Florence Nightingale Elementary School

Honestly, I'm pretty worried about the health situation at Nightingale. The chronic absenteeism here is over 35%, which is a huge red flag—it feels like kids are constantly out sick and there's no real plan to get things under control. The school is crowded and it shows in the cleanliness; the bathrooms often look like they haven't been touched in hours. With the attendance rates being so low, you'd think there would be more outreach or wellness support, but it feels like the staff is just spread way too thin to follow up. It’s hard to feel like my kid is in a 'healthy' environment when half the class is missing and the building feels this neglected.

Honestly, Nightingale has been pretty solid since we started. The year-round schedule is nice because the kids don't get that huge summer slump, but it does mean they're in the building during the peak of cold and flu season without a long break. That said, the school nurse is super responsive. My daughter had a little dizzy spell in gym class last month and they called me right away to let me know, which I appreciated. The school seems clean enough for a CPS building, and they're usually good about sending out those 'we have a case of strep' emails so we can keep an eye out for symptoms at home. My only gripe is that the outdoor play space can get a bit muddy and messy, but overall the staff really seems to care about keeping the germs at bay.