St. Paul Early Learning Center 2021 Tara Boulevard, Baton Rouge, LA 70806

"We always felt like our son was well cared for in the infant room at St. Paul’s. We appreciated the long hours that they’re open as we work long days. My son ended up with a peanut allergy and we felt very safe sending him. The daycare is small and personal, and an example of this is that the director was able to FaceTime me anytime she was concerned about something. Also, loved the location! I do feel the cost was a good value- in the toddler room all food/drink during the day is included which makes life easier."

"My son has been attending this facility for a year now and I have all good things to say about it! The staff are all so friendly and show that they truly care about the children. The baby room teachers (who I am most familiar with) do such a good job of caring for the babies at all different stages and getting excited alongside us when they are learning new things and developing. I couldn’t ask for better caretakers for my son throughout the week. They have always been very transparent about everything and have lots of fun events for the parents/family to be involved in. They use an app to keep us updated on diaper changes, naps, eating, pictures, etc. which is so nice to have that communication throughout the day. I tell every new mom I know seeking childcare to consider St. Paul ELC!"

"My wife and I recently visited the St. Paul Early Learning Center for possible care for our 2 month old. When entering the facility, we were fortunate to hear the ending of another tour which gave us high hopes. The previous couple seemed to have a wonderful tour and were excited to have their child begin attending this facility. The tour began in Mrs. Holly’s office, where a simple explanation of the facility was given and then began the tour. The initial room we observed happened to be for newborn to 1 year old children. Our tour was during nap time, so most of the children were sleeping. The room is divided into two sections. One for newborn to younger infants, the other for children closer to aging out of the room. There was one caretaker for, what I counted, 6 newborn to younger infants. Two caretakers for the older infants. The caretaker looking after the younger infants seemed to be engaged and attentive to the children. The other two caretakers in the room appeared to be more focused on their cell phones, but I cannot reliably say their attention wasn’t properly focused. The only negatives from that room were some of the younger infants were on swings without restraints, swinging at a rate that would frighten me if I saw my child in it. The next room of the tour involved the 1 and 2 year olds. Again, my wife and I are taking this tour during nap time. We enter the dimly lit room, and I notice Mrs. Holly gesturing to the caretakers in a motion as if to tell them to sit up. Immediately, I look to see what she could be seeing and I notice the two caretakers laying down on the children’s type gymnast mats, and both on their phone. For parents with or without children who attend this facility, the location of where I am talking is about 5 feet from the entrance of the room to the left. The reason I point this out is due to the location of the children. There are close to 10 children in this room, and the caretakers are in a location where they can only visibly see 2 of the children. While observing the room, I look down at my feet where a child is sleeping on a mat. This child is one of the two that are visible to the caretakers. When I look down, I notice the child’s pacifier laying on the ground not inches from where I had stepped. The child’s face pointed in the opposite direction, so I knew it didn’t fall their in the time I walked in the room. I picked it up and tried to inform the caretakers, and they told me just to put it on the mat. They didn’t seem to care to wash or sanitize it in any way, which was troubling. The final room we entered was for the older children at the center. As we entered the room, we were greeted with extremely loud melody of Whitney Houston. I point this out just because it was at such a high volume, it jarred me. But, what disturbed me was what I didn’t see. The caretaker. So, I walked swiftly through the T shaped room to find the caretaker. And I tell you what, I found her. I found the caretaker head down on the ledge of the counter, unconscious. I say unconscious because I mean unconscious to the world. The tour ended with the exterior play area which had a not secured gate to the exterior of the facility facing Old Hammond Hwy. My wife and I walk back to the office before we leave and I asked Mrs. Holly two questions. If her caretakers kept any certifications; i.e. C.P.R. and first aid; and asked her about the incidents with the three caretakers. These question seemed to upset her and she stated that her caretakers all had background checks. Then that she didn’t see anybody sleeping. Needless to say, our child will not be attending this facility. If your child does attend here, I would suggest making a pop in visit to check on how they are running this facility. I will be making a complaint to the state board as well. The failures I saw with my own two eyes are enough to me that could end up hurting someone’s child."

"I recently switched my 2yr old son to St Paul Early Learning Center. In the few weeks that he’s been there, he’s already making big improvements in learning. He can correctly identify shapes, and has started counting 1-10. The teachers are wonderful, and it is a bright cheerful environment. They have an app that sends me alerts throughout the day on their activities and I get pictures. I love that it’s a smaller facility with a lot of involvement from the families that attend. I’m very happy we chose St. Paul."

"Since my daughter (2yr old) has started at St Paul’s Early Learning Center, she has drastically thrived in her speech and social skills! When we began she was considered delayed in speech and now she is just talking and singing away! She gets so excited to see all of the teachers everyday and loves her little friends! St Paul’s has become family to us and highly recommend for other families to enroll the little ones! I love that I get updates and pictures through out the day of her as well!"