NORWALK, CT (April 28, 2026) — The operator of a Norwalk child care center admitted to more than two dozen regulatory violations — including knowingly making false statements to state investigators, placing seven infants on their stomachs to sleep in violation of safe sleep requirements, and allowing an infant to be left in a bouncy seat with a bottle propped against the infant’s neck, milk dripping on the child — as part of a formal consent order with the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood, an agreement reached in lieu of license revocation or other disciplinary action, records obtained by Talk of the Sound show.
The violations that led to the consent order were not the end of the story. After signing the order, state inspectors found that the overwhelming majority of staff working with children lacked proper background checks, that toddlers were being allowed to play on an emergency exit ramp overlooking an active driveway near a busy road, and that a playground outlet had a broken cover with exposed wires accessible to children. The operator sold the facility in August 2024.
Robert Rubicco, legal representative of 770 Treehouse LLC, signed the consent order with the state on Dec. 13, 2021, admitting that violations contained in two draft Statements of Charges — dated Oct. 29, 2021, and Nov. 17, 2021 — did occur. He waived his right to a hearing. He agreed to pay a $2,000 civil penalty and submit to a two-year monitoring regime that included mandatory outside consultants and quarterly on-site audits.
He then violated the conditions of the consent order. State records show he failed to conduct the required quarterly administrative audits in both 2022 and 2023. The state responded with routine corrective action plans rather than invoking the consent order’s own enforcement mechanism, which authorized further legal action for noncompliance.
Rubicco sold the facility — Anna & Jack’s Treehouse at 770 Connecticut Ave. — in August 2024. He had acquired it in September 2019.
The records, 222 pages produced in response to a Freedom of Information Act request filed with the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood, had not previously been reported.
They document a pattern of violations across five years of Rubicco’s operation of the Norwalk facility.
Talk of the Sound has reported extensively on Rubicco’s operations across multiple locations. That reporting is available in the Talk of the Sound archive. Rubicco has used Irish solicitors to demand the removal of prior coverage. Talk of the Sound has declined.
Questions Pending With State Regulators
Talk of the Sound submitted a series of general background questions to the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood on April 27, 2026, seeking context on how the agency handles consent orders, civil penalties, and license transfers. Maggie Adair, Communications and Legislative Program Manager, acknowledged receipt of the questions the same day, noting that the licensing director had been consulted and that responses would be provided as quickly as possible. Talk of the Sound has also submitted a follow-up question regarding the signature status of the consent order included in the FOI response. Talk of the Sound will update this story when responses are received. Depending on the substance of those responses, a separate follow-up report may be warranted.
What Rubicco Admitted To
The two Statements of Charges — Exhibit A, dated Oct. 29, 2021, and Exhibit B, dated Nov. 17, 2021 — were attached to the consent order and incorporated into it. By signing the consent order, Rubicco admitted that the violations described in both documents did occur.
The copy of the consent order included in the FOI response bears Rubicco’s signature but leaves blank the printed name line, the date signed line, and the OEC signature line for Debra L. Johnson, Director of the Division of Licensing. Other records included in the same FOI response — including a consent order monitoring form confirming the $2,000 civil penalty was paid in full and multiple inspection reports citing specific consent order conditions as binding obligations — confirm the order was in effect. Talk of the Sound has asked OEC to clarify whether the copy provided is a draft or a fully executed document.
Exhibit A — Oct. 29, 2021
The first Statement of Charges was based on findings from an annual unannounced inspection conducted on June 8, 2021, an Aug. 20, 2021 follow-up visit, and investigations conducted on or about Oct. 18 and Oct. 20, 2021.
Unannounced Inspection June 8, 2021
Licensing Procedures
— The operator failed to maintain licensing procedures when a review of records revealed that a local health inspection had not been conducted within the past two years and there was no certificate on file verifying such.
Administration — Policies
— The discipline policy and/or the child abuse and neglect policy was not on file.
— The late pick-up policy was incomplete, missing the requirement that at least two staff members 18 years or older be on the licensed premises.
— The supervision policy was not on file.
— The operating policy contained an inaccurate statement that a morning snack is provided.
— The personnel policy was not on file.
— The fire marshal certificate was expired.
— Menus were not posted.
Staffing
— No staff health records and/or negative tuberculin test reports were on file for any staff members.
— There was no documentation of professional development on file.
— The designated Director did not have the required three credits in the administration of early childhood education programs.
— There was not at least one staff member with a current CPR certification present at all times the child care center was in operation; no staff had current CPR certifications on file.
— There was not at least one staff member who had successfully completed an approved first aid course within the past three years; no staff had current first aid certifications on file.
— The plan for professional development was not on file.
— There was no written agreement on file for an educational consultant, a health consultant, a dental consultant, a social service consultant and/or a dietician.
— There were no consultation logs on file for an educational consultant, a health consultant, a dental consultant, a social service consultant and/or a dietician.
Record Keeping
— Enrollment records for two children did not contain the date of enrollment.
— Health records for two children were not on file.
— An individual care plan was not on file for one child with a food sensitivity.
— An individual care plan was not on file for one child who requires Benadryl and an epi-pen.
— Individual care plans for two children did not have staff signatures.
Physical Plant
— Two rusted wire racks in the Pre-K 3 classroom and/or a rusted microwave were observed.
— The water supply was not tested every two years for lead content with results submitted to local and state health departments; there was no documentation of any such test or submission on file.
— Sanitary facilities were not provided for children who need assistance with toileting; potty seats were observed stored on top of each other, behind the toilet and/or on the floor.
— Equipment was not safe for children; multiple blue and red foam chairs were observed to be torn.
Educational Requirements
— The educational program plan was not on file.
Administration of Medication
— The administration of medication policy was not on file.
— The written permission of the parent for the administration of nonprescription topical medications was not on file for any of the children requiring diaper creams.
— The outline for the administration of medication training was not on file.
— The written order from an authorized prescriber for two children was not on file and/or the written order from an authorized prescriber for one child was missing the parent information.
— All expired medications were not returned to parents or disposed of; expired Benadryl was observed on-site.
— An epi-pen without a label was observed for one child.
From the Aug. 20, 2021 follow-up:
— Three staff members did not complete annual staff policy training and/or their files lacked documentation thereof.
— The operating policy was incomplete.
— Seven staff members did not complete professional development requirements and/or their files lacked documentation thereof.
— The plan for professional development was incomplete.
— There was no written agreement on file for an educational consultant, dental consultant, and/or a social service consultant; and/or the written agreement on file for the dietician was incomplete.
— No educational, dental, social service, and/or dietician consultative services were received and/or no consultation logs were on file for those consultants.
— Individual care plans for two children did not have the signatures of the staff responsible for their care.
— The written permission of the parents for the administration of nonprescription topical medications (i.e., diaper cream) for three children was incomplete and/or staff admitted to not reviewing such forms prior to administering the medication.
— Gas-trapping objects were under or with an infant where the agency observed three improperly fitting crib sheets and/or blankets laid over the tops of cribs.
From the Oct. 18, 2021 investigation:
— One staff member did not complete new employee orientation and/or the staff file lacked documentation thereof.
— Daily attendance records for children were incomplete where the records lacked specific times of arrival and/or departure.
— There was no individual plan of care for a child requiring an epi-pen, a child with dietary restrictions, and/or other children with disabilities or special health care needs.
— There was no written record on file for a child who fell and hit her head in August 2021.
— Children were strapped in chairs and unable to move freely during a music class, failing to maintain the educational requirement of allowing children exploration and discovery.
— A staff member admitted to administering nonprescription topical medication without training.
— No staff were trained in the administration of nonprescription topical medication.
— There was no written order from an authorized prescriber for an epi-pen.
— Medication administration records for one child administered medication (over-the-counter pain reliever) were not on file.
— Medication was not properly labeled where it was observed to lack the proper dosage to be administered.
— Medication (Motrin and gas drops) was stored in an unlocked drawer in a classroom, accessible to children.
— The written order from an authorized prescriber for Motrin/Ibuprofen was incomplete, lacking start and end dates for the medication.
— The Waddler classroom was observed to have one staff member with seven children under the age of three, violating the required ratio of one program staff for every four children.
From the Oct. 20, 2021 follow-up:
— The Director knowingly furnished or made false or misleading statements to the Agency as follows: (a) stating no children with allergies or who required medication were in attendance; (b) providing a document that contained incorrect information about staff training; and/or (c) misrepresenting the date of completion for an orientation checklist.
— An epi-pen was not stored in a safe manner, inaccessible to other children; it was located in a child’s backpack.
From the Oct. 25, 2021 investigation:
— Staff admitted to placing seven children under one year of age on their stomachs to sleep, and those children were observed sleeping on their stomachs — a violation of safe sleep requirements.
Exhibit B — Nov. 17, 2021
The second Statement of Charges was based on a partial inspection conducted on Nov. 15, 2021.
— An individual care plan on file for a child with an allergy to cow milk protein was not signed by all staff responsible for the care of that child.
— Proper staff-child ratios of one program staff for every 10 children were not maintained when one staff was observed with 16 children, with at least one child awake.
— Proper staff-child ratios of one program staff for every four children under three years of age were not maintained when one staff was observed with seven children under the age of three, with at least one child awake.
— An infant was not held for bottle feeding but was observed in a bouncy seat with the bottle propped by the infant’s neck, with liquid dripping on the infant.
The Consent Order
The State of Connecticut Office of Early Childhood Legal Division issued the consent order on Dec. 13, 2021, in the matter of Child Care Center License #70525, Anna & Jack’s Treehouse, 770 Treehouse LLC, Robert Rubicco, Legal Representative.
In signing the consent order, Rubicco admitted the violations in both Exhibits A and B did occur. He waived his right to a hearing. The consent order noted that Rubicco “has chosen not to contest the above admissions before a hearing officer.”
The consent order imposed the following conditions:
— Within one month, contract with an Agency-approved education consultant to assist with the review, development, and implementation of written policies covering daily attendance records, discipline, supervision, general operation, and personnel.
— Within two months, implement those policies with the consultant’s assistance.
— The education consultant must conduct on-site quarterly observations for one year and submit written evaluations with recommendations and timelines after each visit.
— For two years — through December 2023 — implement all of the consultant’s recommendations, unless the Agency granted prior approval excusing compliance.
— Within one month, contract with an Agency-approved health consultant to train all staff on caring for children under three years of age, including ratio requirements and safe sleep practices.
— Within one month, contract with a health consultant to revise the facility’s written policies on medication administration and individual plans of care, and implement those revised policies within two months.
— Within two months, the health consultant must conduct training for all current staff on medication policies and procedures.
— Within six months, the designated Director must successfully complete Agency-approved training on the administration of early childhood education programs, including supervision of staff, staff communication, classroom and staff observations and remedies for deficiencies, record keeping, staff evaluation and development, and progressive discipline of staff.
— Within one month, develop and implement a written plan for the administrative oversight of the facility, requiring quarterly on-site audits to ensure all policies and procedures are followed, staff are adequately trained, and the facility is in compliance with state regulations and the consent order’s own conditions.
— Pay a civil penalty of $2,000, due and payable upon signing.
— Any violation of the terms of the consent order shall constitute grounds for the Agency to take any other available legal action against the licensee.
The consent order was signed by Rubicco on behalf of 770 Treehouse LLC. OEC’s consent order monitoring form, included in the FOI response, confirms the $2,000 civil penalty was paid in full. The header of the monitoring form states: “Financial Penalty Paid: Yes in full.”
Violations of the Consent Order
The monitoring form also shows that as of a review conducted in early 2022, the conditions requiring implementation of the educational consultant’s recommendations (Condition 11) and the quarterly administrative audits (Condition 16) were marked “In Process” — not complete.
By March 22, 2023, inspectors documented a substantiated violation of Consent Order Condition 16. The quarterly administrative audit requirement had not been met. Records showed the last audit had been conducted on Dec. 7, 2022, and the previous one on July 6, 2022 — two audits in a year, not the four required.
A corrective action plan was issued. Rubicco signed it on April 5, 2023, promising quarterly audits going forward.
By Sept. 8, 2023, inspectors documented another substantiated violation of Consent Order Condition 16. Only one audit had been conducted in 2023, dated April 10, 2023. The quarterly requirement had again not been met.
Another corrective action plan was issued. Another signature. Another promise.
At no point in the 222 pages of records does the state appear to have invoked the consent order’s enforcement mechanism authorizing further legal action for noncompliance. No escalated enforcement action is documented. No suspension. No license action.
What Inspectors Found After the Consent Order
The consent order was signed Dec. 13, 2021. What followed over the next two years suggests the order did little to change conditions at the facility.
December 10, 2021 — Three Days Before Signing
A technical assistance visit conducted three days before Rubicco signed the consent order found infants in unsafe situations. An infant was observed sleeping in a swing — the inspector directed the teacher to remove the child immediately. A second infant was observed lying on a Boppy pillow while a staff member held a bottle for the child to drink — a safe sleep and choking hazard. These findings came after Rubicco had already admitted, as part of the consent order charges, to unsafe infant practices including staff placing seven children under one year of age on their stomachs to sleep.
March 28, 2022 — Three Months After the Consent Order
A March 2022 inspection found conditions throughout the facility that state records describe in detail.
In the kitchen: refrigerators were described as soiled inside and out, one freezer had rust inside, counters and sinks were described as “very soiled,” and a bathroom had been converted into a storage closet and was “no longer sanitary.” A separate refrigerator was described as having “rust all over” it. A microwave in one room had rust inside.
In the classrooms: a changing pad had multiple tears. Cots were stored next to each other with multiple children’s bedding items mixed together. Books, stuffed animals, and dress-up clothes were stored on top of cots. An unlabeled tube of Desitin diaper cream was found stored next to a toilet, accessible to children. Phone cords hung low throughout rooms.
Children under 32 months had been enrolled in a preschool room — a room not licensed for their age group — since September 2021, according to staff. Group sizes had exceeded regulatory limits on multiple days since September 2021.
Medication records were in disarray. An albuterol inhaler was found without its box and label. An albuterol authorization form had a different treatment protocol than the child’s care plan. Diaper cream logs did not match parent authorization forms across multiple children — in one case a child’s form specified cream at every diaper change but the log showed an average of one application per day. The training outline for oral, topical, and inhalant medication administration was not on file. The local health inspection had expired.
One staff member was working without completed medical clearance. One staff member lacked TB test results. Seven out of ten staff files reviewed lacked documentation of annual policy training.
Most significantly: the education consultant appointed under the consent order had recommended on March 14, 2022 — two weeks before the inspection — that unsecured cubbies in the hallway be secured. When inspectors arrived on March 28, the cubbies were still not secured. This was documented as a violation of Consent Order Condition 11 — the requirement to implement the educational consultant’s recommendations.
June 15, 2022 — Six Months After the Consent Order
A June 2022 inspection produced what inspectors flagged as requiring immediate correction: eight out of nine staff files reviewed had missing, incomplete, or unapproved background checks. The overwhelming majority of staff working with children at the facility had not been properly vetted through the state’s background check system. The inspection also documented a violation of Consent Order Condition 16 — the quarterly administrative audit requirement. An audit conducted jointly with the educational consultant failed to meet the consent order’s requirements. Inspectors cited inaccurate staff attendance records and incomplete training of new staff, and noted the findings demonstrated “a lack of operator oversight.”
August 18, 2022
A follow-up inspection found one staff member working with children without a completed background check. The staff member was directed not to return until the background check was cleared.
September 19, 2022
A new room — designated Infant 2 — had been constructed at the facility. When inspectors arrived, no local health, fire, or building approvals had been provided to OEC. The room was being used without OEC final approval. Inspectors noted that all future facility changes must be submitted to OEC in advance with a change form, accurate floor plan, and local approvals, and cannot be used until OEC grants final approval.
January 6, 2023 — One Year After the Consent Order
A January 2023 inspection found water temperatures in multiple rooms ranging from 116.8 degrees Fahrenheit to 118.9 degrees Fahrenheit — dangerously hot for young children. State records show the facility’s own education consultant had flagged water temperature as too high during visits in late June and early July 2022. Six months after that warning, the water temperature had not been corrected.
The fire marshal certificate had expired Aug. 2, 2022. It was still expired at the January 2023 inspection — five months later. Emergency plans were not posted. An outlet on the first floor playground had a broken cover with sharp edges and exposed wires accessible to children. A hose on the rooftop playground posed a tripping hazard.
In the Wobblers room, Tylenol and acid control medications were found unlocked and accessible. A Benadryl authorization form for one child had expired June 30, 2022 — it was still on file six months later. Diaper creams were stored accessible to children in the Toddler 2 bathroom. Individual care plans for multiple children had not been signed by newly hired staff.
The changing table in Toddler 2 had items stored on it including an iPad, a ring, napkins, cupcakes, a tablecloth, and paper plates.
Classrooms were washing reusable bowls, utensils, and plates without local health approval for dishwashing in classroom settings.
The facility’s current license was not posted with the correct capacity. The dental consultant contract did not include all required services. One child was missing a developmental assessment. One child had an incomplete health record.
July 13, 2023 — Eighteen Months After the Consent Order
An unannounced inspection in July 2023 found 19 toddlers playing on an emergency exit ramp on the side of the building — a space not approved by OEC for play, overlooking an active driveway into a parking garage near a busy road. Six infants from the Infant 2 room were observed sitting in a wading pool filled with water on the same emergency exit ramp. No physical barriers separated groups of children. Group sizes exceeded regulatory limits.
Inspectors also found that children from the Infant 2, Waddler 1, and Infant 3 rooms had been playing outside on the emergency exit ramps overlooking the driveway.
The corrective action plan required teachers to be told not to use the emergency exit ramp as play space and to be retrained on group size limits. Wading pools were to be used only as ball pits going forward.
December 13, 2023 — Two Years After the Consent Order
The final full unannounced inspection before the sale took place on Dec. 13, 2023 — exactly two years to the day after Rubicco signed the consent order. The local health inspection had expired April 17, 2022. At the December 2023 inspection — nearly 20 months later — it remained expired. One staff member was working with children without a completed background check through OEC.
In two classrooms, staff and children were not washing hands before and after diaper changing — a basic hygiene requirement.
In Room 10, two bottles did not have children’s names on them, raising the question of whether infants were drinking from each other’s bottles.
Eight months later, Rubicco sold the facility.
A Note on the Pattern
Across two years of inspections following the consent order, state regulators repeatedly found unsafe conditions, medication failures, background check deficiencies, and physical plant violations at Anna & Jack’s Treehouse. The response in each case was a corrective action plan — the same routine compliance tool used for first-time violations. At no point do the 222 pages of records show OEC invoking the consent order’s own enforcement mechanism, which authorized further legal action for noncompliance.
The consent order required quarterly administrative audits to ensure the facility was meeting its obligations. Those audits were themselves found to be deficient. The state’s own oversight mechanism failed to detect or correct a pattern that continued unabated until the facility changed hands.
Financial Chaos
The regulatory record in Connecticut unfolded against a backdrop of financial turmoil that Talk of the Sound has documented extensively across Rubicco’s operations. Lawsuits filed by parents, vendors, the company that sold him the Norwalk business, and multiple merchant cash advance lenders paint a picture of an operator under severe and sustained financial pressure across all of his locations. Readers seeking a full account of that record can find it in the Talk of the Sound archive.
The Sale
In August 2024, Rubicco sold Anna & Jack’s Treehouse at 770 Connecticut Ave. in Norwalk. The two-year consent order compliance period had expired in December 2023. The violations of its conditions had been met with corrective action plans rather than the consequences the consent order itself authorized.
A broker’s announcement of the sale described it as the successful exit of an award-winning childcare business whose sellers chose to focus on growing their locations closer to home. The announcement did not mention Rubicco by name, did not name the facility, did not reference the consent order, and did not reference the pattern of regulatory violations documented in state records. The facility is now operated by Cadence Academy Preschool.
This article was prepared with the assistance of AI tools under the direction and editing of Robert Cox.
Have information about this story? Email robertcox@talkofthesound.com (preferred) or contact via WhatsApp: +353 089 972 0669.
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