CHICAGO — Some parents are out thousands of dollars and teachers unexpectedly laid off after a Chicago daycare company abruptly closed its doors last week.
Sonnets Academy had two locations – one in the West Loop and the other in Lincoln Park. They both served children between 6 weeks and 6-years-old.
Last Friday was their last day of operation but no one, not even their staff, knew it was coming.
Levi Denton-Hughes was among those that lost their jobs.
“It’s honestly, truly, a slap in the face,” Denton-Hughes said.
For nearly the last two years, Denton-Hughes was the music enrichment teacher for Sonnets Academy.
“I’ve fallen in love so much with this job. Working with these kids has been a highlight of my life. This was a really hard thing to digest,” Denton-Hughes said.
Denton-Hughes says they was notified of the closure and the loss of her job late Friday night around the same time families were notified.
Mirza Drino enrolled his two young children in the Lincoln Park location and had been with the center for several years.
“We thought it was a scam until we received an email from the school at 11 p.m. on Friday night saying that indeed they were shutting down,” he said. “We loved the teachers, we loved the staff, which makes this whole experience even more shocking. Obviously there was some disconnect between the staff and the owners of the institution because there had been some financial issues that we were not made aware of.”
WGN News attempted to reach the company for comment through emails but the emails bounced back.
Their social media pages have been taken down.
While their website is still active, it lists no phone number.
Their locations now have a sign posted on their doors stating their last day of operation was Friday, September 26.
WGN called the number listed for a trustee and left a voicemail.
Families and staff say they too have had no communication from the company or the ability to access their personal belongings left inside.
Not to mention the owed deposits and tuition.
The Drino family says they’re owed about $7,000 in deposits and tuition and they’re not sure if they’ll ever see that money.
Teachers say they’ve been told they’ll be paid for their last week of work and according to their contract, receive payment for their unused PTO.
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