Is this a Pre-K bait-n-switch?
Just curious what your perspective would be on this.
I signed my son up for a part-time Pre-K, only 2 mornings a week, mainly to help socialize him and get him used to classrooms. It's a relatively large chain of Pre-K schools. (My wife has study time with him each day to focus on learning numbers, alphabet etc. so this is all supplementary) I was quoted a price of 291 dollars a month on our contract (signed in August). The price was re-affirmed during the last week of August when we were asked to sign papers again, and of course was the price requested on Sept 5 for the month of September.
My son started pre-k on September 4th, just after labor day. Today, September 15th I get a letter stating that they are upping the monthly tuition to 305 per month as of October.
It's only a 14 dollar monthly increase, ~150 over the course of the year, so this doesnt break my bank. It bugs me though because I feel like it was shady. Is it too much to think the price I was quoted and signed up for in late August, would actually be the price I would pay for the year.
I feel like they just waited long enough to have the children actually attend school and then only 2 - 3 weeks in, have upped the prices knowing that families have made their decisions and have their children getting used to the schedule.
It may be as innocent as poor forecasting on their part, or it may be more shady. It feels like some form of bait and switch, even if it isnt.
I have to go talk to them, but... even if what they are doing is legal, it really seems like a poor business practice. An August price quote/contract for the year, should have more longevity to it than 3 weeks.
I guess I'm just a little disappointed and venting. Most important thing is that we have him confident and enthusiastic about learning and school in prep for Kindergarten (the big leagues!) next year.
Oh well, he just snuck into my office glowing with a big smile to let me know he is home from school, which is priceless. I gotta stop sweating the small stuff.
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I completely feel your pain on this but have to say it's pretty typical in my experience. My wife and I both work full time so both of our kids have been in daycare/preschool before starting in public schools. We've been dealing with these places for about 7 years now. In my experience preschools set rates based on a typical school year, which starts in September. I think they were maybe a little shady in not informing you of the *possibility* of a price hike at the start of the school year - but the fact that they raised the rates doesn't surprise me at all. There's always a chance that if it's a corporate chain the center director wasn't sure what rate changes were coming and the price hike was dictated by "corporate".
As to whether you should get upset about this - I typically react to this stuff with mild annoyance and then move on. My wife on the other hand is immediately on the phone with the center director demanding an explanation and usually ends up getting the rate she wants. Up to you to decide if the priniciple of the issue is worth the added aggravation.
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Come on man, that's the PERFECT opportunity to crush his hopes and dreams by telling him you're pulling him out of principle!
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I think $15 a month isn't that big of a deal. There's probably some provision in the contract stating they can adjust prices. Something small like that is generally for an increase in the cost to run the place and not some "screw the parents" plan. If they do it multiple times during the school year, I would suspect something shady (unless oil and gas prices go through the roof, exceedingly cold winter, etc... things that can drive costs way up).
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Did you read your contract? I have the sneaking suspicion that it says they can do this with x days notice... But 50 cents a day, meh. These folks are working hard for low wages, it could be a lot worse.
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Yeah, you guys are right. That's why I wrote, I just needed a nudge to get my perspective straight on this.
The timing is probably what bugged me the most and the fact that I usually do my best to know exactly what I'm in for with any contract.
In the grand scheme, it is only 50 cents a day from the monthly budget, which is such peanuts it isnt funny. I think i was also getting caught up on the fact that its only 2 am sessions per week as is.
I would never have pulled him out over something as little as this, I just hate that feeling of being pwned, and I think that's how I felt.. they had me in their clutches and knew I wouldnt do anything about it.
Like you say though, its probably not sinister at all... costs are rising for everyone. I can only imagine how much heating oil alone will go up this winter...
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Most likely allowed by the contract, but definitely a bad business practice. If you wanted to be pissy about it, you could probably get out of the contract, but it really doesn't sound worth it.
Voice your complaint, and write to corporate. Maybe you'll get a concession, maybe they won't do it next year, maybe they won't care. At any rate it doesn't sound like you're bothered enough to waste copious amounts of breath.
Our day care establishes any rate hikes during the summer, specifically to avoid this scenario.
Hypatian wrote:
And fwiw, thats not a bad rate.
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I wouldn't do this. It might just be me, but if it's not a big enough deal to pull him out, don't piss off the instructors/staff there so they give him "extra" attention.
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I'm not a parent, but I think I'd do differently than Hemidal here.
I wouldn't go into the conversation with a confrontational attitude, but I would call to voice my concern/complain.
If the instructors/staff give your son "extra" attention because of that...I'd pull him out based on that, more than a price hike.
You have a legitimate question about their prices and policies - if they get mad at you for asking, and worse, if they take it out on your son, I wouldn't want to have anything to do with them.
I'm not saying that's what's likely to happen - I hope for your sake it's a pretty harmless mixup that can be cleared up easily. But if we're talking bad scenarios, don't feel cowed into keeping quiet.
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Burn the place down.
Fedaykin98 wrote:
wordsmythe wrote:
Definitely agree with Scaphism. Chances are the answer you get is "Corporate said raise the prices. I don't have anything to do with it." The local folks probably don't care much beyond that. If they'll take out your legitimate (calm) concern on your child, get out.
What happens when they get pissed because you're six minutes late picking your kid up and they have a date? What happens when they're tired of your whiny little brat's questions?
Either you trust certain folks with your kid, or you don't. There really isn't a middle ground there.
But yeah, sounds like the whole thing isn't worth more than a passing question. . . it's hard enough to find folks you trust with your children. Why make it harder?
Of course, that all changes next year in REAL school. Then you take what you get and hope they don't dislike you and your vile offspring!
Hypatian wrote:
That definitely seems like the most reasonable course of action.
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Price hikes are always going to fall at a bad time for somebody.
DirtierParsley's "mild annoyance and then move on" seems wise. It sucks for you, groan about it for a minute, then shake it off. Which appears to be exactly what you've done.
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So it was not your actual child that got switched? $14 a month would piss me off, too, but all in all having a goblin changeling is worse.
And then nuke it from orbit?
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I could not have considered this thread complete without this
All the advice and perspective has been helpful. (including the jokes for lightening my frustrations a bit.) and the school's words echoed a lot of what people's experience prepped me for.
I did end up calling them yesterday and it was a calm call. I asked them for some additional clarification, explained my concerns, and also requested they follow-up with corporate based on my feedback. Some of the explanations weren't entirely satisfying, but I didnt jump up and down about them. I think I had to talk to them so I feel better about this situation, rather than taken advantage of in some way.
It could go either way. The School Director said she wants to honor the price she wrote down on August 29th and I also gave her an out if nothing can be done. Giving an out, might've been a strategic blunder, but I'm still more pleased with the school on the whole than concerned over this price point adjustment.
I am curious to see how soon the director calls back.
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