Oak Park River Forest Day Nursery
The Day Nursery Difference
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
As the only full-time NAEYC-accredited early childhood education center in the near western suburbs that provides financial assistance to low- and middle-income families, The Day Nursery serves a critical need in the community. Despite Oak Park's affluent reputation, one in five Oak Park children under the age of five reside in homes 200% above the poverty level – or below. Many reside in single-family homes. The Day Nursery also serves the communities of Forest Park, Maywood, and the Austin district of Chicago. Maywood and Austin are both low-income communities; the median household income in Austin is $34,100 for a family of 3.1. A quality early childhood education can reduce, if not eliminate, the achievement gap so often seen in grade school and high school. Each year over 90% of Day Nursery children transition to Kindergarten with the skills – both socio-emotional and cognitive – to succeed in school.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Early Childhood Education
The Day Nursery was founded in 1912 by a group of philanthropic women who were far ahead of their time in Oak Park, Illinois to recognize the need for quality early childhood programming for the community’s working poor. Throughout the years, The Day Nursery has expanded its services and is now a premium provider of Early Childhood Education for children ages 2-6 and is a model for best practices in the field. It remains committed to providing the best in early childhood education to families of all income levels. The Day Nursery is the only full-time early childhood education provider in the community accredited by the National Association for Education of Young Children (NAEYC) that provides financial assistance to low and middle income families. Over 65% of Day Nursery families who participate in full- and part-time programs receive financial assistance.
Where we work
External reviews

Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Percent of children who transitioned ready for Kindergarten
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children
Related Program
Early Childhood Education
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Based on assessments via Teaching Strategies Gold. TDN's goal is to have at least 90% of children transition to Kindergarten with necessary skills for school success.
Number of children who have knowledge of quantitative concepts, spatial relationships, and sequencing. Children show interest and the ability to apply measuring, categorizing, and sequencing in real-life situations.
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children
Related Program
Early Childhood Education
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Based on Teaching Strategies GOLD Growth Report . The Day Nursery's goal is that at least 90% of children meet this metric.
Percentage of children who meet or exceed goals for key social-emotional skills, including communication, confidence and independence
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children
Related Program
Early Childhood Education
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Based on Teaching Strategies Gold Growth Report. The Day Nursery's goal is to have at least 90% of children meeting or exceeding goals.
Percentage of children screened for developmental delays
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children
Related Program
Early Childhood Education
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Based on Preschool for All Eligibility Screening Process + ASQ Online Screenings
Number of children who demonstrate growth in key cognitive skills
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children
Related Program
Early Childhood Education
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Based on Teaching Strategies GOLD Report for applicable school year. TDN's Goal is to have at least 90% of children demonstrating growth.
Number of children who have emerging literacy skills such as beginning letter recognition and phonological awareness, story comprehension, and use of writing materials.
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children
Related Program
Early Childhood Education
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Based on Teaching Strategies GOLD Growth Report at the end of the school year. The Day Nursery's goal is that at least 90% meet their literacy goals.
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
The Day Nursery seeks to serve and be recognized as a model of Best Practice in the field of Early Childhood Education by ensuring all children and families have access to high quality early care and education through participation in our world class, exceptional programs.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
A strategic plan was developed and passed by the board in the spring of 2016 focusing on five main areas: Facilities, Programs and Services, Human Resources and Organizational Climate, Marketing and Public Relations, and Funding and Financial Management.
Some of the strategies outlined in these areas include exploring additional site locations in the community to fill the need for infant/toddler care, offering parent education to the greater community, adding a behavioral health services component for children attending The Day Nursery, and creating a Parent Resource Center onsite. In order to maintain the highest quality staff, The Day Nursery will reassess current personnel policies, develop an employee recognition program, and increase professional development opportunities. All of these strategies require marketing and fund development and various goals have been established in these areas as well
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
The Day Nursery has a strong and very engaged Board, volunteers, donors, and staff who all contribute to our progress.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Assessments of children prove that The Day Nursery consistently meets its goal of instilling a joy of learning and preparing children for kindergarten. Annually, a minimum of 90% of Day Nursery pre-kindergarteners transfer to kindergarten with the skills necessary for school success, based on Teaching Strategy Gold assessments. In FY22, 100% of students met or exceeded expectations in five of six domains by the end the 2021-2022 year. In Math, 90% of the children met or exceeded expectations.
Parents also express satisfaction, and even gratitude, to The Day Nursery for its analytical and nurturing approach to children. The analytical piece promotes nurturing though assessment that provide insight into a child's development. One example is a child who had been asked by several other centers to leave due to disruptive behavior. Through assessments, The Day Nursery discovered he had difficulties with language and therefore became disruptive due to frustration in not being able to adequately express himself. The child received the interventions he required and went on to kindergarten ready and excited.
The mother said the following about her experience at The Day Nursery, “When I was feeling that the world had turned its back on us and my son was gonna be written off as just another bad kid, you all gave me hope. But more than hope, you gave us a home. Every day, All the teachers smiled and gave him a hug in the morning when we got there and didn't make us feel bad for being there. At night, people asked me how my day was instead of running up to tell me all the things my son had done wrong. Most of the time I heard about the 'good choices' he made or at least tried to make. He mattered. I mattered. Everybody at The Day Nursery was there for us, no matter what. Thanks to you guys, we both got what we needed to be better at being us."
In terms of goals in the strategic plan, several have already been met and others are in progress. Leadership is looking at additional sites, Human Resource policies are being updated, a Planned Giving Program has been developed along with a Case for Support, and funding is being sought to support Behavioral Services.
Financials
Unlock nonprofit financial insights that will help you make more informed decisions. Try our monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights?
Learn more
about GuideStar Pro.
Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Oak Park River Forest Day Nursery
Board of directorsas of 09/28/2022
Ms. Michelle Arnold
University of Chicago - Chapin Hall
Term: 2022 - 2024
Michelle Arnold
University of Chicago
Eric Olson
Media Source Inc
Scott Dolezal
Best, Vanderlaan, & Harrington
Aisha Dalley
Cicero School District 99
Erin Ficker
Self-employed
Karen Newton
Us Cellular
Kevin Smith
Accenture
Maureen Delaney
Elmwood Park Library
Lori Anderson
Avery Dennison
Emilee Elick-Cattrell
VA Cheyenne Health Care System
Emily Hahn
Telemus Capital
Andreia Leon
IPM Medical Group
Cecilia Lyons-Sharp
Advocate Health Care
Nicole Silver
BGF Children's Therapy
Faraz Sultan
Rush University
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
-
Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 11/23/2020GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.