Does anyone else identify with this? I've written this up and submitted it to numerous news organizations and personal friends in the biz. If you do agree, please speak up with the media so they might bring this issue to the forefront. Thank you!
CONSUMER/FAMILY NEWS STORY IDEA:
Evaluating weather conditions as they affect road travel on severe wintry days in North Texas makes sense. But for private daycares to merely base their running status on that of public school districts is unreasonable, irresponsible and self serving. Overall daycare thresholds for “closures” seem to be extremely low given the impact they have on their customers who pay a considerable amount to rely on them.
As a parent that absolutely relies on the daycare system, I am angry with this procedure and felt like it was time to speak up.
School districts are public receiving public funding. Not only that, they account for any such closures in the school year making up days beyond what’s been allocated ahead of time.
Daycares are private businesses. Parents enlist their help paying a significant amount for their reliability in caring for their children while they accomplish their responsibilities. Without naming any specific daycare facility because I know this is a common practice, I am sorely upset with the prevailing system of basing their decisions for closures or delays on that of surrounding schools. And not only that, further demanding payment for any days they weren’t in operation.
It’s my belief that daycares should be one of the last businesses to close based not on the school districts but on that of the needs of their customers, the parents who work.
This past Monday is a good example. The majority of schools were closed anyway due to the MLK holiday. Some roadways were affected by the icy conditions, mainly bridges and overpasses (for which there are none in our area and likely are none in most residential areas where parents choose to place their children.) Businesses, for the most part, delayed opening. And from what I could tell, everything was up and running around town by mid-to-late morning. That means people had to go to work. My child’s daycare chose to close the entire day, as did others. We still had to pay despite the fact that they could have easily opened, and that I had to scramble to find and pay for other assistance with my toddler.
Then Wednesday rolled around. Another icy and this time snowy morning. (And might I add, as a former news anchor, the news typically sensationalizes conditions because that’s what they do. Additionally, we always made it to work because the public relies on us. And we planned ahead for any such weather conditions.) School districts closed. My daycare closed, as did many others. Still a large number of people went to work, perhaps delayed. Again, I had to enlist and pay for the services of a sitter and I will have to pay for daycare as well.
Are these daycares arbitrarily closing without true consideration for their customer’s real needs?
If so many daycares are vying for increased enrollment (just read any parenting publication), I suggest they take a good look at operating policies and procedures. Based on my conversations with other parents, I’m not alone.
I have my own home child care and I do not close for bad weather days. I actually take drop-ins that day from the parents who have little ones in school but they still have to go to work.
I have an assistant who comes to help, but I do not require her to come in. Bad weather days are slow anyway.
Hi S.,
You make some good points. My two cents...I don't really mind the daycares following the school districts with closing for bad weather. They need a general guideline to follow, but at the same time they might decide on an individual basis to open even if the school district is closed. I do feel very strongly that parents should get a refund or credit for that day. Our kids were home Monday & Wed as well. If they don't give a credit, then they should offer something like Parents night out, or extended care hours during the Christmas season for example, so parents can shop, work late, something. I had planned on speaking with our Director about this same issue. I figured out that with our two out of daycare this week, we were out of $136.00. Thank goodness my husband was able to stay home with the kids, otherwise I would have had to pay a drop in service or call in sick my self. You should submit your story to the Dallas morning news or a parenting magazine. It's something parents need to talk about and plan for. D.
I understand your frustration. That's why I'm SO GLAD my son is in home day care. They never close due to bad weather!
S. - You're definitely not alone! But I wonder about your daycare....my daycare has a ton of teacher-parents, so yesterday it was really empty, and I think half of the teachers called out, but as the director said, "hey, we can't close - we're just like the hospital or the police. We simply can't close because of bad weather." I would seriously consider switching daycares if I were you. To one that has a better philosophy about customer service. And I would certainly expect a credit for the day's fee, as it wasn't a planned closing.
I agree that this could be a hot topic, but I also don't see an easy solution. Most daycares are private businesses and as such can set their own policies. We need to unite as parents and demand credits or alternatives, etc. We need to take action and not just complain. We need to take the time to move our children to better facilities, then spread the word. Turn it around so we are more in control. That's where the problem lies. If your daycare suffers no effect from closing other than a few grumbling parents, what have they learned? They've learned that they are in control. But if enough parents complain and take action and leave the schools that are doing this and spread the word, well, then they will certainly learn their lesson, and will probably change their policy!
I believe they close for the safety of the workers, and the children. If you watch the news, some of lost their lives trying to travel in the icy conditions. I would not try to drive in icy conditions, with my children in tow. That is my opinion.
My Child goes to pre-school and they go by the school district policies. We still have to pay for any closings and holidays.
My personal policy is that when you have children it does alter your life a little bit. You have to take into consideration that life DOES stop when there is bad weather and illnesses, etc. If you work, then hopefully you are in a situation that allows you to stay home. Hopefully you have an understanding boss that has children of their own. The is no reason to get out and risk harming yourself, traveling over icy bridges OR your children. Stay calm and stay home and enjoy it b/c it rarely happens in Texas.
What do you do if you have a sick child?? Don't you still have to pay when they are out due to an illness?? I don't mean to start an argument, but it's all realitive when you have children. There is always tomorrow to get your work done. Stay safe and warm.
S., You might check out Childtime in Plano on Hedgcoxe. They are always open. I think it depends on if the school is private owned or corporate. Good luck
just a thought (not wanting to start an arguement).... from my experience many of the daycare workers are also parents - my guess is that even if the daycare was not closed they may have to call in due to their own children having to stay home with all the school closings
i can see how frustrating that would be - i think you should be given a crdit or your money back for the days closed - that is definitely not fair for them to charge you for services that they are not providing
I think that you did not read your child's daycare handbook corretly. Don't flame daycares because they are following their policy. You should put your child in a facility that does not close and many people on this board are giving you names of daycares that do not close. I cannot understand why you would flame a daycare when they state that they will follow ISD's school policy. I am sorry you are out of money but it is your own fault for not reading the school's policy boooks correctly. Don't blame the school for your mistake. I would never drive my child to school on icy roads but that is me.
As far as why they take your money - it is a business and they still have bills to pay - telephone companies don't cut their bill because they were closed. Also they rather be closed then have all their teachers out of work due to accidents on the roads. Home careproviders don't need to drive so for them to be open makes sense. Teachers are not saving lives the way hospitals do so why should they put their lives in danger and drive on icy conditions.
I played with my daughter outside with teh ice and yes my DH took the day of as a personal day.
Like I said, read the school's policy carefully before you flame it!!!!
S.:
The pre-school my children go to follows PISD's policy for school closings. I was told this at time of enrollment. This works best for my family situation because my oldest daughter is in 5th grade at a PISD elementary. I believe that daycares, pre-schools, etc. are trying to accomedate the parents by following the structure of surrounding school district's schedule and weather policies. I know it makes it easier for me because my oldest is in the public school system. Next year I will have 2 in PISD and one in private/preschool.
It is a pain that we have to pay during breaks,snow days, sick days, etc. but that was also explained to me during enrollment and meeting with the director. They are a business just like any other and if we want to secure our childrens spot we have to suck it up sometimes!
I'm sure there are daycares, private school, preschools that don't follow the school districts schedule. In fact, I know I've seen on mentioned on this board. I believe it is called Kids Kove and they are open year round.
Just keep in mind that snow days are rare in TX so hopefully there won't be too many more cancelled school days due to the weather.
On a side note, I really enjoyed having a snow day with my family at home. It was so much fun to be home with everyone when we should have been at work/school!
I know how you feel but i guess that is the downside to some private daycares. My children go to Childrens Courtyard and in the 5 years my kids have been there, they have not closed once due to bad weather. On days that i have stayed home due to the weather, they are still there and operating so it depends on the daycare director/owner and if it affects you that much, i would suggest you find another center.
Hi S.,
I understand your frustration. I have two children myself one 5 and the younguest 3 like yours. I beleive some day cares really do not take into consideration the mess they leave you in when they decide to close for reasons that might not exactly be valid. However, some days I do beleive it isn't safe to drive to work and under these conditions they are still required to pay their teachers. I beleive balance is what we should really be looking for here. For example when I enrolled my children in La Petite Academy I asked all these questions, I had about a 2 hour meeting with the director and was honest with her as far as what I expected and needed. I asked what Holidays they took off, how they determined the need to close due to the weather or other circumstances, advising her that if they coulnd't meet my needs I would later have to look elsewhere. Since my kids have been there (november 2006) they have not closed once. To be honest if they would have closed yesterday (wednesday) I would have understood. I think it might be worth it for you to take a look around for another day care that best suits your needs. We are at liberty to choose the facility that best suits our needs as well as the facility is at liberty to choose their policies.
Good Luck,
C.
S.,
I am behind you 100%!!!! Yesterday our daycare was closed my neither my husband or I work at a business that was closed, I had to attend an important meeting and my husband had to burn a personal day!!! What a crock, we pay about $400.00 a week to have our 2 kids cared for! The reason that public schools close is partially due to the bus system and that should not be a factor for a child care facility!! What can I do you support you?
E.
I can completely see your point and understand where you're coming from. As a teacher, I didn't at all think of these issues, but it makes sense. I do think, though, that there's also a safety concern here. It may be that the day cares are looking at what's safest for their employees and children. When they look at it, they feel that it's best to be off of the roads. Also, you may notice that there were other businesses closed due to weather. Again, I completely understand where you're coming from, but I wanted you to also look at where they might be coming from. Since I don't work in a daycare and never have, I can't say for sure that I'm right in their reasoning, but it's worth looking at it that way, also.
Oh, my husband had a great idea. First, it's good that they are concerned about your child's safety, and there may be some type of liability issues if they are a child care service that transports kids. But ultimately it should be that they refund you for the days they are out. Since no employees are needed, then that money should be refunded or credited to you.
I agree with one of the parents below. We, as parents, have the right to pick and choose where we put our children while we work. I too had to use personal time this week because of the weather, but I didn't complain - it allowed me more time with my son. I've worked in a child care facility, even as a part of management. If you took the time to tour any facility, you should have received their policies and/or asked these questions up front. I highly doubt you will receive credit for the time missed due to the weather. At my childs pre-school, I had to sign that I read their policies. I could keep a copy for myself, and the original is in my sons file. It is a business, unfortunately. Also, keep in mind that many of the staff members ARE parents too. If the staff is not available, and the school district closes, it's for the safety of everyone. What do you do when your child is sick? Do you let your child attend school against policy and put the other children at risk? I'm not trying to start an argument - I just understand BOTH sides of the fence. If you're not happy with your facilities policies, I would start shopping around for a new facility.
My daughter goes to Discover & Share in Coppell and it is privately owned and they haven't closed once since my daughter has gone there. (3 1/2yrs)They are great with the kids and are warm and loving daycare. And the preschool program is wonderful. My daughter is now 5 yrs old and she is reading, writing, and speaking spanish. All the teachers she has had are very nice and great with the kids. Everyone knows all the kids names even if they are teachers in other classes. My son goes to Childrens Courtyard after school program and they have never closed either. When school is out both of these daycares have been open. I agree with other you should have read the policies more closely.
