AURORA — The grand opening of Goddard School in Aurora, a high-quality daycare, is a celebration for those in the Portage County community after an increased need for them.
“We love Aurora, and we knew they were desperately in need of a high-end childcare program,” Kim DiMuzio, the owner, said.
Parents in Aurora said they had a few childcare options, but nothing like the Goddard school. Dave Mcelhatten, a parent in the community, said he has two kids who attend the Chargin fall location.
“If a parent is looking for a school where their kids will have interaction, their kids will grow exponentially with their communication skills and getting themselves prepped for kindergarten then there's no better place to go than Goddard,” said Mcelhatten. “The development has been unbelievable, and their speech has improved quickly. Our son can spell words, he was able to do the alphabets at the age of one."
News 5 reported on the 382 daycares that closed in May of 2024 due to staffing and funding.
RELATED: 382 daycares have closed in Ohio since 2020. The issue: staffing and funding
The school starts the children off at six weeks and stays with them until kindergarten.
“We have [a] curriculum for the infant rooms, and we're already teaching them sign language and we are doing self-help skills with them. We are doing their schedule exactly like you would at home, so we keep them on schedule. We also keep them alert, we keep them safe, and we make sure they're loved at school as well as at home,” DiMuzio said.
The new school has 10 classrooms and can hold up to 226 students. This location will also offer a school-age program that many families said is desperately needed.
“We know that Aurora needs a school-age program so badly for after school or even before. The school bus that takes students to Aurora schools is going to pull up right to our front door, we're going to help them with their homework, and they can have fun in the classroom dedicated for the school aged children,” DiMuzio said.
Parents said the new location comes at the perfect time.
Statewide, legislators are pushing for more help to meet the demand for affordable daycare. Gov. Mike DeWine announced this week he’s expanding his childcare voucher program to thousands of working families who are having trouble affording daycare.
