I applied online and received a call from the Center Director a couple of days later. We talked for about 10 minutes about my education and experience with children, and I was then asked to come in.
A couple of days later, I interviewed with a member of management. After discussing desired hours and pay, I was then taken to the classrooms so that I could observe and interact with the children.
Even though there were separate classrooms for the kindergarteners and school-agers, there were 30+ kids from both age groups all squeezed into one room together. I immediately noticed the teacher's worn-out appearance. She was friendly and answered my questions, but she was barely able to catch her breath in between mopping the floor, cleaning up the younger kids' art supplies, and trying to serve a meal. The assistant just stood around and even failed to notice that one of the children was crying. Upon leaving the room to continue the interview, I observed several managers chitchatting in the hallway.
I asked my interviewer several more questions about the child/teacher ratio and how disciplinary issues are handled. She was straightforward and honest with her answers, but then she started describing additional duties and responsibilities that were not listed in the original job description, such as driving the center bus and fixing broken toilets. These things are certainly not beneath me, but it would have been nice to know about them before wages were negotiated.
Aside from interacting with the sweet children, the experience did not give me a good impression of the company. I had read the deplorable reviews on here and other sites beforehand, but I tried going in with an open mind and the hopes that maybe this center was different. It wasn't. I declined my offer because, as much as I want to help children learn and grow, I have no desire to be a part of a company who severely undervalues and underpays their hardworking employees.