Iowa Administrative Code › Agency 441 - Human Services Department › Title XII - Licensing and Approved Standards › Chapter 109 - Child Care Centers › Rule 441-109.4 - Administration

Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 3, July 24, 2024
(1)
Purpose and objectives.
Incorporated and unincorporated
				centers shall submit a written statement of purpose and objectives. The plan
				and practices of operation shall be consistent with this statement.
(2)
Required written
				policies.
The child care center owner, board or director shall:
a. Develop fee policies and financial
				agreements for the children served.
b. Develop and implement policies for
				enrollment and discharge of children, field trips and non-center activities,
				discipline, nutrition, health and safety policies and, if transporting
				children, transportation policy.
c.
				Develop a curriculum or program structure that uses developmentally appropriate
				practices and an activity program appropriate to the developmental level and
				needs of the children.
d. Develop
				and implement a written plan for staff orientation to the center's policies and
				to the provisions of 441-Chapter 109 where applicable to staff.
e. Develop and implement a written plan for
				ongoing training and staff development in compliance with professional growth
				and development requirements established by the department in rule
				441-109.7(237A).
f. Make available
				for review a copy of the center policies and program to all staff at the time
				of employment and each parent at the time a child is admitted to the center. A
				copy of the fee policies and financial agreements shall be provided to each
				parent at the time a child is admitted to the center.
g. When serving children under the age of
				three, develop and implement a policy for responding to incidents of biting
				that includes the following elements.
(1) An
				explanation of the center's perspective on biting.
(2) A description of how the center will
				respond to individual biting incidents and episodes of ongoing
				biting.
(3) A description of how
				the center will assess the adequacy of caregiver supervision and the context
				and the environment in which the biting occurred.
(4) A description of how the center will
				respond to the individual child or caregiver who was bitten.
(5) A description of the process for
				notification of parents of children involved in the incident.
(6) A description of how the incident will be
				documented.
(7) A description of
				how confidentiality will be protected.
(8) A description of first-aid procedures
				that the center will use in response to biting incidents.
h. Develop a policy to ensure that people do
				not have unauthorized access to children at the center. The policy shall be
				subject to review for minimum safety standards by the licensing consultant. The
				policy shall include but is not limited to the following:
(1) The center's criteria for allowing people
				to be on the property of the facility when children are present.
(2) A description of how center staff will
				supervise and monitor people who are permitted on the property of the center
				when children are present, but who have not been cleared for involvement with
				child care through the formal record check process as outlined in subrule
				109.6(6). The description shall include definitions of "supervision" and
				"monitoring."
(3) A description of
				how responsibility for supervision and monitoring of people in the center will
				be delegated to center staff, which includes provisions that address conflicts
				of interest.
(4) A description of
				how the policy will be shared with parents, guardians, and custodians of all
				children who are enrolled at the center.
i. Develop and implement a policy for
				protection of each child's confidentiality.