CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Charlotte day care center is facing allegations of abuse after parents shared videos on social media that they say show staff members hitting a child and slamming another on the ground.
Alyssa Stillwell, who lives in Raleigh, said her 3-year-old daughter was enrolled at Tutor Time's Steele Creek branch last week. She logged onto the day care's live stream last Tuesday and was disturbed by what she saw.
"The first thing that happened was the ruler thing," Stillwell said. "I can't really tell if she hit that kid. It looked like it."
Stillwell explained that her daughter is currently living with her grandmother in Charlotte because her other child is facing serious health concerns.
"My son, her brother, is having some health issues," Stillwell said. "They don't know what's going on, but he has severe neutropenia. He cannot get sick. Because he's also in kidney failure, he's at risk of another kidney injury, so we decided that my daughter should stay with her grandma for a couple of weeks until we figure out what's going on."
Stillwell said she saw another interaction between the teacher and a child that crossed the line for her.
"I witnessed her picking up a kid directly in the air and pushing him down on the ground," she said. "I was terrified when I saw that. I thought she was going to slam him hard."
Stillwell said the grandmother pulled her daughter out by 10:30 that morning. The mother then posted a video of different clips on TikTok. She said her video was taken down by the platform for community guidelines because it depicted physical harm to children.
The concerned mother appealed and it went back up but has since been taken back down.
Another parent, April Walker, saw the video that went viral on other social media platforms.
"At the end of the day, after we picked her up, we got a call from the center that a parent had made allegations against a teacher," Walker recalled. "It was just a protocol not being followed 100% correctly, and that our daughter wasn't affected. It wasn't a multiple-kid situation. But after the center closed, I saw a video online that depicted her teacher abusing several children, including mine."
Walker said they since filed a report with Charlotte-Mecklenburg police.
"We have a case number. They said they are assigning a detective," Walker said. "We called CPS. We did file a report. And we have also contacted a lawyer. She's seen hitting my daughter in the leg with a yardstick."
Walker said she was overcome with emotions, feeling angry and disappointed.
"I feel horrible because it feels like I missed it because she was telling me she was scared," Walker said. "I listened to the school because I thought I could trust them. I figured she's 3."
A spokesperson for Tutor Time released the following statement to WCNC Charlotte:
"We take our responsibility as caregivers very seriously. Our policies and procedures have been designed to ensure we're providing a nurturing environment while meeting state regulatory guidelines. Our staff are trained on our protocols of care, including positive behavior guidance and the redirection of children. They are expected to follow these policies consistently as well as upholding high standards of personal and professional conduct. We offer live streaming video as an extension of our open-door policy and commitment to transparency.
This employee is on leave as we're partnering with state licensing in conducting a thorough review of this matter. We will take all appropriate steps based on the findings and will continue to work to address any concerns. Nothing is more important to us than our children's well-being."
On Tuesday, Tutor Time confirmed to WCNC Charlotte that the employee is no longer with the day care.