I can't say enough good about this location of The Goddard School! I don't give 5 stars often, but they deserve it here!
When my son was born, he was born with a very rare cancer, so the anxiety I had sending him into a daycare/school once his oncologist cleared him at 1 was nearly unbearable, despite me being no stranger to this process as I have 2 older daughters that went to daycares throughout their prek years.
We tried 2 schools very close to our house. Our experience in short form was: he got so sick, so often that he ended up with pneumonia, developed asthma as a result, was not put in the promised classroom, had heavy teacher turnover (6 teachers in 7 months at 1 school) causing him to hate school and beg to not go, and had some nasty injuries.
Desperate for something else, I called around and toured a few schools. I found one that I had read good reviews about, and was going to start him there. I planned to cancel my tour of The Goddard School in Lithia because my daughter got hit by a car riding her bike to school the morning of the tour, but she was cleared just in time for me to make it, so I went.
I am so incredibly grateful that I didn't cancel that tour.
When I met Souji, the owner, she was so warm and welcoming, and super transparent, as well as completely understood and listened all my worries and terrible stories in detail about our past experiences. She took us around and showed us the school, we met teachers, saw them in action, and learned about the school's philosophy, as well as discussed cleanliness standards and much more. you could tell the teachers weren't putting on a show for the tour, and you could tell they were comfortable in their positions and responsibilities. I decided right then that despite having to now take on making lunch for my son in the morning, as well as the extra time spent driving to bring him and pick him up, that I was going to place him here.
It's worth the drive!
He has flourished ever since! The difference is AMAZING. He LOVES going to school, and is potty trained, as well as has become so incredibly verbal that I forget he is only 2 still! He has had a one teacher leave, but Souji let us know and amazingly our experience improved despite the teacher leaving! I didn't think the school could get better, but it has. They sanitize WELL (he hasn't gotten sick), keep kids engaged, teach new and advanced concepts, as well as truly make you feel like part of their own families. My son is finally cared for like I would at home, or better even and Mrs. Sylvia is so attentive. She ALWAYS knows all the details about his day as well as each child in her class. He hasn't had a single injury, as he shouldn't, thanks to her attentiveness. He's so calm and comfortable and tells me about his school, what he learned, and his teachers and friends as he falls asleep each night. It's impressive! Souji really knows how to hire and keep her people happy, which reflects on the kiddos that are in their care. It shows so much in my son and I couldn't ask for more. Each day when we pick him up, one of us mentions how happy we are that we made the switch. Now, we are moving closer to the other location owned by Souji and her husband Shekar, and it was a hard decision to switch locations because we LOVE this location so much, but overall, I trust Souji and Shekar and their business practices enough to feel good about the transition this summer. I trust anyone at this location with my son, and his happiness as well as new knowledge every day is a testament to how amazing this school is! It is this great here as a direct result of the ownership, hiring practices and teacher satisfaction and it shows. I had the most horrible experiences at two other schools before here and didn't take the time to write those out and warn other parents like I probably should, but I wanted to take time to really praise the team and operational practices here because it really is that good, and parents seeking a good place for their little ones should know! I'm only sad it wasn't around when my girls were younger. read more