Emerson Academy

Our son has attended Emerson for about 1.5yrs, and our daughter is starting here this summer. We have had such a positive experience with the directors and teachers, despite some very challenging situations with our kiddo. Every teacher we have come in contact with has been supportive and willing to implement any reasonable accommodation he needs, which was certainly not the case in other childcare facilities. I love that the school not only provides the preschool/​pre-​k education we expect, but the kids also get to bake, garden, interact with lots of animals, and other cool «bonuses.» This is the fourth school we tried over the years to find a good fit for our son, and he’s so happy here we don’t want him to leave when he starts kinder in the fall!

My son was enrolled briefly in their «special» class for 4 years old. Special all right: I witnessed an incident of a young boy breaking a huge toy on a teacher’s head, this poor teacher had to be very hurt. My son was standing next to me, we were both frozen by that scene, it was too much for me and I decided he was done with their special class. We tried to have him enrolled in their regular 4 years old class. Terrible communication from the managers, they told us they were going to have a spot reserved for our son and they took our money but instead they had removed him from their waiting list.

My daughter has been enrolled here for a little over a year now, and has been in two different classrooms. We’ve tried a couple of different schools before, but she is extremely sensitive and is afraid of other children hurting her. While she would get through the day at other schools she never wanted to go back, and when I’d pick her up she’d often be sitting in the corner quietly, with legs and arms tucked close to her body — a defensive position. She hasn’t received an official diagnosis, but we strongly suspect that she has Sensory Processing Disorder.
Emerson Academy takes children of all abilities, which means that they offer specialized training to their teachers. This training has meant all of the difference in the world to us. In previous schools the teachers would loudly and enthusiastically greet my daughter each morning, no matter how many times they saw her shrink back and cover her ears. The teachers at Emerson actually pay attention and respond appropriately. They can recognize the signs of a child being overwhelmed or scared, so they just smile warmly and welcome her with a quiet voice. This probably isn’t a big deal for most parents, but for us it is HUGE and a sign that they’ll really understand how to work with her.
I am thrilled to say that my daughter loves going to school here now. She has absolutely blossomed under their care! She talks enthusiastically about how much she loves her teachers (and even gives them kisses and holds their hands), but even better — they have pushed her just enough to encourage her to really socialize with her peers. They have done an outstanding job of encouraging her to try new things without pushing her too far outside of her comfort zone.
I was terrified that all of the progress we’d made would be lost when she moved into a new classroom. My daughter LOVED her old teachers, especially Miss Laken. I’m thrilled to say that the way they handled the transition really made it seamless. They have the different classrooms overlap while playing outside (and they do a LOT of outside play) so that the kids have a chance to get to know kids and teachers in other classes. The week of transition the children would gradually increase the amount of time they spent in the other class over the course of the week. This type of gradual transition is just what my daughter needed. It also means that she still gets the opportunity to see her old, beloved teachers each day.
I’ve referred several friends here now, and they have been just as satisfied as we are. I cannot express how grateful I am to have found Emerson Academy and these outstanding teachers.

We recently moved here and after looking around at a few places that wouldn’t take my kids I felt a bit hopeless. The last two places I contacted told me to look up emerson academy because they were wonderful and had smaller class size that would be better for my children. I figured if they were willing sending me to another center they must be that good.
I went and spoke to the director Sarah that and I was over joyed at how easy she seemed to handle my kids needs. I have a 4 year old and 3 year old that are on the autism spectrum. My 3 year old is almost non verbal and my 4 year old knows words, but has a hard time expressing them. They both have triggers n things that bother them along with allergies, but no matter what I said she just nodded n assured me she could handle it.
She has so much experience with kids like mine and trains her staff for all special needs. She gave me information for a lady that’s a speech and occupational therapist so I could get new therapy set up here. She also told me the same lady trains her staff. They are training next week.
Now to the most important part both of my kids are in love with the place. Neither one want to leave because they learn and have fun in such a great environment. There’s a farm and garden there on the property too! My son has been in school and other daycares and no matter how long he attended he would freak out every morning and I’d fell awful for leaving. I don’t feel that way no because he takes my key to the door and willing walks away from me without so much as a bye!
Everyone there actually cares about the children!

I am shocked at the negative reviews. We could not possibly be happier with Emerson. We moved our son here after it became obvious our prior daycare was fine for infants but not toddlers. Emerson has perfected parent communication. I hear about everything and am so grateful! Even other teachers and the directors let me know about my son’s day.
Our son changed classes fairly soon after joining Emerson, and the transition was seamless, something we weren’t prepared for. He loves the farm animals and great playgrounds. Our teachers held our hands through potty-​training and were so incredibly helpful. The classes are well-​structured and he is learning so much. We pay a bit more than we did at our first daycare, but the health and happiness of my child is just so worth it. My advice is to ignore the negative reviews here. We feel very lucky to have found Emerson.

5 years ago I made the mistake of enrolling my child here thinking they were understanding of children with differences. It turned out to be a nightmare that my child still remembers and asks me «why did you take me to that awful place?». Please research any establishment that you’d entrust to care for your child when you aren’t there and trust your gut… I wish I had. Contact Texas Department of Family and Protective Services directly and request a FULL history of reports/​inspections of this establishment and any that you consider. A little research goes a long way.