special education teacher

teaching assistant

early childhood teacher

registered nurse

school nurse

Just Kids Early Childhood Learning Center

What is the best part of working at the company?
The best part about working at Just Kids is the colleagues. There are many talented service providers and teachers. However, the turnover has been awful and so many have left which leaves students unsupported.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The administration is an absolute joke. The job requirement for special educators is literally 2 pages long. There is no work/life balance. No prep time. Lunch is 30 minutes. 401 k is unmatched. Untrained TA’s with high turnover rate. Kids placed in classrooms that are not suitable in terms of ratio just to fill the seats.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Dreadful and toxic. The rumor mill is awful. TA’s have a union while teachers have none. Administration picks and chooses battles. Most people use this school as a springboard into districts or other places of employment. So many OCFS violations it’s a wonder they continue to operate. Out of compliance regularly with classroom ratios. Constant pulling of staff to different classrooms to cover absences.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
It’s equivocal to a painful tooth extraction.

My time at this job has been nothing short of disappointing. The work environment is deeply toxic, with administration showing little concern for staff well-being or job security. The atmosphere is one of constant unease, where job insecurity prevails and talented employees are left feeling miserable and powerless. Decisions seem to be driven by their personal motives rather than a fair and just approach to disciplining, transferring, firing or forcing employees to resign. They use manipulative and intimidation style tactics to support an environment of fear and apprehension, where speaking up can lead to retaliation.

It's regrettable to see so much potential for a positive workplace culture wasted in favor of such a destructive atmosphere. Employees often feel they have no other option but to leave for the sake of their well-being. You can work there 20 years and they’ll fire you in a second. I strongly advise anyone considering a position here to carefully weigh the potential consequences on their mental health and job satisfaction.

Like many young teachers, just kids captivated me. Little did I know that it would absolutely crush my desire to teach. There are unfair expectations, management is terrible, favoritism is rampant and kids are severely misplaced. The principals don’t care. They’d rather blame you for their shortcomings to cover their own backs. This place is not going to last. The turn over rate is insane due to increasing demands with no support from the higher ups. If I could go back in time I would never accept the job. Principals & “curriculum advisor” have forgotten what it’s like to teach in a classroom. It’s all about putting on a show to please them. What 3 year old cares about earning bees? It’s ridiculous. Please be warned: you’d make more money working at McDonald’s with less stress than working for this company. Please note that there are so many other jobs who value their teachers, support them and actually want to help. Just kids ISNT a place like that. Stay away. 

This school is a horror show. Teachers and TAs get thrown to the wolves with no training and no support from administrators. Children are not placed properly.  Administrators accept children into the school who do not belong ... for the money. They put children in classrooms they don't belong in which only escalates negative behaviors, which in turn burns out the teachers. This is the reason there is such a high turnover rate with teachers and why you'll continue to see an ad for job openings here until there is an administration change. The people who run the school care more about flaunting their authority over the hardworking and underappreciated teachers than they do the actual children. The principal especially is unapproachable and condescending. The children are the ONLY positive thing about this place. Save yourself the trouble and skip applying here. 

The students and teachers are great and make the job a rewarding place but the principal and upper administration is toxic and manipulative. They fire people without reason, force people to leave by writing them up constantly and manipulate employees against each other. It also is correct that they fire good employees who have been there for years or they manipulate them/treat them horribly to force them to quit. The teachers are all drained and overworked/expected to complete paperwork on their own time and not compensated enough. Do yourself a favor and find a school that will appreciate and value their employees, Just Kids is not it and that is why everyone leaves.

If you are an experienced teacher without the right piece of paper and yet a ton of experience, training and knowledge, you are ostracized. Kids are amazing! HR is obstructionist, the “real” teachers refuse to accept your input, and the environment is one of fear and distrust unless you are a lead teacher. Yes in theory everyone knowsOCFS regulations and best practices. In practice it’s just a competition to look good. Kids suffer when lead teacher spends half the day on an iPod seesawing with parents so they will be impressed while the kids are ignored. More about the teacher spouting lip service and changing methods when someone is looking and less about the kids’ holistic experience  

What is the best part of working at the company?
I worked for 3 years and the best part was that I got excellent teachers and colleagues plus the management everyone was very supportive and helpful 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
When there is a snow day or any other national holiday I don’t get pay

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It is very comfortable everyone follows the rules and regulations there was no restrictions of taking scarf on head for Muslim workers.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
There was no typical day for me I enjoyed everyday as I learnt so many things

Just kids is a phenomenal company to work for. Working for them has been the best experience in the classroom setting I have yet to experience. The management, support staff, teachers and all employees are amazing, supportive and have become like family! We all encourage each other to grow and become the best version of ourselves! Working as a team to provide the best possible resources and educational experiences for the children and parents is top priority and comes so easy when you have others to help. 

Many other teachers are lovely. The TAs are mostly great (always random though as there is turnover). The problems begin and end with Admin. In every location the Admin are not in touch with reality. There have been multiple OCFS complaints and the same Admin are still in place. To go even further, the nepotism is rampant. In 1 location If you arent related to the principal you need to be extremely afraid. Better to work in a district or a fast food restaurant or anywherre other than here if you want to be appreciated, have competent management, or even feel like your job security is safe.



Just Kids is a great place to work. I have been here for about 10 years and it's been such a great experience. I had the opportunity to grow within the company and this was all possible because of the support that was given by Just Kids. I feel like Just Kids is the perfect place where you can expect to receive help from everyone, not just the CEO and management team. The CEO and management team are very supportive of their staff and they do want you to succeed. The workplace is so welcoming with the wonderful staff and children that fill the hallways! Love working here. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Special education teacher 15 salaries reported	$71,480 per year
Teaching assistant 21 salaries reported	$21.68 per hour
Early childhood teacher 8 salaries reported	$57,217 per year
Registered nurse 2 salaries reported	$64,725 per year
School nurse 3 salaries reported	$61,050 per year

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