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Chicago · Licensed family home

Barrios-Argueta, Maritza G

myfirststepsdaycare.net

At a glance

  • Larger Creative Curriculum family home, licensed for up to 12 children.
  • Hours 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

What to know

License: 6 weeks to 12 years (state). They serve: 3 months to 8 years old (their website).

The license is the range the state allows. It does not say which ages have openings.

What the state has found

The state cited rules at 5 of its 6 licensing inspections since February 2016.

See each inspection

Licensing inspections

  • Feb 27, 202610 citations
    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(j)(1)

    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(k)

    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(s)(5)

    • Provisions Pertaining to the License

      • Provisions Pertaining to the License

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.20(k)

    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.35(i)

    • Caregivers

      • Caregivers

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.45(f)

    • Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

      • Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.60(j)

    • Records and Reports

      • Records and Reports

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.120(c)

    • School Age Children

      • School Age Children

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.110(g)

    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(a)(3)

  • Dec 11, 2024Nothing cited
  • Nov 20, 20192 citations
    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.35(f)

    • Health, Medical Care and Safety

      • Health, Medical Care and Safety

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.70(a)(3)

  • Mar 1, 20191 citation
    • Caregivers

      • Caregivers

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.45(j)

  • Jan 27, 201711 citations
    • Caregivers

      • Caregivers

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.45(j)

    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.35

    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.35(i)

    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.35(j)

    • Application for License

      • Application for License

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.10(d)

    • Application for License

      • Application for License

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.10(b)(1)(f)

    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(k)

    • Records and Reports

      • Records and Reports

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.120(h)

    • Records and Reports

      • Records and Reports

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.120(a)(1)

    • Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

      • Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.60(j)(1)

    • Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

      • Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.60(k)

  • Feb 19, 20164 citations
    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(a)(4)

    • Provisions Pertaining to the License

      • Provisions Pertaining to the License

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.20(k)

    • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

      • General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(a)(3)

    • Caregivers

      • Caregivers

        89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.45(j)

The state cited rules at 5 of this home's 6 inspections. Chicago-area family homes inspected 6 times split three ways: 31% had fewer, 25% the same, and 44% more (328 family homes).

How all 328 Chicago-area family homes inspected 6 times compare

Of the 328 Chicago-area family homes the state inspected 6 times, how many of those inspections cited a rule:

  • 1 of 61%
  • 2 of 64%
  • 3 of 69%
  • 4 of 616%
  • 5 of 625%This home
  • All 644%
Read every record and the state’s reports

State record — Illinois DCFS

Last visit
February 27, 2026
On file
6 visits since February 2016 — 1 cited nothing
Fixed?
The latest correction deadline was March 17, 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 10 findings

Monitoring visit · February 27, 2026

General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

4 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(a)(3) through (s)(5) · Violation substantiated · Violation corrected on site

89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(a)(3) · 408.30(j)(1) · 408.30(k) · 408.30(s)(5)

Provisions Pertaining to the License

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.20(k) · Violation substantiated

General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.35(i) · Violation substantiated

Caregivers

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.45(f) · Violation substantiated

Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.60(j) · Violation substantiated

School Age Children

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.110(g) · Violation substantiated

Records and Reports

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.120(c) · Violation substantiated

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 537503 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Dec 2024 Compliance monitoring visit nothing cited
Nov 2019 Monitoring visit 2 findings

Monitoring visit · November 20, 2019

General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.35(f) · Violation corrected

Health, Medical Care and Safety

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.70(a)(3) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 537503 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Mar 2019 Monitoring visit 1 finding

Monitoring visit · March 1, 2019

Caregivers

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.45(j) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 537503 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Jan 2017 Monitoring visit 11 findings

Monitoring visit · January 27, 2017

General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family

3 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.35 through (j) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.35 · 408.35(i) · 408.35(j)

Application for License

2 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.10(b)(1)(f) through (d) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.10(b)(1)(f) · 408.10(d)

Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

2 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.60(j)(1) through (k) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.60(j)(1) · 408.60(k)

Records and Reports

2 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.120(a)(1) through (h) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.120(a)(1) · 408.120(h)

General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(k) · Violation corrected

Caregivers

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.45(j) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 537503 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Feb 2016 Monitoring visit 4 findings

Monitoring visit · February 19, 2016

General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes

2 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(a)(3) through (4) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.30(a)(3) · 408.30(a)(4)

Provisions Pertaining to the License

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.20(k) · Violation corrected

Caregivers

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 408.45(j) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 537503 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

A day here

7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Meals
Meals
Provides all meals except special diets; parents bringing children in after 9:00 AM must provide breakfast

How they teach

Creative Curriculum and faith-based

“Curriculum Creative Curriculum for infant, toddlers & pre school age”

Who cares for your child

Cinthia Correa (Administrator) since 2012.

14 years · Chicago-area median 16, among 26 that publish

Details

Phone
(773) 983-3792
Address
3981 N Merrimac Ave, Chicago, 60634
Established
2012

We couldn’t find some information that may matter to your decision: openings, child care subsidies, cost, and sick and biting policies. We can ask the program for you and copy you in.

Run Barrios-Argueta, Maritza G? Correct or add anything here, free.
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

Who cares for your child

State record

From Illinois DCFS’s published reports, last checked November 8, 2026.

A day here

Details

Larger means licensed for 9 to 12 children, among Chicago-area’s 3,344 licensed family homes by state-licensed capacity. Small is 2 to 7; mid-size is 8.

The ages on the license are what the state licenses it to care for, which can be wider than the ages it takes.

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