Couple Preparing to Offer New Childcare Choice for Families
By this spring, families will have another choice for their child care needs in the area.
Allen Yesilevich and his wife, Rebecca Scharf, are opening Kiddie Academy in Briarcliff Manor, which will mainly serve children from six weeks old through the pre-school years that focuses on multiple aspects of a growing child’s development. They expect to open in what will be a newly-renovated space on South Highland Avenue sometime in May or early June.
In addition to Scharf’s 20 years’ experience working in early childhood education, from preschool through second grade, the couple has had extensive personal interactions with other programs for their now four- and eight-year-old daughters.
So when they were exploring their own childcare center, they had a strong inkling of what they wanted to see.
“As parents, but also my wife being an educator, both of our children have been enrolled in daycare for some time,” said Yesilevich whose work background has been in community events planning. “We’ve been enrolled at certain daycares that we probably thought didn’t provide the best quality, and we’ve seen others that were on the other side of the spectrum. But what I think what’s missing is this collective approach that combines play, academic education, being prepared for kindergarten and just offering this curriculum that focuses on developing well-rounded, appropriate children upon graduation.”
After the renovation, Kiddie Academy will occupy a 9,000-square-foot interior space that will feature 10 classrooms – two rooms each for infants, toddlers and the 2s and 3s program and one for the program for four-year-olds, Yesilevich said. There will also be a flex space to house the aftercare program to tend to children before and after the school day.
Kiddie Academy will be open weekdays from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. to accommodate children whose parents both commute to and from work, he said.
Adjacent to the building is also a 5,000-square-foot playground that can be cordoned off between younger and older students. The center will be able to accommodate up to about 125 children. At full capacity Yesilevich expects to employ 40 to 50 staff members.
Once Yesilevich and Scharf did their homework, it became apparent to them that Kiddie Academy would be the one that they would form a partnership. When they made site visits to other locations, were teachers actively involved in the curriculum, specially developed for each level.
“We evaluated several organizations to partner with and we literally chose Kiddie Academy because we fell in love with their curriculum, their approach and education,” Yesilevich said of the reason for moving forward with their franchise location.
They reason it would be particularly attractive to Westchester families who demand a certain quality of program for their children. Another advantage is that the parent company is family-owned rather than having a corporate relationship or little support from other entities that are owned by investors, he said.
“I think especially in the Westchester area, parents are definitely more sophisticated when it comes to early childhood education, and they are demanding more, and we feel like our approach can align with the expectations,” Yesilevich said.
“It’s a big investment, it’s a big financial decision and they want to make sure they get the most value out of it,” he added.
There will also be an ample investment in security for the center, Yesilevich said. Kiddie Academy in Briarcliff will have the latest security features including a touchpad on the outside door where every family enrolled will have a unique access code; a check-in computer station right after you’re inside where a parent or guardian will have to input their code; a staff member stationed at the entrance at all times; and two video surveillance cameras in each classroom and another on the playground with the ability to store footage for a week.
Kiddie Academy will host a summer program for children up to seven years old.
There will be a ceremonial groundbreaking on Saturday, Jan. 18 at noon at the space that is under renovation at 325 Highland Ave. in Briarcliff Manor. It will be attended by local officials. For more information about Kiddie Academy, visit https://kiddieacademy.com/academies/briarcliff-manor/
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
