Childcare

[Julie]

Hi All,

I was wondering if anyone had any experiences (good or bad) or
recommendations for childcare in Ann Arbor. Also, I noticed a link
for the University of Michigan Children's Centers. Are these used by
a lot of people from the business school, or do most people just find
their own child care?

Thanks,
Julie

[Megan Maynor]

Hi Julie,

I know at least one partner last year used the University of Michigan
Childcare and really liked it.

We sent our two kids to CDC (Community Daycare and Preschool) a few
afternoons per week last year and absolutely loved it. It's practically
across the street from Woodbury Gardens and I can't say enough good things
about the staff there. They take kids from age 2-1/2 to 5. They're very
flexible with scheduling too. Here's their site.
http://www.communitydaycareinc.org/

Gretchen's House is another place that I know Ross Partners have used--and
are very happy with. They have a couple locations in Ann Arbor.
http://www.gretchenshouse.com

I'd be happy to answer questions about CDC, and if you'd like to talk to
Ross partners who used the other two facilities, just let me know.

Megan Maynor

[Sara Ingmire]

Julie,

I looked into a the U of M Children's Center a little bit for next year because I wanted my boys to have a chance to go a few mornings a week.  (They will go to class for 2.5 hours on Mondays and Wednesdays.)  I was really happy with how everything looked at the Children's Center, from the environment to the child-teacher ratio.  While the Children's Center is more for part-time care, there are a few other places within the U of M system that provide varying levels of care for kids.  You can find out more about all of them at http://www.hr.umich.edu/childcare/index.html.

In addition to the two places Megan mentioned, I know some partners who have sent their children to Children's Creative Center (CCC)

Also, if you are looking for a comprehensive list of schools and daycares in Ann Arbor, you can actually find that on the Ross Partners website (http://www.rosspartners.org ).  It is under the MBA Kids section, but a direct link to download that spreadsheet is http://webuser.bus.umich.edu/organizations/rosspartners/documents/2006_Housing_Schools.xls .  You may have found that already, but if not, I hope it helps.

I also want to mention again the ArborParents Yahoo! group that has been brought up before.  They maintain a FAQ page that has some childcare information: http://www.unixmama.com/arborparents/faq.html.  You can also join the group and ask for additional opinions by going to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/arborparents/.   If you join the group, they also have a large database of childcare options with what people liked, didn't like, and their general opinion, which seems like it would be really, really helpful.

Let me know if you have any other questions.  Good luck!

Sara

[Sara Ingmire]

To add on to the Child Care line of questioning...

My kids are going to be at the UM Children's Center this fall. I just
got a letter from them saying that there are openings in the following
classes:

Infants (birthday between 12/1/06 and 6/1/07) - Sessions are every
day, morning (8:00-12:15) and afternoon (1:15-5:30)

3-4 year olds (birthday between 12/1/03-11/30/04) afternoons:
- M,W,F 1:00-4:15pm
- Tu,Th 1:00-4:15pm

4-5 year olds (birthday between 12/1/02 and 11/30/03) afternoons:
- M-F 1:00-4:15pm
- M,W,F 1:00-4:15pm
- Tu,Th 1:00-4:15pm

Kindergarten (birthday between 12/1/01 and 11/30/02) mornings (M-F
8:30-11:45am)

Let me know if you would like pricing or contact information for the
classes.

Sara

[shipra]

Dear sara
i hope it is not too late to mention that i recieved none of the
messages from MBA KIDS group..
regarding the admission info to any of the stuff even though i
added myself to the MBA kidsgroup.
anywayz at this point of time i must mention my son is 4and half yr
old born on 2nd dec 2002 he'll be 5 this this yr..am unable to get
him to any of the public schools this yr as acc to them he's just
lacking by one day and then i have been to the no. of the schools but
unable to get him to any sometimes just because of the distance
sometimes just because of the fee structure say like they ask 290-430
$ a week just for three days a week can u suggest what would be
really appropriate..
we are staying in woodbury garden's.
thanks
shipra

[Megan Maynor]

Hi Shipra,
Megan Maynor here--I know it's true, childcare in Ann Arbor is very
expensive. I'll offer a couple ideas, as they may be helpful/interesting to
others too.

If you are working part time (20 hours/week) or more, you can apply for
Childcare Subsidy through the University:
http://www.finaid.umich.edu/Types_of_Financial_Aid/child.asp#who

Another option that might be interesting is First Steps. They offer great
classes for kids ages 0-5 along with their parents. Each class meets just
once per week, but the cost is less and there is a sliding fee scale and
scholarships available. (For those with new babies--this might be a lot of
fun! Sara and others have taken classes here and I think I might do it with
my 5 month old this year)
http://www.aaps.k12.mi.us/firststeps.home/home

I mentioned this in another email, but we sent our kids to CDC (Community
Day Care and Preschool) last year. And they do have something of a sliding
scale for fees--and I believe some scholarships available. The Director's
name is Audrey, you could call her for more info. (They are practically
across the street from Woodbury Gardens).
http://www.communitydaycareinc.org/

Also, another partner from last year really loved the Stone School Co-op.
This is very inexpensive and the idea is that you, as the parent,
participate in the preschool too, thus lowering the cost. I don't know more
about it personally, but you could check out the site:
http://www.stoneschool.org/

I also found this co-op preschool listed, but don't know of anyone who's
personally used it:
http://www.annarborcoopnursery.com

And perhaps you might be able to arrange a "childcare swap" with other
partners where you'd take turns watching each others' kids and the moms get
an afternoon off.

Hope these options are helpful, let me know if I can be of more assistance!

We'll finally be in town next week and I'm looking forward to meeting you
all in person!

Megan.

-----Original Message-----
From: 2009ross...@googlegroups.com
[mailto:2009ross...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of shipra
Sent: Monday, August 20, 2007 9:32 PM
To: 2009RossPartners

[Sara Ingmire]

Shipra,

 

Just to add one more thing on top of Megan's ideas... the U-M Children's Centers does have child tuition grants for anyone affiliated with the university.  I am not sure of their openings or how close they are to Woodbury, but a link to more information is:  http://www.hr.umich.edu/childcare/index.html.  Good luck!

 

Sara