Plainfield · Licensed center

Smart Start Academy

What the state has found

The state cited rules at 5 of its 7 licensing inspections since April 2017.

Of the 157 Chicago-area centers with 7 licensing inspections, 15% had rules cited at 5 of them, as this center did. 40% had rules cited at all 7.

Licensing inspections

Feb 5, 2026No rules cited
Mar 20, 2025No rules cited
Feb 2, 20242 citations

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)

  • General Requirements for Personnel

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(f)

Jun 9, 20225 citations

  • Qualifications for Early Childhood Assistants and School-age Assistants

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.150(b)

  • Personnel Records

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a)(6)

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(6)

  • Personnel Records

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a)(2)

1 more from this inspection

  • Personnel Records

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a)(3)

Dec 6, 20212 citations

  • Program Requirements for All Ages

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.200(r)

  • Grouping and Staffing

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.190(f)

Jul 26, 201712 citations

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(4)

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(5)

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(6)

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(d)

8 more from this inspection

  • Daily Arrival and Departure of Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.260(d)

  • Provisions Pertaining to the License

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.60(g)

  • Physical Plant/Indoor Space

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.370(e)(10)

  • Napping and Sleeping

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.350(j)

  • Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.250(i)(3)

  • Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.250(i)(4)

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)

  • Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.250(i)(2)

Apr 19, 20174 citations

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(4)

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(5)

  • Health Requirements for Children

    89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(6)

Read every record and the state’s reports

State record — Illinois DCFS

Last visit
February 5, 2026
On file
7 visits since April 2017 — 2 cited nothing
Fixed?
The latest correction deadline was March 2, 2024. 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 Compliance monitoring visit nothing cited
Mar 2025 Compliance monitoring visit nothing cited
Feb 2024 Monitoring visit 2 findings

Monitoring visit · February 2, 2024

General Requirements for Personnel

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

Health Requirements for Children

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

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 555252 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Jun 2022 Monitoring visit 5 findings

Monitoring visit · June 9, 2022

Personnel Records

3 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a)(2) through (6) · Violation substantiated

89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a)(2) · 407.120(a)(3) · 407.120(a)(6)

Qualifications for Early Childhood Assistants and School-age Assistants

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

Health Requirements for Children

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(6) · Violation substantiated

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 555252 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Dec 2021 Monitoring visit 2 findings

Monitoring visit · December 6, 2021

Grouping and Staffing

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.190(f) · Violation corrected

Program Requirements for All Ages

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.200(r) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 555252 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Jul 2017 Monitoring visit 12 findings

Monitoring visit · July 26, 2017

Health Requirements for Children

5 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a) through (d) · Rule cited again · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a) · 407.310(a)(4) · 407.310(a)(5) · 407.310(a)(6) · 407.310(d)

Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

3 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.250(i)(2) through (4) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.250(i)(2) · 407.250(i)(3) · 407.250(i)(4)

Provisions Pertaining to the License

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.60(g) · Violation corrected

Daily Arrival and Departure of Children

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.260(d) · Violation corrected

Napping and Sleeping

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.350(j) · Violation corrected on site

Physical Plant/Indoor Space

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.370(e)(10) · Violation corrected on site

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 555252 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Apr 2017 Monitoring visit 4 findings

Monitoring visit · April 19, 2017

Health Requirements for Children

4 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a) through (6) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a) · 407.310(a)(4) · 407.310(a)(5) · 407.310(a)(6)

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 555252 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Openings, child care subsidies, cost, hours and late pickup, teaching approach, ratios and staff, a typical day, and sick and biting policies aren’t on this page.

Details

7792345200

Address
13250 S Route 59 Ste 100
License
license issued (il)

Run Smart Start Academy? Correct or add anything here, free.

Add what is missing
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.

All checked August 2026.

State record

From Illinois DCFS’s published reports, last checked October 9, 2026.

Details

  • Phone, Address, License sunshine.dcfs.illinois.gov/…/ProviderLookup.aspx. To check it, open sunshine.dcfs.illinois.gov's Licensed Provider Lookup, enter "SMART START ACADEMY" under Provider Name and 60585 under Zip, and press Search (DCFS provider 555252).

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