Chicago · Licensed center

Creative Scholars Preschool

What these mean, and where they come from

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.

What it costs

$2,780 a month for an infant

Infant$2,780

Higher than 13 of 18 Chicago-area providers that publish a full-time infant price.

Toddler$2,650

Higher than 17 of 22 Chicago-area providers that publish a full-time toddler price.

Preschool$2,325

Higher than 12 of 19 Chicago-area providers that publish a full-time preschool price.

Creative Scholars PreschoolMost Chicago-area prices (middle 80%)

Scale $1,000 to $4,000 a month. Chicago-area prices as of September 29, 2026. Part-time $1,325 to $1,945 a month. Application fee $300. Sibling discount: 5% family discount when more than one child is enrolled at the same time. Prices from their website, August 2026.

Shortlist doesn’t have these yet: teaching approach, ratios and staff, a typical day.

What the state has found

Routine visits: 9 of 11 cited something

Chicago-area centers: the state cites something at about 5 in 6 routine visits.

From Illinois DCFS’s published reports, last checked September 25, 2026.

Read every record and the state’s reports

State record — Illinois DCFS

Last visit
April 4, 2025
On file
11 visits since April 2012 — 2 cited nothing
Fixed?
The latest correction deadline was May 25, 2023. 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.

Apr 2025 Compliance monitoring visit nothing cited
Apr 2023 Monitoring visit 8 findings

Monitoring visit · April 25, 2023

Personnel Records

5 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a) through (4) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a) · 407.120(a)(1) · 407.120(a)(2) · 407.120(a)(3) · 407.120(a)(4)

Staffing Structure

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.90(d) · Violation corrected

Background Checks for Personnel

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.110 · Violation corrected

Nutrition and Meal Service

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.330(b) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 483533 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Mar 2022 Compliance monitoring visit nothing cited
Aug 2020 Monitoring visit 1 finding

Monitoring visit · August 4, 2020

Personnel Records

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a)(3) · Violation substantiated

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 483533 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Dec 2019 Monitoring visit 2 findings

Monitoring visit · December 10, 2019

Qualifications for Child Care Director

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.130(l)(1) · Rule cited again

Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.250(i)(4)(a) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 483533 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Jan 2019 Monitoring visit 2 findings

Monitoring visit · January 4, 2019

Qualifications for Child Care Director

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

Cited: CCASEC4

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

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 483533 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

May 2017 Monitoring visit 1 finding

Monitoring visit · May 23, 2017

General Requirements for Personnel

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

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 483533 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Mar 2016 Monitoring visit 2 findings

Monitoring visit · March 28, 2016

Equipment and Materials

2 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.380(j)(4)(h) through (5) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.380(j)(4)(h) · 407.380(j)(5)

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 483533 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Apr 2014 Monitoring visit 1 finding

Monitoring visit · April 4, 2014

Personnel Records

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a)(2) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 483533 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Apr 2013 Monitoring visit 6 findings

Monitoring visit · April 9, 2013

Organization and Administration

2 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.70(e)(3) through (h) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.70(e)(3) · 407.70(h)

Personnel Records

2 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a)(2) through (4) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a)(2) · 407.120(a)(4)

Enrollment and Discharge Procedures

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.250(d) · Violation corrected

Health Requirements for Children

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(3) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 483533 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Apr 2012 Monitoring visit 3 findings

Monitoring visit · April 2, 2012

Background Checks for Personnel

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.110 · Violation corrected

Personnel Records

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(a)(2) · Violation corrected

Health Requirements for Children

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

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 483533 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

How the comparison is built

Routine visits: across Chicago-area centers, the state cites something at about 5 in 6 routine visits (19,088 visits).

A day here

Hours
7:00 AM to 6:00 PM, 5 days a week, year round
Schedule
full-day, offered as 2-day, 3-day, or 5-day per week programs
Closed
MLK Day & Staff Dev Day (Jan 19), Parent Teacher Conferences (Mar 6), Spring Break (Mar 23-27), Memorial Day (May 25), Juneteenth Day (Jun 19), Independence Day (Jul 3), Labor Day (Sept 7), Indigenous Peoples' Day & Staff Dev Day (Oct 12), Thanksgiving Break (Nov 25-27), Winter Break (Dec 24 - Jan 1, 2027)

Policies

Enrollment
Open enrollment; families placed on a waiting list when no spots are available and notified when a spot opens

Details

7734896543

Website
creativescholarspreschool.com
Address
1735 N Elston Ave
License
license issued (il)
Ages they serve
6 weeks old to 5 years old

Do you run Creative Scholars Preschool? Shortlist has no ratios or daily routine for it, because the state does not publish that. Adding it is free and takes about ten minutes.

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.

What it costs

State record

Every state visit and complaint on file, shown in full and never edited. Open a date to read what the state wrote.

A day here

Policies

Details