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April 2024 by Dawn Martin
All three of my children go to Duncan Academy. There is truly nowhere else I would rather my children go. The teachers truly care about each child, they make my children, feel special, they get to engage in unique activities at Duncan, and they prepare children for elementary school! Our oldest child is in kindergarten and he is thriving! The owner is amazing as well. She is so kind, caring, and loving to all of the children. I truly do not believe that there is a better daycare out there!
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January 2024 by Nicole Love
The most loving environment for all children!
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January 2024 by LTK faster
This isn't a daycare, it's a school and no one cares for your children more
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November 2023 by Alethea Thomas
After nearly two years of attendance at Duncan Academy my son was kicked out. They were experiencing behavioral problems with my son that he never displayed at home. He was smart enough to know he could get away with anything, and thrived in the attention he got from it. That environment created the problem, it was not my son's fault and the director fails to see the facts.They sent me a video of my son jumping from the top of a shelving unit. No one bothering to stop him, or get him down. This was so unsafe, so they just let him do it? I honestly wonder what is wrong with these people.We spoke with the teacher and director ONCE. There was no process for remediation. Instead of calling us to pick him up and working out the issue, it was easier just to kick him out. They have dozens of eager people waiting to get into this daycare, so no sweat off their backs. This left us scrambling to find other care.If you are considering this daycare know that the tuition is outrageous, 230$ per week. They really don't care about or your kids. They won't stop your kids from doing dangerous things, or provide any negative consequences for bad behavior. If you have a willful stubborn child you will likely get kicked out when problems come up.AND *BONUS* our family has had ongoing cases of PINWORMS since starting with Duncan. So at least we may finally get rid of our little friends by leaving.
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November 2023 by Paula Martin
Very friendly. All you see are smiling faces, from the first minute you step n the front doors.
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December 2022 by Bryson Cresswell
We toured the facility back in 2021 and was put on a wait list for a year. August 2022 was our enrollment date. I called numerous times (at least 6 or 7 times) in the months of May, June and July of 2022 to confirm my child's enrollment date and every time I called the director was "busy" and they would take my contact information down every single time. The director never called back. My wife sent an email in August 2022 to see what the issue was and the director indicated that we had "no show" a couple of times for a tour and didn't call. They also indicated that we were on the bottom of the wait list due to this fact pattern. I called the director the same day of this conversation to try and clear up the issue and again they took my information down and never got back with me. This establishment is very unprofessional and has the worst communication, especially for a child care facility. I have never been a proponent of leaving bad reviews, but this behavior was so egregious, that I was compelled to leave a review. I am extremely disappointed and would not recommend this establishment.
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December 2021 by Kim Witt
We placed our 2 month old son with Duncan and kept him there until school age. It’s been 2 years since he was last there but the positive feelings remain. We consistently felt safe taking our son to Duncan. He met his best friend in the Tadpoles room - they still hang out in person and via FaceTime. The staff at Duncan were instrumental in helping our son through his sensory and eating issues. They put a plan in place and suddenly he was eating foods he had rejected for years. I highly recommend Duncan Academy - they excellently prepared him for kindergarten and use the same teaching techniques that schools recommend.
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December 2018 by Kristen Williams
I was extremely disappointed with the director, Ali Gillette. After 10 months on the waiting list, multiple calls, email, stopping in twice and numerous messages left, she NEVER returned one call or message. I got her on the phone once, but she quickly told me she had to go and would call me right back.... never happened. I had heard such great things about Duncan Academy in Grain Valley. But after my experience, there is no way I would put my children in her care. Too unprofessional for me.
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December 2016 by Kari Heinrich
LOVE LOVE LOVE Duncan Academy! My child use to have issues going to daycare, throwing fits and refusing, crying how she didn't like school or want to go. Since we've moved to Duncan (about 8 months ago), she enjoys daycare so much, and is very excited to go everyday. She loves showing me and talking about what she learns at Duncan, and she has wonderful teachers. Ali is very particular in who she hires to care for our children, so I know my child is always in the best care.
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December 2016 by Angela Lee
I'm sure by now most people in Grain Valley have heard of The Duncan Academy and Ali Gillette. If you haven't, and you're looking for an amazing daycare for your beloved little ones definitely look them up. The teachers at Duncan are all amazing and the director, Ali, has the biggest heart of anyone I've ever met. My three year old daughter started there a couple weeks ago and was having a hard time adjusting to going to a new school. I text my neighbor who works at Duncan and told her Charlee was bawling her eyes out and didn't want to go to school the next day. She (Kelli Cromley) immediately text Ali and they came up with a plan to buy a fish for the office for Charlee to take care of. Ali also contacted all the Bumblebee (three year old classroom name) Teachers and together they made a plan to help Charlee adjust. Two weeks later and Charlee is excited to go to Duncan and comes home smiling everyday! I've never seen a director at any daycare go through so much just to make one new student feel so welcome! Friday as we left Ali took Charlee into her office and introduced her to their pet and let her pet him and say and talked to her for 20 minutes, answering a billion questions. Charlee was so excited and I was in tears! I can't imagine a director at any other daycare we've been to taking so much time out of their day just to make her smile. Ali is probably the busiest person I know and works so hard for all of the families in Grain Valley, whether they go to Duncan or not. If you're looking for a daycare where your child will feel loved just like they would if they were staying with a family member then The Duncan Academy is for you. My kids and I will be heart broken when I transfer in a few years because I know we will never find a daycare that was so much like home anywhere else. You can't ask for a better director to teach and love your child than Ali Gillette.
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December 2016 by Samantha Bennett
Nothing but praise for Duncan Academy. I have had the pleasure of dealing with both the Oak Grove Location and the Grain Valley location. The directors at both location make sure that every child and parent feels loved and welcomed. The staff is always available to answer questions and concerns, and there is a log of children's activities and meal sent home daily. Thank you DUNCAN ACADEMY!
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December 2016 by Brad Hunt
We have been going to this daycare for almost 8 years between 2 children. Staff is amazing and caring and always go out of their way for you and your kids.
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December 2014 by Brad Zinkiewicz
My son turns 3 in December of this year and He has been learning so much in just the past year of coming here. The teachers are amazing. My son has a great time with everyone there. I say give it a month and see how much your child learns. In my opinion there is nothing out there as great as Duncan Academy.
