Cares for children for more than one unrelated family;
Number of allowable children includes children under age 10 who live in the licensee’s home;
Small home = up to eight chil-dren if two are over six years old and no more than two are under 24 months, or six chil-dren under 5, three of whom can be infants; Large home = up to 14 children if at least two of them are of school age and no more than three are infants, or 12 children under 5 age, four of whom can be infants Providers’ own children plus children from only one other family; no limit on number of children.
Total “ licensed capacity” is based on the physical space of a site and the number of staff available to provide care.
Licensable sites must have 35 square feet of indoor play space and 75 square feet of outdoor play space per child, as well as one toilet and one sink for every 15 children.
Any recreation or before/after school program operated by the state, or by a city, county or school district, for less than 16 hours per week or for 12 weeks or less during a 12-month peri-od; or before/after school pro-grams operated by public or private schools, and run by teachers employed by the school or the school district.
Standards
Fingerprint, criminal back-ground and California Child Abuse Central Index clear-ances for everyone over 18 living in the home; 15 hours of training on preventative health practices; and home inspection by licensing agency
No training requirements No safety requirements for facility
Facilities must meet health and safety requirements;
Personnel must be finger-printed, obtain a criminal background clearance, and complete a California Child Abuse Central Index check;
One person must be on the premises at all times who has at least 15 hours of training on preventive health prac-tices; Teachers must meet educational requirements. for eligible children; If non-relative, must clear background check that examines criminal record and child abuse history.
May receive vouchers for eligible children
May receive vouchers for eligible children.
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There are also restrictions on both the number of children that can be cared for in a licensed family child care home and the staff/child ratios for these providers. Family child care homes in California can be licensed as either small or large. The number of allowable children in small and large homes includes children under age 10 who live in the licensee’s home. The license for small homes allows providers to serve up to eight children if two of them are of school age (age six or older) and no more than two are infants (0-24 months). (Alternatively, if small-home providers do not care for school-age children, they can care for up to six children, three of whom can be infants.) Large family child care homes can serve up to 14 children if at least two of them are of school age, and no more than three are infants.
(Alternatively, if large-home providers do not care for school-agers, they can care for up to 12 children, four of whom can be infants.)
Center-based care. In California, child care provided outside of a home environment is called a child care center, typically requiring a license from the California Department of Social Services (CDSS).
Child care centers are primarily housed in commer-cial facilities, schools or churches, and can serve infants, toddlers, preschoolers or school-age children within a group setting.
While most centers serving children outside of a home are licensed by CDSS, this is not required of certain facilities, namely:
■ any recreation or before/after school program operated by the state, or by a city, county or school district, for less than 16 hours per week or for 12 weeks or less during a 12-month peri-od;
■ before/after school programs operated by pub-lic or private schools, and run by teachers employed by the school or the school district.
Facilities that operate legally without a license from CDSS are called “license-exempt” centers.
To receive a child care center license, a facility and the personnel employed in it must meet a number of requirements:
■ Facilities are governed by regulations related to indoor and outdoor space, materials and
equip-ment, and other issues that address overall health and safety. Depending on the amount of usable indoor and outdoor space, and the num-ber of restrooms, centers can care for virtually any number of children.
■ Personnel must be fingerprinted, obtain a crimi-nal background clearance, and complete a California Child Abuse Central Index check.
Centers are also required to have one person on the premises at all times who has at least 15 hours of training on preventive health practices including pediatric CPR; pediatric first aid; the recognition, management and prevention of infectious diseases; and the prevention of child-hood injuries.
In granting child care center licenses, CDSS also reg-ulates the total number of children who can be served in a facility. This number – the “total licensed capacity” – is based on the physical space of a site and the number of staff available to provide care.
Licensable sites, for example, must have 35 square feet of indoor play space and 75 square feet of out-door play space per child, as well as one toilet and one sink for every 15 children.
Regulations also govern the qualifications and num-bers of staff in child care centers. Teachers are required to have completed 12 units in early child-hood education, or to have completed six and be working on the remaining six units, and center direc-tors must have completed three units in administra-tion or staff relaadministra-tions. All staff must have previous experience working in a center or with a comparable age group. California also sets the following
staff/child ratios for child care centers: one teacher for every four infants (under age 2), one teacher for every 12 preschoolers (ages 2-5), and one teacher for every 14 school-age children (ages 6 and over).
Finally, CDSS licenses stipulate the ages of children that a center may serve. Separate licenses are issued for infant, preschool and school-age care, and facili-ties may hold more than one license. A site serving infants and preschoolers, for example, will have two CDSS licenses, one setting a maximum capacity for serving infants, and one setting a maximum capacity for serving children ages 2 to 5. There are no addi-tional requirements for centers accepting voucher payments for children in their care.
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Table A.2. Required Staff Qualifications: Title 22 and Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations
Position Assistant Teacher
Associate Teacher
Teacher
Master Teacher
Director/Site Supervisor
Family Child Care Provider
Title 22 None
Not specified
12 units of college-level work in ECE
Not specified
Same as teachers, plus col-lege-level courses in supervi-sion and administration 15 hours of training in preven-tative health practices, includ-ing pediatric CPR, pediatric first aid, the recognition, manage-ment and prevention of infec-tious diseases, and the preven-tion of childhood injuries
Title 5
6 units of college-level work in ECE
12 units of college-level work in ECE, including designated core courses
24 units of college-level work in ECE, including designated core courses and 16 general education units
Same as teachers, plus 2 units of adult supervision and 6 spe-cialization units
AA or BA degree with 24 units of ECE, including supervision courses
Contracted centers are required to adhere to more stringent regulations governing staff qualifications than either for-profit or non-contracted nonprofit pro-grams. These are stipulated in Title 5 of the
California Code of Regulations. Title 5 requires staff in contracted programs to meet more educational requirements. Currently, a teacher in California’s
state-contracted programs is required to complete 24 units of study in early childhood education (ECE) and 16 units in general education. Therefore the workforce in contracted programs may have higher levels of education and early childhood-related train-ing than is found in the community at large. (See Table A.2.)
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What is the Corps?
The Alameda County Child Development Corps is a professional incentive program, similar to programs for public school teachers, social workers and nurses.
Its goal and purpose are to improve the recruitment and retention of highly qualified early childhood educators. The Corps has been operating since the year 2000, and has a cumulative membership of over 4,000.
The Corps is part of a larger plan called Every Child Counts, which is the Alameda County First 5 (Children and Families) Commission’s effort to improve services for children ages birth to five and their families. The Corps promotes a comprehensive cross-disciplinary approach, working closely with parenting, health, and social services components of Every Child Counts.
What does the Corps do?
The Corps has three major functions:
1. It provides stipends to early childhood educa-tors who work with children birth to five years of age, remain in the early care and education field, and continue their professional develop-ment. The stipends are based on one’s level of education.
2. It provides leadership training through seminars and other membership activities, including help in applying for the California Child
Development Permit credential, and training in early childhood program assessment.
3.It provides professional advice and assistance through contracts with community colleges and child care resource and referral agencies.
Why was the Corps instituted?
The Corps is a response to the needs of children, based on reliable research and local developments in early childhood settings.
1. Research shows that the quality of early care and education (ECE) that children receive has a direct impact on their later success in school and life achievements, and that high-quality care is dependent on continuity of staff, appro-priate training of staff, and adequate compensa-tion of teachers and caregivers.
2. ECE programs are being severely impacted by high staff turnover and less than optimal staff training opportunities. Problems result from historically low wages for the field, and from recruitment of ECE teachers with BA degrees into the elementary school system. The Child