• Violation

  R 400.8365 · R 400.8365 1 Heating; temperature. (2) The indoor temperature must be at least 65 degrees Fahrenheit in child use areas at a point 2 feet above the floor. I

  On January 5, 2022, I spoke with the complainant. She said that classroom E103 did not have heat on January 1, and January 2, 2022. She knew this because Child A (female, age 4) told her that she had to wear her coat in class and 2 even during nap all day on both days. She did not know if the classroom was cold today. On January 5, 2022, I made an unannounced onsite inspection to the child care center and spoke to program director and licensee designee Stefanie Heady. She confirmed 1st that the furnace that serves Room El 03 was not functioning properly on January and 2nd and that the classroom had been cold. She was not sure what the temperature had been but the space heaters that they had been using in the evening were set to turn on at 63 degrees and that they were on at night, indicating the temperature had been 63 degrees or lower in the classroom. The furnace has had a temporary fix while the part needed to repair it arrives. I observed classroom E103 during the inspection and recorded a temperature of 72 degrees. Lead caregiver for the classroom Paula Marsh confirmed it had been cold and that children had worn coats on the two days the furnace wasn't operational. I informed Ms. Heady that if the temperature in the classroom could not be maintained at least 65 degrees, the classroom could not be used by children in care. I told her that if capacity allowed, the children in this preschool class could be moved to another classroom in order to not have to send the children home. On January 27, 2022, I made a second unannounced onsite inspection to the child care center. The temperature was 70 degrees. Ms. Heady said that the furnace had been fixed and they have not had any other issues regarding the classroom temperature.

On 01/03/2022, preschoolers had to wear a coat during class and nap due to no heat.

Disposition: Substantiated