We were lucky to get our son enrolled at Starbright South 9 months before Kindergarten was starting…read moreand we had nothing but the best experience with this preschool. Jen, the owner, has always been wonderfully upbeat and communicative. You can tell she has a passion for preschool aged kids and excelling their education while also providing a fun and clean atmosphere. The preschool always felt very well organized and sanitary. We loved all the teachers - Marques, Jen, Hannah, Kara, Liz....everyone seems to want to be there and help your kiddo through the process. It was a very friendly space and we never felt we couldn't communicate a thought or concern or even just share a joke about how our kid was bouncing off the walls that day. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this preschool to any of my friends or colleagues. Shortly after my son graduated and had his first day of kindergarten, both Jen and Marques reached out to me to find out how he'd done in the transition. They also encouraged a pop in visit down the road. You can tell they really are invested in the children there.

From the owner: Where children reach for the stars!! I have been running Starbright for over 33 years, I couldn't…read moreimagine having a more rewarding career. I love going into work daily and being able to bring sunshine and teach our young minds....

Our two daughters have grown and flourished so much since starting at PNA a few years ago. They…read morehave engaged in so many cool and interesting science projects and field trips, and they get to do so many awesome things! They do science and music and Spanish with awesome teachers, and we get lots of communication from the class. We love the routines and the social environment the kids get to enjoy that keeps them on a great track academically. We would recommend this school to anyone!

I love that the school works collectively with group projects. It's small and everyone knows each…read moreother. They do take a few field trips with one big one at the end of the year. There are many highlights and advantages to PNA. The downside is there seems to be a lack of communication and transparency. Each teacher seems to set their own curriculum and classroom standards. Academics could be more challenging. No hot lunch except for pizza Monday's. Tuition is one of, if not the highest in anchorage. Overall is suits our needs as we are only here two years but we will definitely add some tutoring this summer to make sure our kids don't fall behind the lower 48's standards.

I've seen other centers in the valley and they don't even compare to how exceptional tree of life…read moreis. Truly the friendliest staff. Each classroom is so inviting and the teachers are so great with the kids.

From the owner: Childcare in Palmer Alaskaread more

The teachers were so kind and attentive to my children! So grateful to have a team that cares so…read moremuch about their milestones!

The teachers and staff here are all friendly and take great care of my child! We receive daily…read moreprogress reports with how they did as far as eating, sleeping, and needing to be changed. The classroom is bright and friendly with many colors and toys. The teachers all genuinely like the children and providing childcare and this shows! We are so glad we were able to get in here for childcare!

My daughter learned and thrived and loved this preschool! She just started kindergarten and is…read moredoing great!

My son attends Faith Lutheran School and absolutely loves it! In the past he tried attending other…read moreschools but problems with the education always crept up: either too low/simple level of education, or the classroom teacher had difficulties managing the class, or the coursework failed to keep my son engaged. All of these were fixed when we finally arrived here - it is by far the best education we've seen in the area and with the kindest teachers he has encountered. You should definitely check out Faith Lutheran School if you want your child to experience excellent instruction in a caring and loving environment!

To Whom It May Concern: I am going to start of by mentioning…read morethat I work in the healthcare field as a licensed professional. Northern Lights Preschool and Childcare is without a doubt the WORST child care experience I've ever had. The staff are rude; most do not speak English well so they cannot tell you how your child's day was or understand what you are talking about if you have concerns and this place is DIRTY. My daughter got into a lottery school last minute and since her Kindergarten was half day I needed childcare for the other half of the day. This was the only place I could find that would accept her on such short notice that could pick her up from school and bring her to the daycare. They forgot to pick her up from school and blamed me. When I called to complain about them not picking my child up the woman argued and then hung up on me! They also never knew where my child was and I had to go to 3 or 4 different rooms every day to find her and each staff would say "She's not here today." When I complained to the manager about it being ridiculous that every day no one can tell me where my child is she simply nodded but offered no solutions. They most of the time could not even remember who my child was and would send me to where some other child was thinking I was their mother... When I did call to report she was ill and be home sick for the day, later I would get an angry call from their driver saying she is at the school and my daughter is not there so she is leaving! They do not tell the children to wash their hands, the staff does not wash their hands. My daughter had an accident and did not have extra clothes, instead of them calling me to bring her clothes they had her remove her soiled clothes and wear JUST snow pants for the rest of the day. My daughter was very embarrassed!!! They also kept telling her religious things like "666 is a bad number" and "God is your real Dad." She's 6, she does not need to be told about bad numbers and they don't even know if we are a religious family. Very inappropriate. Very high turnover of staff, and staff are not knowledgeable about childhood growth and development, other than the Eye Level program. I would never bring an infant there for care. The rooms are packed to the MAX and honestly are probably over what they are supposed to be at times. I have seen staff physically push children. I do not qualify for daycare assistance and paid out of pocket the entire time which was $650.00 per month and always on time. As soon as kindergarten was over I put in notice that my child would no longer be attending including the date of her last day. She only went there 8 days of the last month. One would think $650.00 cut in half right so the amount owed would be $325.00. Not the case as the manager decided to charge me their "daily" charge for the last few days which she said herself "Is more expensive" which amounted to $450.00 for 8 days of day care! I told her that this was an outrageous amount and again she just nods but obviously doesn't care just wants money. There are also a lot of intoxicated homeless people that hang out outside of the day care, which is not the day cares fault but there is obviously no effort to make that change. They also do not notify you very well when they will be closed. They hang up one sign that is plastered up between many other signs that are always hanging up on plain white paper with black ink. One day when we were leaving on a Thursday the teacher said "See you Monday" and when I questioned if they were closed (it was not a holiday) another teacher who I've never seen before or interacted with very rudely yelled at me "THERE IS A SIGN!" This place needs a very thorough investigation. I would have taken my child out sooner but did not want her to have to change in the middle of the school year and she was not in immediate danger. Her last day there could not come soon enough. This is not a place the supports the growth and development of children, it is the equivalent of having a high school teen watch your child.

From the owner: Northern Lights Preschool & Child Care has served the community of Anchorage, AK for over 25 years…read moreby providing professional child care and after-school children's programs in a loving and compassionate environment.

We've brought our 2 kids to Starbright for a couple of years now from ages 2 through 5. Do not let…read morethe neighborhood mislead you.. this place is excellent. Experienced teachers that build relationships with your kids and as parent I get a ton out of chatting with teachers at pick-up. Not ONCE have we had a weird/bad experience. There are many folks here that have been a very positive/constructive influence for our kids over the years and I wouldn't limit the 5 stars to one particular classroom or teacher. Starbright also strives to stay open even when ASD closes for remote learning days which is super helpful with little ones. We are extremely happy that we decided to enroll our eldest in Missy's kindergarten class here. She is one of those rare teachers folks use in those password hints "what was name of your favorite teacher in your whole life?" Also Starbright is recently under new ownership and after experiencing both the old and the new, I can say they haven't lost a beat. The new owner/director (also) Missy is awesome. Bring your kids to Starbright and upgrade your life.

Best preschool ever, I used to be one of the students. I always begged my mom to go there every…read moresummer.

I cannot recommend this place, especially for after-school programs. It is run by two sisters who…read moreseem more focused on increasing revenue than on providing quality care or education. Teachers are reportedly underpaid while parents are overcharged, and class sizes are much larger than what is promised. Despite assurances about small groups, they continue to enroll more students than they can reasonably accommodate. Communication with parents is also an issue - the administration can be quite rude and unprofessional when handling concerns or conflicts. After several years of my child attending both the preschool and after-school programs, their level of Spanish was far below expectations. This is not surprising, given that children spend much of their time playing in the gym rather than engaging in structured Spanish learning, and that the overcrowded classes make meaningful instruction nearly impossible.

We love Ms. Cheri! My kids love her and really enjoyed her classes. They learned so much while…read morehaving fun too. As a parent, it was nice to have someone who is so structured and trustworthy. She really knows what she's doing. I would recommend her any day!