Vinings Creative Learning Center

I have three years of experience with VCLC as a parent. VCLC has gone downhill since we started. The administration is heavy handed with staff, not committed to retaining high quality, Master's level educated teachers, and non-communicative and unprofessional with parents. The school lost two excellent teachers mid year this year, leaving our childen to adjust to floaters and a new teacher team, including the former administrative assistant of the school! \r \r While the strong academic program and small class size of this school are its strengths, its poor administration, teacher instability, awful facility, and questionable future of enrollment far outweighs them. more

Horrible school! I would strongly recommend that you do not go to this school and no matter what you do-DO NOT sign the contract, one you sign, there is no way to get out of the contract. And they have no problem bringing parents to court (yes COURT!) multiple times over payments that should have never been paid or asked for, but their contract is designed to screw the parents and the children. They do not care about the welfare of your child, all they care about is the bottom line which is Money. They blatantly lied to us, were rude and unfriendly. They think that they know what is best for your child over your opinon, which they do not even consider. They do what they want when they want with no regard for you or for you child.. If you care about your child you will not send them to this school! more

Loving Teachers, Open and Helpful Administration! VCLC Is one of the best kept secrets in the Smyrna area. Our 3-year old son had a fantastic year there and we are so pleased with his first school experience. We watched him blossom and learn under the loving teachers and caring staff. The teachers and administration were always very open, patient, and eager to answer our many questions throughout the school year. Our son has such a healthy, positive outlook on school and still asks to go everyday even though it is summertime. \r \r The small class sizes and low teacher-student ratios are a great setup for any child. Kids get the affection, attention and instruction they need without getting lost in the numbers as with many other schools that have much larger ratios.\r \r We would absolutely recommend VCLC to others and look forward to our son's second year there! more

We have been very pleased with the VCLC. Our now 3 year old daughter just finished her first year at this very academic school and she has learned her alphabet, numbers, colors and shapes. She has also been introduced to Spanish.\r \r The teachers are very caring and skilled at working with young children. The school encourages parent involvement, which has allowed us to get to know the teachers and meet other parents with children who attend the VCLC. The class sizes are small which is ideal for our daughter. Most importantly, our daughter really enjoys going to school and looks forward to seeing her teachers and friends at the VCLC.\r \r We have really enjoyed going on various school sponsored field trips during the year. VCLC takes trips to places like the Atlanta Zoo, Uncle Shucks Pumpkin Patch, Center for Puppetry Arts, etc. I was also impressed that the fire and police departments made separate trips to visit the school to talk to the children. more

I can't begin to describe the terrible experience that I had with VCLC in words. Wish I could un-do my ever having met the director, Eileen Ross and her cronies. Truly set my child back in terms of development. If I could rate this place negative stars, I'd have to dig deep to think of a negative number that would truly reflect my dissatisfaction. more

I have been around this school since its start. My children were in the first classes and we stayed until they aged-out. Our experience was so great that I have stayed involved even to this day. My children received a great foundation here. They were academically challenged and loved school. They are still friends with their “first” friends that they made at school. We were happy in every way. The director always encourages parents to come to her with their concerns. My guess is that those that are unsatisfied with the director did not actually go to her with concerns. She is very careful to make decisions in the best interests of the students. She tries to carefully pair teacher teams to create a strong relationship in the classroom. Parents that question her motives likely do not understand the situation because they haven’t approached her. She has been at every graduation and is the Director of Ceremonies so I don’t know what the other person is talking about. The school offers an excellent balance of strong academics and enrichment through the day. Students are on the playground at least 30 minutes a day. They ALSO have PE at half of the week and music the other. Art is a daily activity. Upper school students have an hour outside daily. This is amazing when I consider my 5th grader (at another school) who almost never goes outside. All of this while the curriculum exceeds the Georgia Standards for the current year and meets a large percentage of the following year. I attribute some of this to the small class sizes (14 or less in the upper grades!) I had no problem with going on field trips. They expanded learning outside of the classroom. Many facilities offer programs that are only available to school groups not the general public. I guess I would rather drive on a couple of field trips or find someone to carpool with then pay extra tuition to cover a bus. I have never received schoolbooks from any school. If you are looking for a balanced quality education with loving teachers and a small class environment check this place out! more

This preschool is NOT recommended! more

One of the most terrible experiences I've ever had. Director is TERRIBLE; does not listen to parents; habitually goes behind parents backs ! It's too bad because the teachers are very nice, but the overall negative experience well outweighs the professionalism of the teachers. May as well just open a poorly run bank instead of a pre-school on this property, because that is how it's run. more

We just finished up our first year at VCLC and it was an amazing year. The teachers are WONDERFUL. They were extremely caring, nurturing and loving to all students. The director is exceptional. I have no idea about the previous review. The director is very professional, organized but at the same time extremely caring. I knew the students' happiness and well-being was her ultimate priority. This school is very academic. My child was in the preschool so I can only speak to our experience. Even the young kids will spend their days learning, not just playing. They take Spanish, music, art, and PE. My child really loved VCLC and learned an incredible amount during this past year. Not only is the school wonderful and I would recommend to anyone, but there is also a great sense of community within the VCLC parents. There are moms' night outs several times throughout the year, as well as other events for families. There are many ways to get involved with the school too. I can't say enough about how much we have enjoyed our time there. The only downside is that it is a little pricier than some of the other preschools. more

We were there from the 2 year old class to PreK. They have a great curriculum. They have terrific and loving teachers who care. \r \r The Tuition fee is reasonable for the area. I don't see any issue in investing your time and some money in a school. We are now in private school and they ask us to be very involved with our time and money. The school is suppose to be a community. \r \r I recommend if you don't get a response park after car pool and walk in and ask directly. \r \r Workbooks were sent home at the end of the year with the exceptions of worksbooks created by VCLC as that is their private property.\r \r It is a private preschool it does not have to follow Cobb County and they are selective. Teacher work days are pretty much the same amount as private and public.\r \r Yes, parents must accompany their child on field trips, they do not have a van (either does our private school). However, the parent can always find another parent to take their child. Most parents find it fun to take a school mate.\r \r There is an end of the year presentation that is hosted by the adminstrators. There is also a picnic that is put on by the PTA which is optional for teachers and adminstrators.\r \r If you want your child the have a great start in Kindergarten I highly recommend. However, it may not be for every type of personality and that goes for any school not just this one. You must do your research and go with your instincts. more

This preschool is not recommended. It is more a business than a loving, caring environment. If I had done more research I would have found out that the director of the school does not have a good reputation and is unreasonable to parents- would not give the parents of the pre-k class 2009 their childrens workbooks upon graduation, did not return concerned calls and never showed up during the class graduation. Detrimental decisions are made without any attempt to return calls to concerned parents. \r Teachers are a hit and miss and seem to be stressed from the top administrator. The school expects a lot of volunteering from parents including painting, building fences, doing carpool, etc and also all parents are required to shop a supply list that not only includes crayons, etc but also swiffer mop wipes, 6 dozen paper towels and numerous other building cleaning supplies since these and other things are not a part of the school budget. I wish I had known because all of these things add up!\r The school also does not follow the Cobb County calendar and therefore starts much later than most schools (3 weeks later) and is also closed a lot for teachers work days and also all field trips must be accompanied by parents or the child is not allowed to go. When all is added together, it is a lot of tuition for what you get. more