University Children’s Center

Okay parents your worries are over! My nanny quit on short notice. This daycare was a blessing from heaven. My baby learned more from his teacher Ms Roma in one month. All of the teachers are wonderful! They truly love their students! I really believe that you will be happy here!

I’ve decided to remove my very long review of UCC because there are teachers who still work there that I love and respect.
That being said, there are significant problems with the management and corporate structure of this center. These problems were so severe, I no longer felt that teachers were supported in the way they needed to be and therefore, my daughter’s safety and well-​being were compromised because teachers are not given the tools they request to put appropriate changes in place.
After complaining to the corporate office, I felt I got more of the same– telling me what I wanted to hear instead of the truth, so we decided to remove our daughter from UCC.
It has been a wonderful decision. After a month, I have seen amazing growth and happiness in my child that I never knew was missing before, and I feel awful for keeping her at UCC for as long as I did. Please do yourself and your child a favor and look elsewhere.

The best thing I can say about this place is it makes me appreciate how wonderful our current daycare is. I always felt like my child was seen in dollar signs, and everything possible was done to extract as much money from each child as possible while spending as little money as possible on the care. Summer camp fees, registration fees, «learning adventure» fees (to teach your child letters and numbers!), it seems like the extras, many of which were mandatory, just kept coming.
Worse than that, the ways the center tired to save money. Children were constantly sent to different classrooms so as to minimize staff who were sent home for the day — the KinderShuffle. There were some good teachers, but it seemed the best ones kept leaving. Perhaps they got sick of unplanned unpaid vacation days when they could move kids to minimize staff needed to meet state minimum ratios. Any complaint was met with the response that they met the state minimum requirements. Or perhaps a promise to change — but they never did. They were always hiring. And always working on something. Yet it never seemed to happen.
Many of the toys were broken or had most of the pieces missing. The books were even sparser and in poor condition. Many items were hidden from the kids to protect them. The curriculum seemed to get in the way of learning. Every time I stopped by, the children were waiting — sitting at the door waiting to go to the play area, sitting in a circle waiting for story time, sitting on the floor crying for a bottle, you name it.
In the evening when I picked up my child I would see a teacher move a child to the closing classroom and leave a crying child on the floor who would then cry for 15 – 20 mins before the teacher was able to pick him or her up. Because that teacher was too busy doing other tasks including cleaning the room so they could leave on time. Kids were delivered with dirty diapers or needing a bottle because their prior room needed to close now otherwise they would have to pay the teacher more, overwhelming the closing teacher with kids with a lot of needs. While meeting all these needs, the closing teacher was also expected to clean the room concurrently so she could leave on time.
The morning was just as bad. Kids dropped off and needing bottles and breakfast and one teacher without any help who needed to do all this plus get the room set up for the day. Needless to say, there were a lot of tears in the morning which could have been prevented with more teachers and more focus on the kids rather than the setting up the room.
Yeah, this might take more staff. But for the high tuition, you would think that times when parents are dropping off and picking up kids would be a high priority. If things are bad when they expect parents, what do you think they are like in the middle of the day?
This may meet state minimum requirements, but it doesnt meet the children’s needs.
I expected better though I came to assume many things were standard in childcare centers and would be the same at other centers. They aren’t. Other places are better.
My child deserved better. Yours does too. I can’t believe how long we held out hoping this time the promised change would arrive. It never did. We are so much happier and my child is thriving in her the program.
Do yourself and your child a favor: start elsewhere and save yourself the hassle.

Love the UCC! The staff are kind, and I genuinely think they love my kids. Lots of enrichment activities. Love the cirriculum. We’ve been here for a year with our son, and soon our daughter will join her big brother going to «school.»

While I think it’s a shame that Alice M had a negative experience, I don’t think hers is a fair assessment of UCC.
I have had my daughter there since she was 12 weeks old and she loves the place. Her eyes light up when she sees her teachers and classmates in the morning.
They are very concerned with consistency in caregivers, but try to make the children comfortable with all the teachers… which isn’t difficult, because they are all so warm and engaged. They also send home wonderful pictures and keepsakes from art projects that we will cherish forever (they’ve done a far better job of documenting my daughter’s growth than I have. :))
It’s secure, clean, bright, fun, and the people are so kind. We are so pleased.

I’m really surprised at Alice M’s review. My son started attending CCLC right after he turned 2 and he’s now almost 4. My son had been on a waiting list to get in for 5mths, and when they called to say they had a spot, we could not have been happier. He had been at a daycare for 5mths that I was not especially happy about, but it was the only one that was open, geographical desirable, and had a camera on ²⁴⁄₇ that parents could login to check-​in on their kids. He cried almost everyday I left him there for 5mths — it was heartbreaking, but once he joined CCLC, he did great from day one. He was so happy to be there, he immediately engaged with his teachers, and they were so loving and supportive of his transition — he could feel that and it showed in his behavior. It was the best feeling to be able to drop my son off, and know that he was happy and comfortable.
They respect our family dynamic and rules. They always communicate well with me regarding my son and his changing needs. Also, the food is great for this kind of set-​up (organic, grass-​fed beef, etc.). There is wonderful programming that your child can partake in. My son has done phonics, soccer, and now cooking class. They spend time outside, take the kids to play in the water nearby in the warmer months, attend events at Navy Pier, etc.
I really am so happy with my son being at this center. In fact, I recently passed on a job opportunity at the Evanston campus because I did not want to withdraw my son from CCLC, and transfer him to another program. I was a stay at home mom with my son until he was 18mths old. Taking him to daycare once I started working again was extremely hard, but it was and remains the most economical decision for our family. At CCLC, I could not be happier with his progress, and his time spent in their care. I highly recommend this center.

I wouldn’t send my three year old son anywhere else. The curriculum is amazing. We signed our son up for all elective courses: Spanish, phonics, mathematics, science, cooking, etc. He has really developed and is excited to tell me about his day.
The instructors never mind when I call in or drop in to check on my son. He is always smiling — and has really come out of his shell. His teachers go above and beyond and are familiar with the children in their care. This was so important to me — as my husband and I consider UCC part of our extended family.
UCC offers quarterly get-​togethers so parents can provide input. The children learn about the community and how to become responsible young children. When I first brought my son the the Center, I was a bit skeptical about some of curriculum. But, I thought I’d put him in some of the courses, and see what he thought.
He has made more meals than most 25 year old adults, can crack an egg without shells in his dish, can give direction in Spanish, is learning to estimate, built a gingerbread house, learned to play the harmonica, has learned to sound out names and spell his names, is comfortable writing and has mastered his fine motor skills. I can go on and on…
As parents we only want the best for our children. I feel like I am one of the lucky ones to get a spot at UCC.

We have sent our daughter to UCC starting when she was six weeks old until she started preschool at a private elementary Chicago school at age 3. We just went back to UCC for a few days while she was on Winter Break, and made the decision that the best place for her to be over summer vacation is back at UCC until school starts up again next fall.
I have had a very different experience at UCC than the previous parent. From our first day at the center, I knew our daughter was well-​cared for, so I never worried while at work. When she went back over winter break, she was eager to see her old teachers and friends, and was excited when I told her that she would be going back this summer. As she progressed from room to room as she grew older, her past teachers from infant and toddler rooms would always come to check in on her progress.
The teachers continuously challenged her with new age-​appropriate tasks (who knew that 15 month old kids could have meals together and serve themselves – a bit messily – and clear their plates?) and helped socialize her. She was very well-​prepared for preschool responsibilities, following directions, sitting in group settings, and knowing her letters and numbers.
As an infant, the center was very respectful of feeding choices (parents can bring in formula or breastmilk as well as choice of baby food before transitioning to the center’s solid food menu), and I appreciated getting a daily written report of her activities, bathroom use, eating habits, and naps. They helped encourage her potty training too which was quite helpful!
The center is currently undergoing some renovations which have lead to really beautiful new rooms for the 3 year old and 4 year olds, and a reconstructed indoor and new outdoor playspace are under construction now.
I have never questioned our family’s decision to send our daughter to UCC – she is a confident, self-​sufficient kid that loves going to school, and I know that one of the reasons is the great experience she had in daycare.