A 21-year-old assistant teacher at a Massapequa day care center is facing criminal charges after allegedly assaulting a 3-year-old student in her care, with an arraignment scheduled for Sunday in Hempstead. Sydney Forbes worked at Tutor Time, located at 100 Grand Avenue, when the alleged incident occurred on October 5.
According to longisland.com, the incident occurred at 12:55 p.m. on October 5 at the Massapequa facility. Forbes was subsequently charged with second-degree assault and endangering the welfare of a child, according to the same report, which also notes she was scheduled to be arraigned Sunday, November 8, at First District Court at 99 Main Street in Hempstead. The case was also detailed by FOX 5 New York, which reported that Nassau County police provided information on the arrest.
Police have not released further details about what allegedly occurred or whether the child sustained injuries, per FOX 5's reporting. Detectives are urging anyone who suspects they or their child may have been a victim of a similar incident to come forward, and authorities are asking people with information to contact Nassau County Crime Stoppers.
A Second Tutor Time Case Resurfaces Concerns
This is not the first time a Tutor Time employee on Long Island has faced criminal charges tied to alleged abuse of a young child. A former worker at Tutor Time of Lindenhurst, Megan Marchena, 27, pleaded guilty in July to second-degree attempted assault of a child and was sentenced in September to five years of probation, according to the same account from Newsday's reporting on the case.
Newsday's report states that Marchena was accused of abusing two toddlers under her care at the Lindenhurst facility in 2025, including an 18-month-old boy and a 17-month-old girl. Authorities told the outlet that Marchena forcefully pushed the 17-month-old girl face-first into her cot during naptime on February 24, 2025, and the child's mouth wound required stitches. The outlet reported that the incident was captured on surveillance video, leading to Marchena's arrest four days later.
Following Marchena's initial arrest, Suffolk police said they received numerous calls from other parents and staff members at the daycare alleging inappropriate behavior with children, Newsday reported. Under the terms of Marchena's probation, which the outlet noted she is serving while now working in catering, she is barred from caring for children.
The Office of Children and Family Services maintains a public search tool for licensed day care programs, including Tutor Time Learning Centers, though the agency notes that parents should use its reports only as a starting point and follow up directly with the program or regulatory office for updated information, according to the OCFS program page. It remains unclear whether Forbes's arraignment Sunday proceeded as scheduled or what, if any, plea was entered.
