Current through Register No. 40, October 3, 2024
(a) All center
directors, agency administrators, site coordinators, or site directors, and all
other child care staff who are responsible for the supervision of children, or
who are necessary for the staff to child ratios, shall keep on file
documentation of completion of a minimum of 6 hours of professional
development, which shall be completed in accordance with the following:
(1) Within 90 days of the first date of
employment;
(2) Within 2 weeks for
programs operating 3 months of the year or less; or
(3) By providing documentation of previous
completion.
(b) The 6
hours of professional development required in (a) above shall include:
(1) Child care licensing
orientation;
(2) Prevention and
control of infectious diseases, including immunizations;
(3) Prevention of SIDS and use of safe sleep
practices;
(4) Medication
administration;
(5) Prevention of
and response to emergencies due to food and other allergic reactions;
(6) Building and safety of physical premises,
including identification of and protection from hazards that can cause bodily
injury such as electrical hazards, bodies of water, and vehicular
traffic;
(7) Prevention of shaken
baby syndrome and abusive head trauma;
(8) Emergency preparedness and response
planning;
(9) Handling and storage
of hazardous materials and the appropriate disposal of
bio-contaminants;
(10) Appropriate
precautions in transporting children for child care personnel who will provide
transportation or accompany children during transportation;
(11) First aid and CPR;
(12) Prevention, recognition, and reporting
of child abuse and neglect;
(13)
Child development, including cognitive, physical, social, and emotional
development; and
(14) Training on
all required components in the emergency operations plan as specified in
He-C
4002.16(g)(3) and (h).
(c) Prior to working with infants
12 months and younger, child care staff shall take training on prevention of
SIDS and use of safe sleep practices.
(d) Child care staff who have not completed
the training in (1) through (4) below shall work under the direct supervision
and observation of a staff member who has completed the following trainings:
(1) Prevention and control of infectious
diseases, including immunizations;
(2) Prevention of shaken baby syndrome and
abusive head trauma;
(3) Handling
and storage of hazardous materials and the appropriate disposal of
bio-contaminants; and
(4) First aid
and CPR.
(e) Child care
staff employed in programs which are not licensed to care for children younger
than 18 months of age shall be exempt from the requirements of (b)(3) and
(b)(7).
(f) The center director,
agency administrator, site coordinator, site director, and all child care staff
shall complete 18 hours of professional development within their first 12
months of hire, and annually thereafter, in accordance with the following:
(1) A minimum of 3 hours shall be in health
and safety topics listed in (b)(2)-(13) above; and
(2) The remaining 15 hours shall be in any
other areas listed in (k) below.
(g) The only exceptions to (f) above shall
be:
(1) Assistant teachers, associate
teachers, group leaders, assistant group leaders, family child care workers,
and family child care assistants who work fewer than 25 hours per week year
round, or more than 25 hours per week during school vacations, or both, for the
same licensee shall:
a. Obtain 12 hours of
professional development within their first 12 months of hire, and annually
thereafter; and
b. Of the 12 hours,
a minimum of three hours shall be in any of the health and safety areas listed
in (b)(2)-(13) above, and the remaining hours shall be in any areas in (j)
below;
(2) Child care
staff attending high school or college full time shall obtain 3 hours of
professional development in health and safety areas listed in (b)(2)-(13) above
annually;
(3) Full time college
attendance in (2) above shall mean enrolled in a minimum of 12 credit hours per
semester; and
(4) Substitutes, as
defined in He-C
4002.01(bi).
(h) Professional development shall include
trainings, workshops, technical assistance, self-study, or college
courses.
(i) Self-study projects
shall:
(1) Not exceed 6 of the required 18
hours of professional development; and
(2) Not be utilized to obtain the
professional development in health and safety requirements in (b)(2)-(13)
above.
(j) Self-study
projects referenced in (i) above shall:
(1)
Be based on current research in child development or early childhood;
(2) Demonstrate developmentally appropriate
practice;
(3) Support the knowledge
and skills needed to care for young children; and
(4) Be documented and include an evaluation
component.
(k) In
addition to (b) above, professional development, as specified in (h) through
(j) above, shall be in any of the following areas:
(1) Health and safety;
(2) Caring for children with
exceptionalities;
(3)
Nutrition;
(4) Any child care
related courses sponsored or funded by the department;
(5) Indoor and outdoor learning
environments;
(6) Behavior
guidance;
(7) Leadership, child
care administration, or mentoring;
(8) Financial management;
(9) Working with families; or
(10) Legal issues in child care.
(l) The department shall accept
the following toward meeting in-service professional development requirements:
(1) Credit courses offered by a regionally
accredited college or university with one credit equal to 12 hours;
(2) Non-credit courses offered for continuing
education units by a regionally accredited college or university;
(3) Conference sessions or workshops
presented by an individual who meets one of the following criteria:
a. Is credentialed by the department's child
development bureau, NH early childhood professional development system in
accordance with RSA
170-E:50;
b. Has at least a bachelor's degree in the
subject area which she or he is providing professional development;
c. Meets the minimum qualifications for the
position of center director;
d.
Holds a professional license or certification through a professional
organization relevant to the subject area which he or she is providing
professional development; or
e. Is
employed or was previously employed in a position such as a trainer,
instructor, or consultant by an organization specializing in one of the areas
referenced in (k) above in which she or he is providing professional
development;
(4)
Technical assistance provided by an individual who meets one of the criteria in
(3) a. through e. above, provided they have at least 5 years' experience as a
center director if qualifying under c.
(5) Provision of training or technical
assistance developed and presented by an employee of the program or an
individual hired by the program shall be in accordance with the following:
a. The training is conducted when the
trainees are not responsible for children;
b. With the exception of classroom
observations, technical assistance is provided when the subject(s) of the
technical assistance are not responsible for children; and
c. Information regarding credentials of the
individual, their methods, content and objective, dates and times of trainings
or technical assistance, and a list of participants is on file at the program
and available for review by the department to assist the department in
determining that:
1. The individual meets the
requirements specified in (3)a. through e. or (4) above; and
2. The training or technical assistance is
designed to increase the knowledge or skills of an individual in order to
prepare him or her to more effectively work with children in a program;
and
(6)
Online training and correspondence courses, provided documentation of
completion includes:
a. The title of the
training;
b. The completion
date;
c. The hours awarded;
and
d. A description which
indicates the training is designed to increase the knowledge or skills of an
individual in order to prepare him or her to more effectively work with
children in a program.
(m) Unless otherwise specified on the
training certificate or course description for more or fewer hours, training
hours for recertification in first aid shall count as 2 hours and training for
recertification in CPR shall count as 3 hours towards annual professional
development requirements.
#4871, eff 7-24-90; ss by #5203, eff 8-16-91; ss by
#6558, INTERIM, eff 8-16-97, EXPIRED: 12-14-97
New. #6719, eff 3-25-98; ss by
#7294, eff 5-26-00; ss by #9160, INTERIM, eff 5-26-08, EXPIRES: 11-22-08; ss by
#9310, eff 11-23-08 (from
He-C
4002.33)
