Chicago · Licensed center

Families Together Coop Nursery School

Small Reggio Emilia center, licensed for 40 children.

What the state has found

The state cited rules at all 6 of its licensing inspections since March 2015.

Of the 133 Chicago-area centers with 6 licensing inspections, 38% had rules cited at all 6, as this center did.

Licensing inspections

Feb 26, 20265 citations

Guidance and Discipline
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.270(a)
Physical Plant/Indoor Space
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.370(e)(3)
General Requirements for Personnel
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(c)(6)
Qualifications for Child Care Director
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.130(i)(1)

1 more from this inspection

A citation the state’s report lists only by its code, CCASEC7.

Feb 25, 20254 citations

Medications
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.360(b)(1)
General Requirements for Personnel
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(d)
General Requirements for Personnel
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(i)
Qualifications for Early Childhood Assistants and School-age Assistants
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.150(b)

Mar 5, 20241 citation

Substitutes
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.170(a)

Feb 2, 20233 citations

General Requirements for Personnel
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(f)
Medications
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.360(b)
A citation the state’s report lists only by its code, FHSEC305.

Feb 18, 20161 citation

Health Requirements for Children
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(6)

Mar 17, 20151 citation

Personnel Records
89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(e)(4)

Read every record and the state’s reports

State record — Illinois DCFS

Last visit: February 26, 2026
On file: 6 visits since March 2015 — all of them cited findings
Fixed?: The latest correction deadline was March 26, 2026. Illinois DCFS does not publish whether it was made.
Most serious: Illinois DCFS does not publish a severity level for a citation, so there is no most-serious to name.

Illinois DCFS cites each subsection of a rule separately, so one audit of a filing cabinet can produce ten citations. It publishes the rule’s title and a correction deadline, but no description of what was observed.

Feb 2026 Monitoring visit 5 findings

Monitoring visit · February 26, 2026

General Requirements for Personnel

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(c)(6) · Violation corrected

Qualifications for Child Care Director

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.130(i)(1) · Violation corrected

Guidance and Discipline

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.270(a) · Violation corrected

Physical Plant/Indoor Space

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.370(e)(3) · Violation corrected

A citation the state’s report lists only by its code, CCASEC7.

0 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Feb 2025 Monitoring visit 4 findings

Monitoring visit · February 25, 2025

General Requirements for Personnel

2 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(d) through (i) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(d) · 407.100(i)

Qualifications for Early Childhood Assistants and School-age Assistants

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.150(b) · Violation corrected

Medications

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.360(b)(1) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Mar 2024 Monitoring visit 1 finding

Monitoring visit · March 5, 2024

Substitutes

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.170(a) · Violation substantiated

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Feb 2023 Monitoring visit 3 findings

Monitoring visit · February 2, 2023

General Requirements for Personnel

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(f) · Violation corrected

Medications

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.360(b) · Violation corrected

A citation the state’s report lists only by its code, FHSEC305.

0 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Feb 2016 Monitoring visit 1 finding

Monitoring visit · February 18, 2016

Health Requirements for Children

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(6) · Violation corrected on site

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Mar 2015 Monitoring visit 1 finding

Monitoring visit · March 17, 2015

Personnel Records

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(e)(4) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Openings, child care subsidies, ratios and staff, and sick and biting policies aren’t on this page.

How they teach

Reggio Emilia, play-based and emergent curriculum

“You've seen the tagline here at FTCNS letting you know that we are a PLAY BASED SCHOOL!”

What it costs

$89 to $1,820 a month

Chicago-area comparison hidden until they say which age this price is for.

Deposit: $500, not refundable

A day here

Outdoors: Daily outdoor and large-motor play in the school's courtyard, the playground across the street, neighborhood walks, a nearby community garden, or an indoor gym (the brand’s policy for all its schools)
Calendar: School year
Schedule: half-day sessions, offered part-week (2-4 days) or full-week (5 days) (the brand’s policy for all its schools)

Details

7733815200

Website: ftcns.org
Address: 1500 W Elmdale Ave
License: license issued (il)
Ages they serve: 2 1/2 to 5 years
Established: 1999

Run Families Together Coop Nursery School? Correct or add anything here, free.

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Sources and dates

Where every fact on this page came from, and when Shortlist last checked it against that source. Anything Shortlist could not source is named here rather than left blank.

How they teach

Approach — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org/see-why-we-are-a-preschool-where-play-matters
Approach — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org/families-together-emergent-curriculum

What it costs

Monthly tuition, Deposit — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org

State record

From Illinois DCFS’s published reports, last checked October 10, 2026.

A day here

Outdoors — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org
Calendar, Schedule — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org

Details

Phone, Address, License — Checked July 2026 sunshine.dcfs.illinois.gov/…/ProviderLookup.aspx. To check it, open sunshine.dcfs.illinois.gov's Licensed Provider Lookup, enter "FAMILIES TOGETHER COOP NURSERY SCHOOL" under Provider Name and 60660 under Zip, and press Search (DCFS provider 006763).
Website — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org
Ages they serve — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org
Established — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org

Small means the smallest quarter of Chicago-area’s 1,949 licensed centers by state-licensed capacity: 8 to 48 children. Medium is 49 to 118; large is 119 to 487.