Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 44, November 2, 2024
(a) A
volunteer shall be 16 years of age or older and shall be directly supervised at
all times by a staff person.
(b) A
staff person shall be 18 years of age or older.
(c) An individual 16 years of age or older
who is enrolled in an approved training curriculum may be used as a staff
person, if the following guidelines are met:
(1) The curriculum is conducted by an
institution approved by the Department of Education and accredited by an
accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education or
the Council on Postsecondary Education and acceptable to the Department of
Education.
(2) The curriculum
includes acceptable training topics referenced in subsection (e)(2).
(3) The curriculum includes a minimum total
of 600 clock hours, distributed as follows:
(i) A minimum of 400 clock hours of classroom
training.
(ii) A minimum of 200
clock hours of supervised training in a child care facility.
(4) A representative of the
training institution certifies in writing that the individual has completed the
required classroom training and is currently enrolled in the
curriculum.
(5) The written
certification required in paragraph (4) shall be retained in the staff file at
the facility.
(d) Child
care professional credentials are equivalent to the staff qualifications:
(1) A Child Development Associate (CDA)
credential or a Certified Childcare Professional (CCP) credential is equivalent
to 9 credit hours from an accredited college or university in early childhood
education or child development and 1 year of experience with
children.
(2) A Pennsylvania
school-age professional credential is equivalent to 9 credit hours from an
accredited college or university in elementary education or child development
and 1 year of experience with children.
(e) A staff person shall obtain an annual
minimum of 12 clock hours of child care training.
(1) Acceptable training is conducted in one
or more of the following settings:
(i) By a
secondary or postsecondary institution approved by the Department of Education
and accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the United States
Department of Education or the Council of Postsecondary Accreditation and
acceptable to the Department of Education.
(ii) By an entity that is licensed or
certified professionally competent in the training topic.
(iii) In conferences or workshops.
(iv) With audio-visual materials recognized
by child care professionals.
(2) Acceptable training topics include the
following:
(i) Child or staff
health.
(ii) Child development,
early childhood education and special education.
(iii) Supervision, discipline and guidance of
children.
(iv) Nutrition for
children.
(v) Child care program
development.
(vi) Child care staff
person or volunteer professional development.
(3) Other training topics may be submitted
for the Department's review and approval.
(4) Depending on the provisions of the
appropriate regulation, training may be required for certain staff persons. The
following constitutes competence in training areas:
(i)
Pediatric first-aid training and
pediatric cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Competence is the
completion of training by a professional in the field of first-aid and
cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). All staff persons shall renew their
certification in pediatric first aid and pediatric CPR on or before the
expiration of the most current certification.
(ii)
Firesafety training.
Staff persons shall participate, at least annually, in firesafety training
conducted by a fire protection professional. Staff persons and volunteers shall
receive training in maintenance of smoke detectors, the duties of facility
persons during a fire drill and during a fire and the use of the facility's
fire extinguishers, not including discharge of the fire suppressant
agent.
(iii)
Lifeguard
training. Competence is the completion of lifeguard training,
including first-aid training and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for child
and infant.
(iv)
Water
safety instruction. Competence is the completion of basic instruction
in water safety from a certified lifeguard.
(f) Staff persons shall complete professional
development in the following topics within 90 days of hire:
(1) Prevention and control of infectious
diseases (including immunization) and the establishment of a grace period that
allows homeless children and children in foster care to receive services under
this subchapter while their families (including foster families) are taking
necessary action to comply with immunization and other health and safety
requirements.
(2) Prevention of
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and use of safe sleep practices.
(3) Administration of medication, consistent
with standards for parental consent.
(4) Prevention of and response to emergencies
due to food and allergic reactions.
(5) Building and physical premises safety,
including identification of and protection from hazards that can cause bodily
injury such as electrical hazards, bodies of water and vehicular
traffic.
(6) Prevention of shaken
baby syndrome and abusive head trauma.
(7) Emergency preparedness and response
planning for emergencies resulting from a natural disaster or a man-caused
event (such as violence at a child care facility) within the meaning of those
terms under section 602(a)(1) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and
Emergency Assistance Act (42
U.S.C.A. §
5195a(a)(1)).
(8) Handling and storage of hazardous
materials and appropriate disposal of biocontaminants.
(9) Precautions when transporting
children.
(10) Pediatric first aid
and pediatric cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
(g) Completion of professional development
shall be documented by the signature and title of a representative of the
professional development entity and include the date professional development
was completed. Documentation shall be retained in the facility person's file or
maintained in an electronic system as designated by the Department.
Documentation of the completion of the professional development under
subsection (f) taken from September 30, 2016, forward satisfies this
requirement.
(h) All staff persons
shall complete the professional development under subsection (f).
(i) Professional development under subsection
(f) may count towards the annual clock hours in subsection (e) on a one-time
basis.
(j) Staff persons shall
obtain available ongoing professional development relating to the health and
safety topics as specified in subsection (f) prior to obtaining professional
development in other topics as permitted in subsection (e)(2).
The provisions of this §3270.31 amended under Articles IX
and X of the Human Services Code (62 P.S. §§ 901-922 and
1001-1088).
This section cited in 55 Pa. Code §
3270.11 (relating to application
for and issuance of a certificate of compliance); 55 Pa. Code §
3270.36 (relating to assistant
group supervisor qualifications and responsibilities); 55 Pa. Code §
3270.37 (relating to aide
qualifications and responsibilities); 55 Pa. Code §
3270.115 (relating to water
activity); and 55 Pa. Code §
3270.241 (relating to requirements
specific to school-age programs).
