How to Prepare for an Unannounced Licensing Visit

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Hi, guys, it's Erica Sakoshio here with the child care director's chair. It's so great to be back. I know we've been gone for a little bit, but we are back and very excited to shoot some new content. Um, so today's topic is going to be how to prepare for a site visit. I know it's something that makes you very anxious. Um, I have several directors that work under me, and it's probably one of the things they like the least about their job. So today in our Ask the Expert, I'm going to give you my 10 top tips on how to prepare for a site visit. Number one is know your regulations, know your regulation books, in and out. One of the best tips I would have is have a copy printed out at your desk, go through it and make sure you have the most recent copy because they do change very frequently, but have that out and highlight areas that you think you need to pay extra attention to or might be areas that you think you have questions about or. Or could be areas that you maybe have had problems with in the past. And, you know, you need to focus a little bit more on that area of compliance. So, number one is definitely know your regulation book. Number two is to make sure that you have in your mind that you are here to help children and make sure that you have a safe, welcoming, nurturing environment for them. And the state is there to make sure that that happens. So really, it is a partnership. And I know sometimes it isn't looked at in that way, but to me, that's how I look at it, is that mindset is that they are here to make sure that children are safe, that they're loved, that they're well cared for, and that the physical environment.

Is conducive for that, along with the teachers who are in the classroom, meet all of the criteria and are qualified to be supervising children. So if you're doing all of those things, there's really nothing to be anxious or nervous about. Sometimes it's even an opportunity for you to highlight what you're doing great at your program. If you just put in a brand new piece of equipment or you just have a teacher who's a lead teacher who maybe just graduated out of a program or just, you know, earn their CDA or a master's degree, it's a great time to showcase that with your worker as you walk them around and introduce them to the staff and they look at the different classrooms and areas of your program. So look at it in that mindset. Is that it is a way to showcase that you're a great program and that you know what you're doing and that you're competent and your staff are competent. So don't look at it as they're here to, like I got you. Look at it as they're a partnership and then also listen to their feedback. I feel like we've gotten great feedback from our state workers on different areas. And they're also really nice about letting you know your strengths as well. So it's nice to always get that second opinion. Number three is what you monitor daily through your operations and systems are the areas that you're going to be strong at. So as you walk around daily in the morning doing your floor walk, make sure you're looking for things that might be out of compliance. Um, and sometimes they're really simple, easy things. For example, in the state of Rhode island, we have evacuation cribs and you can't have anything in the evacuation crib at all because they have to be ready and available if there's an emergency. So sometimes a teacher might put a tote bag or, you know, a, a blanket or something. There needs to be nothing in there. So if there's something in there, you're going to get a violation. Now that's something that's very easily fixed. And so you want to walk around daily and look for big things and little things that could cause a violation or that you know are not in the proper place, not set up correctly, materials that you needed or materials that shouldn't be in a classroom because they're not the right size, you know, choking hazards, things like that. So you want to do your daily floor walk as a director and, and, and, and walk your, your, your property. The other thing is to train your staff to be really detail oriented as well. My staff is really, is such a great source of support as well. It's, it's very reciprocal relationships. So if your teachers come to you and say, hey, I think you need to look at, at this, I think this could be a problem. Pay attention to those things. And if you do those on a regular basis, it will really help you stay in compliance. And then when they come on an unannoun, there would be nothing to be nervous about. Visit your classrooms often. I cannot say this enough, and I am a director, so I don't want you to think like, oh, lady, get real. Where's the time? You have to make the time, whether you're a director or an education coordinator. And I know the titles vary depending on what state you might be in, but you have to visit your classrooms, you have to spend some time in there observing and watching what's going on. It will give you some insight if teachers need a little more retraining or if there is something you can do to support either a child, a family, the teacher, the environment. But you won't know that unless you really look with your own set of eyes and your perspective as the leader and influencer in your program, you are the lead and it comes from you. So you, if you pay attention to all those details and make that, that, that is important priority in your program, your staff will as well. So, you know, get in your classrooms. My other point I wanted to make is to make sure that any problems that you've had in the past two years during your visits, that you pay extra special attention to those because your licensing worker will as well. So if the last time they came out and they told you that you needed a fix and xyz, I would imagine you probably put together some type of letter to the state, said, here's how we fixed it, here's how we're going to keep that in compliance. So you want to make sure you pay extra attention to areas that you know may have been a possible problem in the past. Number seven is be part of a quality rating system. And I found that very instrumental in keeping up the quality of my program. And, and when you're focused on quality and you're focused on using systems that double check that quality, it is very easy to stay in compliance. And then when you are working on quality, you are moving the whole program forward, not only you as the leader, but your team as well. So getting part of your quality rating system, using tools like echoes and iters and spacers to go through your environment and, and that will give you the tools you need. You don't have to recreate it. You know, are the shelves, you know, at the right height? Are they drilled into the walls? Are there any things that are broken that need to be tossed out to make sure that children aren't getting hurt or cut? Are the toys in the room the right size for the age group that you're serving? So part of being in a quality rating system will give you all the tools and support necessary to maintain your program at the highest levels, which will stay in compliance? Number eight is if you have a question about anything in the regulation book, ask before the visit. It is not the time to ask about something you're unsure of during a monitoring visit. So send an email to your worker establish a relationship with that worker. They want to know that you are actively engaged in your program. If you have multiple programs across the state or outside of your state, you also have to make sure that as things change, city to city, state to state, that your compliance is where it needs to be because there could be variation. So be aware of that. But quality rating systems will help you with that with the tools you need. Number nine is meet your workers outside of the visiting. So how could you do that? So the state usually holds many different things. They hold workshops, they have events, they do things like the week of the Young child. All of those opportunities. Are you part of a board? I'm part of a NAACI board. Maybe you can be part of the NAE board in your area.

You know, I think meeting people outside of that monitoring visit will make you feel less nervous when they come to your program. So if you can find those opportunities, I would definitely do that. And last, number 10, my staff are going to laugh when they see this. But always have a clean desk, always have a space for when they come to visit where they can work. So you already know what they're going to ask. They're going to want to look at your staff files, your children files, your local inspections. They're going to look at all of that. So have it ready and have a space for them to work where it's not chaotic, where it's not loud, where they can write down their documents and do all the checks that they need to do. So Those are my 10 tips on how to be less nervous when your state worker comes in for an unannounced visit. If you like the content in today's video, we ask that you subscribe to our channel. If you have tips that I missed, please leave in the comments below. Also, if you like to learn a little bit more about the business side of child care, you can visit our website at www. Stellabusiness concepts.com or visit our podcast at Practical Biz Podcast. Thank you for tuning in. We'll see you soon. This has been Ask the.