A Lone Tree day care center with a history of child abuse allegations against its teachers will close next month due to low enrollment.
, which operates dozens of child care centers across more than a dozen states, will shutter its Lone Tree location at 7550 Park Meadows Drive on May 23, the company said in an email.
“As we explained to impacted families earlier this month, attendance at our school has been low and we wanted to ensure we’re able to deliver the best possible experience to our children,” Colleen Moran, a company spokesperson, said in the email.
She noted the Park Meadows and Englewood locations have room for impacted families.
A spokesperson for , which regulates day care facilities in the state, said the center notified the agency that it was voluntarily relinquishing its license.
Crème de la Crème’s closure comes after The Denver Post detailed a string of child abuse incidents at the facility.
In May 2024, state investigators found a staff member had hit a child in the back of the head, according to an inspection report. The state also found teachers had shaken and yelled at children and used “physical discipline” as a form of guidance.
Further inspection by state investigators found a staffer made “inappropriate and derogatory remarks” to a child and made children stand in time-out with their noses to the wall.
One employee in 2023 pleaded guilty to child abuse charges after yanking a baby by the hair and threatening to choke and stab infants during moments of frustration. A second staffer was referred to police after yanking a child’s arm to the point of dislocation.
The state in 2022 fined Crème de la Crème $10,000 after finding that staff at the Lone Tree center did not report child abuse allegations to authorities for more than 200 days.
A state licensing compliance review team recommended the department revoke the center’s license, but ultimately agreed to keep Crème de la Crème on probation.
The center operated for years on a probationary license as a result of these incidents. Finally, in 2023, Crème de la Crème received a permanent license.
By September 2024, the center was back on probation.
