Parents Scramble After Beverly Daycare Abruptly Announces Closing

BEVERLY, MA -- Families and workers at a daycare center in Beverly were left scrambling earlier this month as the owner announced she would be closing the facility next month. In an email sent to families after hours on the Friday heading into Father's Day Weekend, Melissa Ananias said she would be closing the Beverly location of the Learning Zone on July 13. The decision stunned families and employees -- some of whom had started working at the Learning Center just days before Ananias told them she was closing the location.

Ananias was not immediately available for comment Monday morning. Patch will update this story if she responds to a request for comment.

Parents said they received an email Ananias telling them that the commute to Beverly from her Needham home had become too rough. Ananias also owns Learning Zone daycare centers in Framingham and Belmont.

Parents who spoke to Patch on the condition of anonymity said they had been given no assistance by the daycare center in helping find placements for their children. Other daycare centers, however, have reached out to Learning Zone parents in an attempt to find a spot for their children after the facility closes in July.

Other parents said they were upset with the timing of the email and the fact that Ananias was not on site for several days last week to answer questions from parents. "She put it all on the teachers -- the same teachers who are going to have to find new jobs -- and didn't give them any information," one parent said.

Ananias opened the Beverly location of Learning Zone in April 2016. As recently as this month she posted on Facebook that the location was accepting new enrollments.

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Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).