Licensees shall have and implement written policies regarding a retention plan to prevent expulsion of children, which outlines how the program will address children’s behaviors that pose a serious safety risk, which includes at a minimum: (1) A retention plan to prevent expulsion of children, which outlines how the program will address children’s behaviors that pose a serious safety risk, which includes at a minimum: a. Parent notification and ongoing communicating regarding their child’s behavior; b. The steps the program will take to assist the child in maintaining enrollment; c. Parent notification when the child’s enrollment cannot be maintained; and d. The responsibilities of the program if the child’s behavior results in a serious safety risk to the child or others within the program.

A statement by the complainant that Child A was expelled from the program in a manner not in compliance with the program's retention policy. The program’s written policy included the following: “We believe a strong foundation starts with a positive relationship with the child and family. The Bright Beginnings staff communicates with parents daily at pick up/drop off, through phone call, or Brightwheel messages. This keeps the parents updated on their child. When a child continues to have challenging behavior, we will have a meeting with the parents to discuss a positive plan of action to be followed at home and at school.” The program had evidence of daily communication; however, when the program determined that the child continued to exhibit challenging behavior, program staff did not schedule a meeting with the parents, but instead spoke to one parent when the parent arrived to pick up their child. Speaking with parents at pick up is described in the policy as daily communication, and therefore is not equivalent to a separate meeting with parents to discuss a positive plan of action regarding the challenging behavior. Corrective action: 1.)The action the program has taken or will take to correct the citation: Going forward, Bright Beginnings will schedule expulsion meetings with parents at times separate from pickup or drop off times. 2.) The steps the program will take to ensure compliance with these rules and the applicable statutes in the future: Bright Beginnings will have parents sign documentation, which includes the parents' names, date, time, and plan of action resulting from an eviction meeting. 3.)The date by which each of the citations was corrected or will be corrected: 5/3/24 4.)The interim measures the program has implemented to protect the health and safety of children, when the citations cannot be corrected immediately: Bright Beginnings scheduled a separate meeting with both parents to discuss a plan of action on 5/3/24. The program has created a document which will be used to record parents' names, date, time, and plan of action resulting from an eviction meeting.

To ensure that the emotional well-being and physical needs of infants between 6 weeks and 18 months of age are met, programs shall assign one child care staff as primary caregiver, based upon the staff-to-child ratio, who shall be responsible for meeting the children’s needs for the majority of time the children are in his or her care.

When asked who was the assigned primary caregiver for each infant, the staff in the infant room reported they did not assign primary caregivers for children 18 months and younger. The statement was affirmed by the program director. Corrective action: Fixed 2/23/24. All children 18 months and younger were assigned a primary caregiver. The teachers were notified of the children that are under their primary care. A chart with the teachers and students were then posted in the classroom for reference.

He-C 4002.37(e) · Correction status not published

Non-toxic materials labeled “keep out of reach of children” shall only be used during a teacher-directed activity.

The licensing coordinator observed two cans of shaving cream labeled "keep out of reach of children" in an unlocked cabinet accessible to children. Corrective action: Fixed at visit 2/22/24. A child lock was placed on the cabinet that contained the 2 cans of shaving cream. All items that state “Keep Out of Reach of Children” will be stored in a locked cabinet or five feet up away from children. Staff were made aware and will monitor items. The director will double check rooms daily for any items.

He-C 4002.23(e) · Correction status not published