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The reviewer, who purports to be a former associate at KidsPeace’s day school program in Berks County, PA, claimed that “kids are using books from 20-30 years ago while sitting in broken desks.” The books used by our clients are not decades old as the reviewer claims, and in fact new curriculum materials for science and math courses have been acquired over the past three years. ALL of the books and materials we use in our program are reviewed and accepted by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. As for “broken desks,” any desk that is damaged is reported to maintenance by classroom staff and replaced. While the desks we use have been donated to us by local school districts, broken units are not included in those donations.
The reviewer also claims heating and cooling in the building never work properly. The facility is more than 60 years old, and as is the case with such buildings heating and cooling can be a challenge. We have addressed this by replacing the roof, the furnace and the air-conditioning system at the Temple, PA facility over the past five years.
One of the most alarming charges made in the review is that “expired food, particularly milk) … was served for breakfast and lunch.” This is patently untrue; our program is highly regulated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Food Safety who conduct routine audits of our food service operations. Expired food is NEVER served by the kitchen staff, and classroom staff are instructed to make sure all milk products are returned to the kitchen to be stored appropriately and monitored for expiration in accordance with the regulations.
The reviewer claims KidsPeace has a “brand-new helicopter” for use by senior management; this bizarre claim is, of course, false as KidsPeace does not and never has owned a helicopter. In addition, the organization’s main administration facility is in an office park which, while well-maintained, is far from a “Country Club setting.” The reviewer may be confusing this facility with KidsPeace Children’s Hospital, which is in a scenic location as that connection with nature contributes to the chances of success for the treatment the kids receive at the facility.
Finally, the review falsely claims KidsPeace is a for-profit corporation that “exploits and takes advantage of insurance policies and school districts, but above all children's vulnerabilities.” KidsPeace is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that relies heavily on donations in order to focus attention and resources back to the children to whom we provide mental and behavioral health services. Weekly, monthly, and yearly audits are conducted internally and externally by state associations to ensure all billing, education requirements, and regulations are followed 100%. Over the past 15 years the KidsPeace Berks campus has NEVER been cited by a state or federal regulator for any of the supposed situations - broken chairs, old milk, fraudulent business dealings, and/or educational issues – that the reviewer claims exists.
This Glassdoor review ends with the word, “Despicable.” It’s perhaps the one aspect of this review we agree with – it IS despicable for this reviewer to lie under the guise of anonymity and defame our hard-working associates who work every day to give kids in crisis a chance at a safe, healthy and successful life.
Glassdoor provides an important service to individuals looking for information and viewpoints about potential employers. But false and malicious reviews like this one undermine that noble mission, and for both our organizations’ sakes we believe these claims should not be allowed to go unchallenged.
Robert Martin
Director of Communications
KidsPeace
