I hope each child will reach their full potential and know they were loved and taught everyday life skills here in my care. Hope everyone will find a great daycare that fits their family .www.pfpals.com is a good web site to find daycare providers in Wicomico Worcester or somerset co. Good luck.

Anonymous said...

This sounds like something that should be taken up with the agency that regulates the day care. I was in a similar position many years ago and you pray things are ok because you have to get to work to feed your child. FIRST...look around and secure a new daycare.... SECOND... Report your issue to the proper authorities and make certain it GOES ON THE RECORD!! Demand to see the case record. If one hand is washing the other for some reason.... they will not note anything in the record. If any daycare worker has not been screened for criminal offenses then shut the place down TODAY!!

Anonymous said...

So if you had inside resources then why would you want to send your child there if it is that horrible??? Someone has made you mad and now you're trying to ruin their reputation. If you think you can run a better business then Anne, then why don't you open one?? As far as vacation and not being there, everyone is entitled to time off. I guess you are so perfect that you work all day every day right? It is hard to keep workers anywhere, not just there!!

Anonymous said...

What does that even mean? You were probably fired!!! I can tell you the family members that work there would run circles around you!!

Anonymous said...

Don't have so many kids if you can't raise them or pay for them!

Anonymous said...

staying at home is the dumbest thing I've ever heard...unless you have the funds which most of us wouldn't have without a job...so speak for yourself...because not EVERYONE can afford to be a stay at home parent!

Anonymous said...

As a local business owner and someone who personally knows what goes on at this day care it makes me sad for the employees and mad at the greedy owners.

Anonymous said...

While I am well out of the age of having children in daycare, I remember well the issues I had with both center and in-home day care. My child was bitten through the skin in a center and it wasn't reported to ME let alone the Health Dept. We, personally, are from Delmar, and did not choose Little Red Hen for some poor treatment of children we saw there as well. One in-home center had a large number of children being left regulary with only one caregiver while another went to retrieve yardsale toy purchases. Had there been an emergency it could have been horrible. There do need to be better regulations throughout each state and ladies/gentlemen, if it is AT ALL possible,do try to stay home. It is the best environment for the children up to age 2-3. I sure wish I could have done it.

Anonymous said...

And that would be bc they cant get jobs anywhere else. And I've never worked there, wouldn't dream of it

Anonymous said...

That is absolutely not the case. Before you go pointing fingers know your facts first! I have worked there and know first hand how it operates!! The person who wrote this article is ridiculous. Delmar Mom should have stated her name. Why did she do it anonymously? To get things started that aren't even true!!

Renee Holland said...

Who are you to say who can get a job elsewhere and who can't?! That's what I'm trying to figure out..and y'all got a lot of balls on here but won't even state your name and to the "Delmar Mom" who posted this foolishness I hope you realize how unprofessional this is and you probably won't succeed with whatever results you were TRYING to get with dragging their name through the mud..but good luck anyway sweetie...

Anonymous said...

You're an idiot lol unprofessional is this business and you, because im sure you work at this little hole in the wall. Look for another job sweetie, it won't be there long!

Anonymous said...

Couldn't have said it better myself!

Renee Holland said...

Lol you have your fun but I AM actually an employee there and the parents have made it very clear that they love me so your 1 opinion is not even relevant haha but we are all entitled to our own feelings so if unprofessional is what you think we are then so be it..but slander is not gonna get us shut down I can guarantee that right now...

Anonymous said...

You people are cracking me up!! GET A LIFE!!!

Anonymous said...

Aw poor Christina, you're one of the worst employees they've got. So shove that in your glass house.

Anonymous said...

Hey 6:25... Why don't you write your name???

Anonymous said...

813 before you said your the idiot... Make sure you write you're. Maybe you're the uneducated idiot.

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

7:42 is 813 a time or an address? Make sure you use the colon when addressing time that is very uneducated of you.

Anonymous said...

Wow

Anonymous said...

I have worked here and everything I have read is absolutely true. Anyone who says otherwise is just trying to save face, without a doubt.

New Caring Mother said...

I recently tried taking my infant to lil red hen and it didn't work at all. When I applied it was September and was under the impression when I applied that my son would be in the infant room. Then I get him there after staying home for three months to find him in with the five toddlers. That isn't right... toddlers are too busy to have around a helpless infant. On the other hand, the second day I went to pick him up and could tell he had cried himself to sleep in this bouncer chair. So I say I guess he was fussy, she responds with yes. I pick him up and he stinks, so I lay him on changing table to change his poopy diaper. I open it up and say to the young girl wow I guess I would have been fussy and cried myself to sleep too if I had to sit in this. There was poop up to his belly button and hard poop stuck on his back, as a new mother I was heart broken. That is called neglect, I knew then my son shouldn't be here. Needless to say I tried four days and pulled him that Monday... motherly instinct, I knew he wasn't going to be cared for like an infant should be!

Anonymous said...

How ironic? This post was written on Wednesday and you comment today. Same person?? Yea I think so! Take your drama elsewhere!

New Caring Mother said...

Not ironic. .. my name is Stacy and it's the truth! I don't know who Delmar mom is... thanks it's not drama I was talking about the care of my son.

Anonymous said...

Drama? She was referring to the care of her child. But she will take him, and her money, elsewhere.

New Caring Mother's Husband said...

Well detective if you go back and re-read the original post it says their sister worked there. So maybe that will help you narrow down your search. But when you do find out who they are, we would ALL love to know. Thanks

Anonymous said...

People can lie and say there "sister" and it just be a friend, co-worker, ect... The only way you will ever find out who this is, is if they come out and say who they are

Jessica Adkins said...

If anyone is looking for a great childcare facility, check out Child Craft on alt.13 between Laurel/Seaford.

I can personally attest to how wonderful a facility they are. The owner, Mrs. Bradley, truly loves the kids and has the patience of a saint.

This facilty is top notch!

Tom Adkinson said...

Joe Albero, you just wait until I see you in public. Your little plan to ruin my business will backfire, pal.

Anonymous said...

I worked at the lil red hen for half a day and walked out, immediately reporting them. It scares me to death that parents leave their children at such a horrid establishment.

Anonymous said...

Sounds like Tom ^^^^ is having some anger issues

Anonymous said...

I have been very happy with the quality of the staff and the education my child receives at Lil Red Hen. My child loves his teachers, and has learned so much more there than he would at any home daycare.

I have made plenty of surprise visits and all times of the day and have never seen any problems such as you describe. I have been amazed at the patience in fact that the staff has with some of the brattiest of kids.

I can say that probably the sister of whom this lady is talking about, was the worst staff member I've ever encountered there. Luckily my child was only with her a brief few days before moving on up to the next age level.

I have left out names of staff, but there are 4 of them that especially standout and deserve praise for the great work they do.

As for Ms. Anne, the one time we had an issue with a staff member (who later resigned by the way) she handled it very well and the problem was quickly resolved.

As for the writer of the letter, please do the rest of us a favor and take your toxic attitude and your child(ren) out of the school, so the staff can spend even more time with our kids.

Anonymous said...

Before you make up a false account, make sure you spell tom's name right!!

Anonymous said...

It was probably you that made up the fake account. Grow up!!

Anonymous said...

Jessica Adkins- Childcraft Company has a deceptive appearance and Karen Bradley is a total fake. She is vindictive and a total control freak. She presents herself as Mother Theresa and even dresses down for the commoners as she once stated, all to trick people into trusting her. The whole daycare educator persona is nothing more than a front for all the corruption she is involved in.