Parents in Bloomfield Hills say they were blindsided after childcare program closure

Parents in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, are speaking out after an abrupt school board decision was made to close a childcare program in the district at the end of the school year.

"It was just the program is done in three months, and you have to find new childcare," said Jillian O'Neill.

Parents, including O'Neill in the Bloomfield Hills School District, say they were blindsided by the school board of education's vote on Monday to cut the infant and toddler childcare program at Bloomin' Preschool at the end of June. Her 2-year-old daughter attends Bloomin' West.

"I'm devastated for the teachers. I'm worried about my own childcare. I have a 9-month-old who we planned to enroll in that program, and now that's not going to be an option for us," O'Neill said.

The abrupt decision has left her family and others, including Christina McAtee-Papineni, whose 10-month-old daughter goes to Bloomin' East, scrambling.

"Waitlists that are over a year long, now we've got a couple months to find new care. It's a heartbreak, it's a headache, and frankly, how the whole situation was handled makes me sick," McAtee-Papineni said.

CBS News Detroit reached out to the board and district for answers. We received the following written statement from the district:

"Following a recommendation from district administration, the Bloomfield Hills Schools Board of Education voted to discontinue the Infant & Toddler Care program at Bloomin' Preschool effective at the end of the 2025-26 school year.

Bloomfield Hills Schools remains proud of the robust early childhood programming offered at its two Bloomin' Preschool locations. The Infant & Toddler Care program has been a valued part of that work for many years. This decision was made after extensive internal discussion and a thorough review of the program's long-term sustainability and the broader financial realities facing the district. Ensuring long-term stability requires thoughtful planning and, at times, difficult decisions.

Families currently enrolled in Infant & Toddler Care will continue receiving services through the end of the 2025–26 school year. Communication to impacted families was sent this week.

Preschool programming for children ages 30 months through kindergarten eligibility will continue at both Bloomin' Preschool locations. The district remains deeply committed to early childhood education and will focus on strengthening and expanding both its GSRP (Great Start Readiness Program) and tuition-based preschool offerings.

Bloomfield Hills Schools will continue providing high-quality, nurturing learning experiences for its preschoolers."

The community has now banded together to create an online petition. Parents tell CBS News Detroit that they're frustrated at the district's lack of transparency.

"Parents just want to know why. Why were there not discussions previously? What else in the future could we be blindsided by that is a huge, significant change?" said McAtee-Papineni.

"They did not let families or teachers know that this was an issue, so they didn't offer any kind of remediation to try and close the deficit.  We would have paid more tuition to be able to save this program. It is that important to us," O'Neill said.

A community that remains hopeful that their voices are heard and that alternative options are reconsidered by the district.