GREENWOOD SOCIAL EMOTIONAL CHILDCARE COOPERATIVE GSECC

This was our experience, which was about two years ago, so take it with that in mind. We had our son going here for about 5 months before we got off the wait-list into another school. I do think most of the staff genuinely cared and were kind. And the center administration seemed to be open to feedback. I really appreciated food being provided, flexible scheduling, and there were good updates through Brightwheel. But I think there is a lack of training and/or experience that led me to feel uncomfortable continuing childcare here. One time I came to pick up my son (3 years old) and the teacher who was there told me that a different teacher had made my son sit in the corner as a disciplinary measure, and they they didn't agree with this. Another time there was a chart hanging on the wall labeled "good choices 👍" and "poor choices👎" and pictures of each child to put into one of these two categories (picture attached with faces edited out). I think there is some nuance here because discussing decision making is important but I don't want my kid to see his face being put into a bad category and have that label internalized. These are just two examples of things that feel like old school disciplinary measures that are not in line with the way I would want my child to be treated. Like I said, the admin did listen when I brought up these concerns and so hopefully it's changed over time. Often when I'd pick him up, he'd just be doing something alone while a staff member cleaned up and didn't interact with him and it was a little bit of a sad scene. There was one teacher from another classroom who would fill into my son's classroom when they needed it for the ratios. He seemed like he disliked the job (and maybe disliked children) and he would often make exasperated sarcastic comments to the kids. I don't think using sarcasm as a teacher dealing with 3-year-olds is appropriate. If he acted like that in front of parents, I worry it could be worse without parents present, and I would always wait to leave at drop-off until the nice regular teacher arrived because I was honestly a bit scared and uncomfortable leaving my child there with him. Hopefully he's gone now and at a job that is a better fit for him. I understand the childcare industry in Seattle has a lot of staffing issues and high turnover and that it's also really difficult to get childcare in the first place. But I would want to make sure there is more stability and well-trained staff before sending another child here. I hope this is happening already as this was two years ago, as we definitely need more childcare options in this area, and I don't discourage people from checking it out-- I just wanted to share my experience and concerns.

The absolute worst daycare experience we have ever had. The teachers in the infant room were completely inexperienced and the center admin often stepped in through the brightwheel app, telling us what we should be doing or not doing following every conversation with the teacher in class. Our daughter regressed after moving her there from Bright Horizons due to keeping her indoors and sitting all day long. When enrolling, and on their brochures, they advertised going outside everyday, which we valued very much. However, during our time there, they never took any of the kids in her class outside, nor did they do any activities inside the class. Their priority was to just ensure that the infant is fed and put to sleep. During waking hours, the infants were often in restraining devices such as being buckled into bouncing chairs or in walkers. If you're later for pick-up, you'll also be party to the cleaning staff vacuuming the rooms with the infants right there on the floor. When questioned about all this, they said we are not allowed on the premises anymore.. but could continue sending our daughter to their center! When we asked for our deposit back, not only did they refuse but instead demanded that we pay an additional 30 days of tuition as 'notice period'. If you care for your child and their well-being, run far away.

We just wrapped 2 years here. If you're considering this place, I would definitely recommend it. All the staff are well qualified and very kind. The food prepared by Chef Jess is outstanding. The communication is solid (they use the Brightwheel app and provide pictures throughout the day). And generally I just feel like my kid has been loved by the team. We're headed into kindergarten and despite my son being one of the youngest kids in his class, we feel ready. Thank you GSECC team!

Hi Dawn, We’ve been trying to contact you for weeks via phone and email with no success to get our deposit back. We are within the 90-120 day window, as our start date was September 30th. This is extremely disappointing and stressful, as we put down a large deposit and chose to not go to this daycare due to the large increase in the monthly cost, as well as lack of consistent and regular communication from you, which is a major red flag. Please contact us as soon as possible to resolve this concern.

I feel so fortunate to have gotten my child into this daycare. It's a lovely, clean space, with a variety of activities and the teachers are fantastic and conscientious. My son and I both love it. And they take the babies to the park in an adorable little baby wagon! i absolutely recommend GSECC to anyone looking for daycare in Northwest Seattle.