I have been to YMCAs for 60 years, starting in Summit and Morristown NJ, Hartford Cleveland Chicago…read moreSan Jose and Now, State College. I cannot speak to the current condition of all the others, but the State College Y is easily in the best material condition of any Y in my life. Everything seems to have been refurbished or replaced recently, no broken down anything, no roof leaks, no broken tiles or pavement. .is this really a Y? They just finished redoing the locker rooms, new everything as far as I can tell. The Therapy pool is a balmy 90F, which is great for a recent Miami transplant, and the lap pool is a not too shabby 80F. Pickleball seems to have taken over the basketball courts but that is the way of things now i guess. All the resistance and exercise equipment are there, maybe not the best but very functional...and helpful staff nearby. It's nice to what was old is now new.

I've seen better YMCAs, but I have also seen much, much worse. The cardio equipment is up to date…read moreand plentiful, the Nautilus machines are in good repair and diverse. The free weights, exercise balls, gym space, and other random equipment is both plentiful and good quality. The pool is indoors only and warmer than I like, but I'm in the minority in enjoying a cold-ish pool. The only thing lacking is a nice, separate free weights room, but that really isn't important to me. Oh, and did I mention that it has a rock climbing wall? Not too shabby!

Child space is a wonderful and nurturing environment for a child to grow. It feels like a second…read morehome with its warm and friendly open rooms - so different from the hospital like enclosures of many daycares. Children get to have fun and be themselves while learning important values and habits. There is plenty of love and affection from experienced hands. Over 30 years old with wonderful ladies running the space for decades. This is a hidden jewel in state college. Mixed age groups are a plus as well.

From the owner: With a huge natural outdoor play space, small classes, mixed age groups, flexible part time…read moreoptions, and low ratios, we provide a small program where kids are loved and nurtured and encouraged to explore and learn based on their individual developmental needs and interests.

We started at Abba's House in January 2015 when my oldest was 3 months old. My youngest then…read morestarted in October 2018. We left the daycare in March 2019. Over our 4 years at Abba's I've seen 4 directors, each one fired or forced out by either the church or the business director. The teachers are all phenomenal and my oldest has learned so much over the 4 years. I give them all the credit! I think there is a huge disconnect between the director (every director) and the teachers. Communication between management and the teachers and the parents is awful. There used to be a Parent's Group that would fundraise for supplies for the teachers that the daycare was unable to provide, and they would also hold events for the children and families. The previous director, Lisa, wanted funds from the Parent's Group to purchase a curriculum for the daycare, something that the Parent's Group felt was a vital part to the daycare and should be purchased with tuition dollars, not fundraising dollars. Because she did not get the funds she wanted, she closed the Parent's Group's bank account and gave the funds to the president. Those funds were then used to purchase over $2,000 of classroom supplies for the daycare and the Parent's Group then disbanded. The latest director, Heather Roberts, has totally flipped the daycare upside down. I feel she's on a war path. Countless teachers have been fired, or have quit since she has taken over in September 2018, and dozens of families have left the daycare now. The number of children is dwindling that in classrooms that used to be full, they can now combine two or more rooms together and leave some classrooms totally empty all day. They are also needing to combine classrooms because they don't have enough teachers to cover each of the rooms. The director and assistant director are in classrooms all day, every day in order to stay under ratio. In December, we received notice that the tuition was increasing drastically. Tuition for my two children was increasing more than $120/month, a 7% increase. The handbook that we have states that the tuition increase will be based on the cost of living increase set by the government, which this year is 2.8%. 7% is a far cry from 2.8%. Over the past 6-7 months that Heather has been at the daycare she has broken/violated a number of policies set by the daycare and laid out in the handbook. When approached about it, they change the policy and send out a notice that it changed and the handbook is being updated. She feels she can do whatever she wants, whenever she wants. I wholeheartedly believe that they are using the huge tuition increase to help pay for the new indoor gym/dome. The tuition increase, unfortunately, does not go to the teachers and they deserve it! I have never agreed with the lack of separation between the daycare, C3 sports, and Christ Community Church. The tuition for the daycare should be remaining in the daycare to pay for things that the children and teachers need. Teachers are constantly purchasing their own supplies for their classroom. The director states that teachers are not expected to purchase their own supplies, but if teachers request things and they are denied due to lack of funds, their options are to either 1) go without, or 2) purchase it themselves. So, while they may not be expected to purchase their own, if you are going to deny them constantly then they will end up buying it themselves. It is very unfortunate that the administration at the daycare can't get it together. I feel their greed, unprofessionalism, and arrogance will push even more families to other daycares and they will not be able to stay in business. I would have loved to have my youngest at the daycare as well, and have my oldest continue there until she started kindergarten, but as much as I absolutely love the teachers, I cannot get on board with Heather and her mindless war path and her terrible treatment of the teachers. I cannot trust that policies will not change on a whim and I've grown tired of the greed from the church.

We had a terrible experience in another daycare in town and had to pull out our baby on the first…read moreday. Since we did not have our son on another waiting list and our town is notorious for a long wait for childcare we had to turn our lives upside down to arrange care while another spot opened. In this process other daycare places that seemed good also fell through and were inconsistent.with their enrollment availability. Finally a friend pointed us to Abba's House. We are absolutely in love with the place. The care, accountability and access is above and beyond. We are extremely impressed with the teachers in the infant room and how much love they have for every single child in their care. Their option of cameras throughout the day let's you check in on your little one and every single time you log on you see those teachers treating their kiddos with love, care and playfulness. We are very happy to remain with Abba's House for the long haul of our son's care. Special shout out to Carolyn, Brittany and Paula. They simply love what they do and it shows.

At first I thought it was ok then they give me a note saying the police will be at the daycare…read moreinvestigating car seats I thought really Then a week later driving home I get a call from CYS they said A report about locking my child in his room but when interviewed he said what happened he shut the door and it locked and he couldnt get it opened right away just pathetic Dont use these people unless you want trouble they told my child not to tell me he was talking to them! If you use them you will be sorry Their ignorant cop happy idiot who will bring you problems thier the people you despise !!!

I drove by today on my way to see a client and witnessed one of the daycare staff very roughly…read morepicking up a child on the playground and putting him under her arms like a piece of wood, I called and spoke with the assistant director who was very nice but I was shocked by what I observed

When my husband and I got pregnant we knew we would have to decide on a daycare. We toured a…read morenumber of centers in the area, along with Kids Court. When we had our tour with Kids Court we were impressed with how clean and homey this daycare is. The staff was very pleasant and the director reviewed all the information that we would need for our baby. She also answered all of my questions (I had a page full) with no problem. We told the director we had one more tour that day and we would get back to her asap. I would have signed up immediately but my husband said we should at least tour the last daycare since we did have an appointment with them. After the last tour, we did not change our mind we decided to sign up with Kid's Court. Since then we have had 2 other children, we put them all in Kids Court through the years. Even, when we needed full time and/or part time they have always been professional and accomodating. I highly recommend this daycare, everyone there is and will always be a part of our family.

Hair services and eyebrow waxing services are affordable and well done. Nails are lacking due to…read moreminimal supplies. I recently went for a mani/pedi since I had gotten my hair cut there a few times and was satisfied with that. I paid $34 for the mani/pedi combo and they didn't even have a pedicure station...I had to put my feet on the girl's lap as she did them. Would definitely go for hair/waxing again, but not nails!

I am a recent graduate from Empire Beauty Schools and I wouldn't have chosen a different school, no…read morematter what state I live in. I'm from Georgia, and would have went to the same school there, but life circumstances led me here, and I am glad I went. Even with carpooling from Lewistown, once I got there, I found girls that I could ride home with, that lived in my area and we are still friends today. The staff is wonderful. Mrs. Natali is a great classroom instructor and if she doesn't know the answer, which isn't very likely, she will always make sure she finds it for you. Ms. Stacie is very knowledgable in the business aspect of the industry and can definately further your knowledge in the advanced methods that she teaches. She's very verbal with her explanations and in-depth as well. Mrs. Leah, coming through the school's education system, is now the salon floor instructor, which fits her bill. She stays up in all the latest and newest hair trends and will explore all those possibilities with her hands-on approach to learning. Mrs. Lorri, as the Executive Director, has all the knowledge of her staff, wrapped into one. She's been in the business for at least two decades and has worked in both Lewistown and State College, giving her the best idea in ways to continue not just your career but your education. Also, Mr. Schoeneman has a dedication to his students and staff by providing different workshops and Expo's, including the one that brings together all 103 offiliated schools together for competition and school spirit. Overall, I feel like I came for an education and left with a career and a life-long extended family. I LOVE what we do at Empire Beauty School!!

The staff were great. We took a gluten free class. I learned a few new tricks and had a really…read morenice night. We would definitely do it again.

A fun and delicious activity! We visited Tastebuds Kitchen…read morein State College to participate in one of their adult BYOB cooking classes (we had gift certificates). We had no idea what to expect, but had so much fun we are still talking about our evening! We registered for the Indian cuisine course (Samosas, Tikki Masala, and naan bread) that took place from 6:00-8:00 on a Saturday evening. This is a fun, lighthearted, and more of a social activity than a hard-core cooking lesson, which we enjoyed. Upon entering the establishment, we were very pleased with the bright, colorful, and simplistic decorations/equipment. Everything was very clean and no extra clutter existed, which is what one would want in a food prep area. For this class there were 3 stainless steel tables (4 people per table) set up with stools, parallel to the demonstration area. We were given aprons to wear and introduced to our assigned station and group members (We had the best and most fun people at our table!). After everyone had arrived and introductions completed an overview of the course and food was presented. Efficiency is best to describe this course. While we were watching the demonstration for one component of the meal, the assistants were placing the necessary equipment and supplies to make that component at our table. After the demo of each course/food we returned to our stations and worked as a group to prepare/cook that item. After we completed an item the assistants would take them from the station to hold for later and we returned to the demo area for the next presentation (the assistants would also clean the area during this time). This process repeated for each menu item. I wish I had this type of set up while cooking at home! After the last item is prepared, the assistants bring each table place settings and then serve all the dishes we prepared family style. I loved the family style where we actually were able to sit and enjoy a full meal of all items we prepared throughout the event instead of just tasting pieces along the way. We had a great time and are looking forward to taking additional courses in the future. Yes, the cost is a bit steep $55pp, but for 2+ hours and a full meal etc, I would go again for a date night/group outing.