photo by: Contributed

Hilltop Child Development Center

During a field trip last week a child in the care of a Lawrence day care center was left locked in a van for “an extended period of time.”

Hilltop Child Development Center at the University of Kansas called the incident “regrettable” in a message to parents Friday that was obtained by the Journal-World.

“Unintentionally, a child was left unattended in a locked van for an extended period of time while the class participated in the field trip,” the letter said; the child was later found by a teacher “upset but unharmed.”

The letter did not indicate the child’s age, how long the child had been left alone in the vehicle or where the incident took place, but it indicated that Hilltop had notified the child’s family immediately as well as KU’s administration; the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, which oversees licensing for day cares; and the National Association for the Education of Young Children, which oversees accreditation.

Hilltop’s interim executive director, Claire Ehney, expressed in the letter that the center “did not provide the highest level of care,” but she did not give any further details regarding how a child was left behind in the vehicle while others participated in the field trip.

“These are not the actions of the Hilltop we should be or want to be,” she wrote, noting that the specifics of the incident would be reviewed and that “appropriate corrective acton will be taken.” She said that in the meantime all field trips at Hilltop would be suspended.

According to the National Weather Service in Topeka, Friday’s high temperature in Lawrence was 49; the low was 45.

The Journal-World has reached out to Ehney and KU for further details, as well as to KDHE regarding what kind of investigation might be taking place.

Hilltop, a nonprofit whose main campus is at 1652 Ousdahl Road, is considered a “controlled affiliate” of KU. It’s connected to the university through Student Affairs and a negotiated management agreement, but its employees are not state employees, according to Hilltop’s website. Hilltop’s employees report to the executive director, who reports to the nonprofit’s board of directors.

This is a developing story.