A local day

care center is being investigated by a state licensing agency after two

employees, including the owner, have been arrested and accused of injuring

an 8-year-old girl.

Simone Reddick

of Riverdale, the owner of Early Stages Academy and Daycare Center on

Antioch Road, was arrested Dec. 1, charged with simple battery and obstruction

of a police officer. According to warrants issued for her arrest, Reddick

pulled the girl down the hallway while the child complained her arm was

hurting.

An employee

of the center, Jeanette Brown of Fayetteville, also was arrested for simple

battery. A warrant stated she struck the child on her buttocks.

Greg Brown,

regional director of the child care licensing section of the Department

of Human Resources, said state regulations do not allow corporal punishment

at day care centers even with the permission of a parent.

"It's

pretty clear cut," Brown said.

Brown confirmed

Monday afternoon that Early Stages was under investigation. The agency

could require special training for the employee who violated the rules,

impose a civil penalty on the center or revoke the center's license if

the case is deemed to be extreme enough, Brown said.

"It depends

on the circumstances and how pervasive it is," Brown said.

The main goal

of the agency, however, is to get the centers in compliance with the law,

Brown added.

Usually, the

agency seeks a plan of correction from the center where an offense occurred,

Brown said. The agency then works with the center to fine-tune the plan

if necessary, he added.