Little Marvels Early Childhood School

May 10th, 2019

Mar 26th, 2019

We recently left Little Marvels due to a move and miss it like crazy! The staff was incredible, and we saw so much growth, development and (most importantly) happiness in our daughter in the time that she was there. I have no complaints, and recommend it highly.
Feb 23rd, 2018

HORRIBLE HORRIBLE place behind the scenes! My daughter attended LM for over two years until she was abruptly refused service on 5/3/17 by Daniela Slepak because she had an issue with me. (I don't know why she thought that she could refuse service w/ no warning!) I was a huge supporter before this incident. My daughter was unable to say goodbye to the teachers and friends she has loved for two years. While the program from birth (infants 1& 2, toddlers and twos) is AMAZING and their app Tadpoles is impressive, there are significant problems with what happens after age 2. The pre-K room is small and supposed to be for ages 3,4,5, and 6??? As a first time Mom, I didn't realize any issues because I was unfamiliar with what a pre-K is supposed to be until my daughter has gotten older. I loved my daughter's current and former teachers including Kassie, Lyssie, Jenn, Andy, Andrew, Rocio, Bessie, Alicia, the list goes on and on. That's another problem; the list keeps growing on former teachers!!! I never knew what to expect; one day one of my favorite teachers Kassie (one of the only teachers who was there for 2 yrs) was fired for no reason; Daniela promptly sent out an email telling all the parents she was fired and to come discuss it with her! Um, no professionalism! It seems due to their incredibly low pay of $10 starting (most are $13 & up) with no benefits and the issues with the management, the teachers lately have been a rotating door. The center has been around since 2014; I watched it being built as my place of work is in the same building. I was beyond excited to sign my daughter up when I saw the facilities. The price point was so reasonable; the list of reasons to send my daughter there kept growing! I had an AMAZING experience for her first year... then the price increase for 2016 was 10%! Ok, I loved it there, so I didn't say anything. Come 2017, the price increase was another 6%; or translation; I am now paying $250 more a month then the prices that I had in 2015. Now I'm realizing something is very wrong as most centers are 2-3%. I discuss the matter with other concerned parents (By this time the grumbling had started behind the scenes BIG TIME); and people are NOT happy. But, we are stuck; LM's policies basically make us stay for 60 days or you lose your full month's tuition deposit; and the rent you pay a month in advance. (And, as of this writing LM has refused to pay me those 2 months when I was refused service with no warning!) Michael also sent out a rude form letter to any parents that complained about the price increase, insisting the teachers were benefiting from it. Not true. Big Brother is watching at LM; I received a call on my cell phone on 11/3/16 from the business owner Michael Slepak not about my daughter, but that "I am making parents uncomfortable". He never of course stated WHAT I said but he continued to threaten me and when I emailed Daniela she not only agreed, but told me (in writing) that she had asked him to contact me!!! So much for the parent handbook about privacy and a mutually agreed upon time! I realized LM was not the right place for me to be, however, my biggest concern is my daughter who loved her friends, lead teachers (the floaters kept leaving) and the program so I bit my tongue and was holding out until she turned 3 in October. I continued to keep everything as normal as possible; on 5/3/17 I receive a call from the owner Daniela at 8:50am. When I stated I was driving, she kept talking because she needed to speak to me immediately??? Bluetooth; means my daughter is listening! I stated I had to drop her off and work, so I was refused service. I promptly called my lawyer and went to the competition, Gardner, who I had already reserved a spot there in October. So glad, I learned from what happened in November. We had a great time there until November 2016, the things I have learned from former teachers are SO disturbing, I will never again send my daughter to a place that is NOT corporate.
Jul 5th, 2019

This review is based on my experience with visiting various daycare centers and ultimately why I decided to NOT send my child to Little Marvels. I had heard from a few people of which daycare centers I should check out in the Lakeview area. Since I was still undecided, I checked out several and put down deposits. I wanted to make sure that I had secured a daycare by the time my daughter was 3 months old. When I went to check out Little Marvels, I liked the facility and thought since it was rather new, it was a possibility. That was until I heard I had to put down a full month's tuition as a deposit! That's $1850! And it wasn't refundable if I chose not to go! That alone seemed like a bad sign. When I did ask about the teachers qualifications, I was also disappointed with the answers I received. It seemed that basically they were picking people who had the bare minimum state requirements. Based on these two things alone, I decided to go with a school that required a $200 deposit that was refundable if I didn't go; plus, the teachers are way more qualified with a background in education. Recently, I heard from other parent about the high teacher turnover and the high yearly increases. I'm so glad that I chose to go somewhere else.
May 23rd, 2019