Community Space - Chief Operating Officer Urban Sprouts Child Development Center Employee Review

As it says in their mission statement, Urban Sprouts is a joyful, diverse, learning community where the rights of children take precedence, their ideas have voice, and each child and family is valued. Every member of the team is called to truly care for the children and each other. They esteem people over programs and I love being a part of work that impacts my community in a meaningful way. While providing high quality early care and education has remained at the core, the mission extends beyond the boundaries of their University City location. Urban Sprouts is an advocate for young children and a partner with others seeking to elevate the needs of our community throughout St. Louis, nationally, and throughout the world. This commitment, passion, and dedication to make and sustain positive change is what brought me to Urban Sprouts and empowers me to serve.

As with any growing organization, we are constantly looking for like-minded people to partner with us in this work. Finding qualified individuals who understand our mission and are excited to devote themselves to learning, growing and serving our community remains a challenge. We expect everyone in our program, regardless of position, to uphold one another and work together to make the vision a reality. We believe in creating joyful spaces and are committed to finding, developing and retaining the best people to do join us in this endeavor.

On the surface, the benefits and compensation package appeared competitive and attractive. However, I learned very quickly that these perks were not worth the immense, ongoing psychological stress and unprofessional treatment I was forced to endure.

The reality of working there was vastly different from the public-facing image. The owner maintained a carefully curated persona for the public and prospective clients, but behind closed doors, the environment was toxic, controlling, and deeply demoralizing. Management relied on micromanagement and intimidation rather than support. I was personally subjected to—and witnessed others endure—highly unprofessional behavior. It was not uncommon for staff to be belittled, cursed at, and subjected to demeaning language. The owner was obsessed with optics and perception above all else. The most significant source of stress was the frequent, staged tours. We were expected to maintain an impossible standard of perfection at all times to satisfy the owner’s need for an impressive narrative. If a classroom was not "show-ready"—even due to natural, expected occurrences like a child having an accident—the reaction from leadership was explosive and unprofessional. The expectations were consistently unrealistic and overbearing, which created a climate of fear rather than a positive educational environment.