Perretty's Perusings

Thad Pryor's new website

2008-02-19T13:00:00.000-08:00

Thad Pryor, the Chairman and CEO of Children of America (CoA), now has a brand new website for blogging about CoA as well as his other project, World Films, Inc. The new website is Thad's Thoughts, www.Thad-Pryor.com.

Great progress!

2008-02-11T13:23:00.000-08:00

Still moving ahead in New Jersey. In addition to being ahead of schedule on the new Aberdeen site, we’re also now 50% complete on the new center in Oakhurst (10,000 sq ft). Assuming we continue at this pace, we expect to have this center open in June ‘08.

New Jersey ahead of schedule!

2008-01-31T08:23:00.000-08:00

Our New Jersey expansion is now ahead of schedule. We are now 75% complete on the new Aberdeen Children of America center (8,000 sq ft) and expect to be open in April ‘08.

Good news on Wilmington CoA site...

2008-01-23T07:32:00.000-08:00

Hey, Jim here, I just attended the muddy shoe groundbreaking for our new CoA center in Wilmington. Construction is underway and expect to be OFB by June 08. This will put us into a great new market, with good demographics.

Child care should be about learning....

2007-10-31T08:24:00.000-07:00

One of the things Thad Pryor and I are most proud of is the curriculum we use in each of our Child Care Centers. Children of America’s learning curriculum is designed by Dr. Vicki Folds, one of the nation’s leading child development experts. Dr. Folds, vice president of education and professional development, is a published author in the childcare field, holds an Ed.D. in child and youth studies and has over 35 years of hands-on and research experience.

Our unique education program includes:

“Tray Tasking” – Play innovation proven to develop early reading and writing skills.
“Old Towne Colony” – Interactive early American town teaches kids through fun role-playing activities.

Each center is also designed with stringent safety features to protect every child. These include:

PIN Required – Parents must use a unique PIN to get access. The PIN is also used to monitor each child’s arrival and departure.
Internet Monitoring – Each center is linked to AlwaysCloseBy.com, which provides remote video monitoring for parents.
Observation Windows – Classroom doors are fitted with small observation windows so parents can view their children’s activity.
Safe Play Areas – All indoor and outdoor play areas are designed with rigorous safety features, from rubber flooring to bollard-reinforced fences.

This is important, because ALL child care centers should provide a safe learning environment. We work hard to make sure that ours do.

Expansion Ahead

2007-10-24T13:14:00.000-07:00

Good news! We're expanding! I'm sure it means a lot of work ahead, but it's a great thing for the company. Don't have time to write more just now, so I'm dropping the press release in below...

Children of America Enters Into An Agreement With Titanium Development Group, Ltd. For The Development Of 300 Childcare Centers In The Midwest

DELRAY BEACH, Fla.—World Wide Child Care Corp. (Pink Sheets: WWCC) announces that its subsidiary Children of America, Inc.(www.childrenofamerica.com), a leading U.S. provider of childcare and after-school programs, has entered into an agreement with Titanium Development Group, Ltd. for the development of 300 child care centers throughout the Midwest.

The announcement was made jointly by Thad Pryor, president and CEO of Children of America, Inc., and David Thornburg, president of Titanium Development Group, Ltd.

"Children of America’s expansion will make high quality childcare available to the families throughout the Midwest," said Pryor. "Based on our research, there is significant demand in this area for our centers and our approach to early childhood education."

Children of America currently operates 15 centers in Virginia and Pennsylvania and will open 32 additional facilities by 2008 in New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Michigan, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Under this new arrangement Children of America will be able to accelerate its planned opening, with anticipated center openings in Chicago, Indianapolis, Detroit, Milwaukee, Minneapolis and St. Louis.

Titanium Development Group, Ltd. formed in 2006 by David Thornburg and Scott Underwood specializes in development of retail/office projects, hotels, senior housing and residential subdivisions. In addition to developing Children of America child care centers, Titanium has a new hotel development in Washington, Illinois slated to open in late 2007. A new hotel and retail project is slated for Charleston, Illinois in mid 2008. A new retail/office project is being developed in Washington, Illinois and another one is planned for Princeton, Illinois in 2008. The company also has a residential home building division. Scott Underwood has 15 years experience in commercial and residential construction/development. David Thornburg has 20 years experience in banking and business development.

David Thornburg, president and Scott Underwood, vice president, view this agreement has a extremely positive step forward for the future of Titanium. Titanium brings its network and knowledge of the area in identifying potential sites in the designated markets. Children of America analyzes each site based upon numerous factors and criteria to determine the potential a site has as a child care center. To date, through their combined efforts they have identified over 20 sites which Titanium is in the process purchasing. Pryor and Thornburg stated that they hope to be opening 10 centers in 2008 and over 20 in 2009. Pryor was amazed at the potential of the marketplace and opportunity it presents for Children of America. Pryor stated “I am excited to be able to offer these communities our product”.

About Children Of America

Founded in 1999, Children of America is a subsidiary of World Wide Child Care Corp. (WWCC), formerly known as International Child Care Corp. (ICCR).

Contact:

For Children of America, Delray Beach

Michael Sias, 561-391-8717

msias@reevespr.com

10 Tips for Designing a Safer Backyard Playground

2007-10-03T15:38:00.000-07:00

There’s no better time than now for parents to improve safety for their kids by learning about the risks posed by backyard playgrounds.

In order to design a safe playground, it’s important for parents to consider all the ‘what ifs’ and worst-case scenarios that could happen. Rusty nails aren’t the only culprits behind playground injuries. Even items that seem totally harmless on the surface – like sandboxes and slides – can pose risks to small children who use them improperly.

According to the CDC, more than 200,000 kids are treated in hospital ERs each year for playground-related injuries – and rusty nails aren’t the only culprits.

In order to play it safe, Children of America, a national childcare provider that has designed its playgrounds to be the safest in the country, recommends parents follow these “10 Tips to Design a Safer Backyard Playground”:

(1) Play equipment should be plastic, not wood or aluminum

(2) Check all play equipment for any sharp corners or edges, raised nails or screws

(3) Use rubber matting, not grass, sand, or wood chips

(4) Rubber matting should extend six feet in all directions from the play equipment

(5) No open chains on swings, use plastic covers or nylon chords

(6) Swing seats should be plastic or rubber

(7) All above ground equipment should have guard rails

(8) Make sure slides are deep, with raised sides

(9) A fence (preferably, a plastic privacy fence) should enclose the playground or backyard

(10) Divide play areas between toddlers and kids over 2 yrs

For more information on designing a safe playground, visit www.childrenofamerica.com.