ORLANDO, Fla. – The Department of Children and Families has ordered an Orlando child care facility to pay $700 in fines, among other things, as part of a lawsuit settlement stemming from allegations of sexual abuse at the day care.
Bright Horizons Child Care and Learning Center in Baldwin Park first came under fire in May when allegations of that three preschool-aged children had been sexually abused by a teacher's assistant.
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News 6 is not naming the teacher's assistant because he has not been charged with a crime, although his employment at the facility has been terminated.
DCF officials said the department's investigation found that the day care did not perform a proper background check before hiring the employee last year and that administrators should have heeded warnings from other employees about the man's inappropriate behavior.
Bright Horizons reached a settlement agreement with DCF while still denying the allegations made in the lawsuit.
As part of the settlement, Bright Horizons will pay $700 in fines, have its Gold Seal Quality Care designation revoked and have its license placed on probation for six months. DCF has rescinded its 90-day suspension of Bright Horizons's license.
The settlement document also listed several actions Bright Horizons has taken since the allegations came to light. That list includes new background checks for all employees, installing cameras, assigning new directors and implementing new childhood sexuality training for staff and parents.
Two civil lawsuits against the day care are ongoing.