(First InMaricopa) Jon-Christopher Clark said he trusted Children’s Learning Adventure with his children.

He and his partner have two sons aged 4 and 2. Their older child began attending the daycare in 2024 at its Laveen location, where Clark said he initially had a positive experience.

“The facility looked nice. I didn’t have any complaints,” he told InMaricopa.

After moving to Maricopa, Clark transferred his son to the local Children’s Learning Adventure campus, expecting a similar experience. He described it as an upscale daycare with strong programming, including Spanish, sign language and hands-on activities.

Clark, who runs DifferentCloth Kennels and frequently travels for work, said daycare is a necessity for his family. He is at the airport four to five times a month transporting dogs for clients, while his partner works from home and relies on childcare during meetings.

“I’ve always said I would never let anyone watch my kids other than their mom or a professional daycare,” Clark said. “If not, they come with me or I just can’t go.”

Still, concerns began to surface.

About six months ago, Clark said his partner’s 9-year-old daughter, who attends the same facility for after-school care, was injured during play when other children grabbed her arms and legs, swung her and let go, causing her to fall and chip her two front teeth.

“We were furious,” said Clark, a Desert Passage resident. “Where’s the supervision?”

The daycare covered the dental costs, and the family chose to continue attending while remaining more vigilant.

“I’d sum it up like this: a nice facility with nice things, but the people are not really professional,” he said.

That concern escalated March 23.

Clark said he dropped off his children by 9 a.m. Around 9:30 a.m., he received a call that his 2-year-old son, Don Clark, had been injured.

According to Clark, daycare staff told him a teacher fell on the child while they were playing soccer outside.

Don suffered a broken right femur.

Clark said his son was transported by ambulance to a pediatric hospital in Chandler. Doctors performed a closed reduction procedure to realign the bone and placed him in a spica cast. He was hospitalized for two days.

His entire right leg is encased, along with a cast around his waist.

Clark has set up a GoFundMe seeking $1,300 for his son’s recovery; as of Monday morning, it was about 40% funded.

A video Clark posted to Instagram on Saturday drew nearly 10,000 comments, more than 32,000 likes and 750,000 views on that platform alone, and was further shared across YouTube, TikTok, Reddit and Facebook, where it racked 100,000 more views. Children’s Learning Adventure has blocked Clark on Instagram and turned off comments.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by DifferentCloth Kennels (@differentclothkennels)

“He’s in good spirits for a 2-year-old, but he gets very restless,” Clark said. “His brother and sister are very active.”

Clark said his son will require physical therapy once the cast is removed and plans to enroll him in mental health therapy as well.

“At least two or three times a day he blurts out, ‘I don’t want to go to daycare,’” Clark said. “Before this, that never happened. It’s like he’s having a flashback.”

Clark said he later returned to the daycare to get answers and recorded the interaction.

“The teacher I talked to was dismissive, nonchalant, brushing it off,” he said. “She said they were sorry, but they didn’t have any answers.”

He asked to speak with the director and was initially told the facility did not have access to camera footage, which he said is handled by a corporate office in Scottsdale.

Minutes later, Clark said the director arrived and gave a different explanation — that there were no cameras covering the area where the incident occurred, despite the facility sharing a parking lot with a gas station and a McDonald’s.

“That completely shocked me,” he said. “How do you not have cameras in that area when you’re responsible for kids?”

Clark said the director also told him corporate leadership was on-site that day for a board meeting and witnessed the incident.

According to Clark, the director described the moment as happening “in slow motion.”

“She said, ‘To me it looked like a football tackle,’” Clark recalled. “She said the teacher was running, a kid jumped onto her, she lost balance and fell directly on my son.”

Clark said he was disturbed by what he believes was the staff’s response immediately after the injury.

“They tried to make him walk on it,” he alleged. “They told us he said his leg hurt but he tried to walk.”

Clark said he and his partner instructed staff to call an ambulance before one was ultimately dispatched.

“I’m like, what the f*ck?” he said.

Clark said additional accounts he has since received from other parents and children do not align with the daycare’s explanation.

He said one parent contacted him through TikTok alleging her daughter suffered a broken wrist in the same class and that the injury went unaddressed throughout the day. Clark said that parent reported the incident to the Arizona Department of Child Safety, though he said nothing came of the investigation and no lawsuit was filed. InMaricopa confirmed that complaint was filed.

Clark said he has retained an attorney and met with them Monday morning as he prepares to pursue legal action. Part of the legal action may include exploring options that would allow his children to be homeschooled.

“This incident has really scarred every member of my entire family,” he said. “I don’t want to leave nobody with my kids ever again.”

InMaricopa contacted Children’s Learning Adventure with questions and did not receive a response by deadline. Center Director Dawn Kacmarczyk and Vice President Stephanie McCormick have issued this joint statement:

“Children’s Learning Adventure is aware of the incident involving an injury to one of our students. The accident happened during an active game of soccer that the teacher was playing with her children during outdoor play time. We are deeply saddened that this occurred and extend our sincere concern and support to the child and their family. Our thoughts are with them, and we are wishing the child a full and speedy recovery.

The safety and well-being of every child in our care is our highest priority. We maintain established safety procedures and protocols, and we take any incident involving a child extremely seriously. We are conducting a thorough internal review of the situation and are cooperating with all appropriate parties as needed.

While we understand the concern this situation may raise within our community, we are committed to handling this matter with care, professionalism, and respect for the privacy of those involved.

Children’s Learning Adventure remains dedicated to providing a safe, supportive, and nurturing environment, and we will continue to work closely with the family as appropriate.”