West Virginia Code of State Rules
Agency 78 - Human Services
Title 78 - LEGISLATIVE RULE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES BUREAU FOR SOCIAL SERVICES
Series 78-21 - Out-of-School-Time Child Care Center Licensing Requirements
Section 78-21-7 - Staffing
Universal Citation: 78 WV Code of State Rules 78-21-7
Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 38, September 20, 2024
7.1. This section applies to all program personnel including the private owners, volunteers, and parents who are used in a program capacity regardless of compensation.
7.2. This section does not apply to:
7.2.a. An adult not
associated with the program who is in the facility for brief periods in the
normal course of carrying out business or professional activities and is not
left alone with nor aids in the supervision of children;
7.2.b. A parent of an enrolled child who is
at the program only for the purpose of performing parental responsibilities in
relation to his or her own child; or
7.2.c. A professional not associated with the
program that performs a child specific service at the request of the child's
parent or guardian, such as a speech or occupational therapist.
7.3. Staffing Procedures.
7.3.a. A program shall provide each new staff
member with a written notification that includes his or her position title,
qualifications, duties, and responsibilities at the time of hiring.
7.3.b. A program shall conduct performance
evaluations:
7.3.b.1. Annually on all staff
employed; and
7.3.b.2. On all newly
employed staff members at three months, six months, and 12 months in the first
year of employment.
7.3.b.3. A
program shall provide each staff member with a written copy of his or her most
recent evaluation, signed by the program director and the evaluated staff
member, and a continuing education plan based on the evaluation.
7.3.b.4. Prior to caring for children, all
current staff, potential staff, and volunteers are required to complete
approved pre-service training.
7.3.c. A program shall maintain a file for
each staff member that includes:
7.3.c.1. A
current job description;
7.3.c.2.
Written references, including three professional references for the program
director and two references for other staff members one of which must be from a
person familiar with the staff person's work;
7.3.c.3. Records of employment, including a
duplicate copy of all performance evaluations;
7.3.c.4. Documents related to background
checks;
7.3.c.5. Documents related
to orientation and successful completion of approved pre-service training;
and
7.3.c.6. Documents related to
continuing education and professional development while employed at the
center.
7.4. Staff Character and Background.
7.4.a. No
person shall be on the premises or have contact with the children in care whose
health or behavior would harm the children:
7.4.a.1. Who is under the influence of
alcohol or an illegal drug, or
7.4.a.2. Whose functioning is impaired due to
being under the influence of medical cannabis or a legal
pharmaceutical.
7.4.b.
Other than the exceptions cited in subdivision 7.4.c. of this rule, a program
shall ensure that a criminal background investigation is performed on each
staff member and volunteer pursuant to the provisions of the West Virginia
Clearance for Access: Registry and Employment Screening Act (WV CARES), W. Va.
Code §
16-49-1
et seq.,
and 69CSR10 and shall keep the following information on file:
7.4.b.1. A completed WV CARES self-disclosure
application and consent form. A copy of the form shall be uploaded to the WV
CARES system and on file no later than the date of hire;
7.4.b.2. A fitness determination of
eligibility from the WV CARES unit;
7.4.b.3. A state background check shall be
completed in any other state where the staff member or volunteer has resided in
the past five years. For a staff member or volunteer who works in the state of
West Virginia and resides in another state, a state background check is
required for the state in which they reside. Fingerprint checks for other
states are optional. All staff members and volunteers must complete a criminal
background check through WV CARES;
7.4.b.4. A variance or waiver if the
individual has convictions or pending charges of disqualifying offenses;
and
7.4.b.5. A search shall be done
of the state-based child and adult abuse and neglect registries and protective
services databases in each state where the staff member or volunteer resided
during the preceding five years. For a staff member or volunteer who works in
the state of West Virginia and resides in another state, a search shall be done
in the state where the staff member or volunteer currently resides and shall be
repeated every five years.
7.4.b.6.
A state check of the sex offender registry or repository shall be done in the
state where owners, operators, staff, and volunteers currently
reside.
7.4.b.7. A check of the sex
offender registry or repository shall be completed in another state where the
staff member or volunteer has resided in the past five years. For a staff
member or volunteer who works in the state of West Virginia and resides in
another state, a check of the sex offender registry or repository shall be
completed in the state in which they reside.
7.4.c. A program does not require a criminal
records check on the following:
7.4.c.1. A new
staff member who has on file at the program documentation of the required
criminal history investigation within the previous 180 days;
7.4.c.2. A parent who transports children on
an irregular basis for field trips without pay or compensation; or
7.4.c.3. A professional not associated with
the center who is contracted to provide services for brief periods to the
children under the direct supervision of program staff.
7.4.d. No person shall work with a child or
children prior to the center receiving the required fitness determination of
eligibility from the WV CARES unit.
7.4.e. The Secretary may require a criminal
background check for good cause.
7.4.f. A center shall update the
documentation of a completed background check in each staff member's file at
the expiration of Record of Arrest and Prosecution Background (RAP Back)
enrollment.
7.4.g. A program shall
require an individual over 13 and under 18 years of age, acting in the capacity
of a teen aid or student intern, to have on file a signed affidavit from the
individual's parent stating that his or her child has never been arrested or
convicted of an offense against a person. The affidavit shall be on file prior
to the individual having direct contact with the children on a regular
basis.
7.5. Hiring Prohibitions.
7.5.a. A program shall not
employ or use an individual who is currently under indictment or has pending
charges, is currently on parole or probation for a felony conviction or has
been convicted or entered a plea of guilty or no contest to any of the
disqualifying offenses as defined in W. Va. Code §
16-49-1(8) and
69CSR10, or other crimes that the Secretary determines may pose a risk to
children.
7.5.b. A program shall
not employ or use any individual who is determined by the Department to have
abused or neglected a child or incapacitated adult.
7.5.c. A program shall not employ or use an
individual who has entered a plea of guilty or no contest or has been convicted
of a disqualifying offense unless the Secretary grants a waiver or
variance.
7.5.d. A program shall
not use an individual who failed to disclose a conviction or a finding of abuse
or neglect unless the Secretary grants a waiver or variance.
7.5.e. A program shall have protocols
requiring:
7.5.e.1. A staff member or
volunteer to report his or her criminal pending charge, indictment, or
conviction for a criminal offense to the program director within 24
hours;
7.5.e.2. A staff member to
report to the program director that he or she is subject of an abuse or neglect
investigation;
7.5.e.3. The program
to notify the Secretary of the staff member's report within 24 hours;
and
7.5.e.4. That the program
prohibit a staff member or volunteer who is accused of having sexually abused
or otherwise injured a child or incapacitated adult from caring for or having
contact with children pending the outcome of an investigation.
7.5.f. If a program chooses to
advocate for a waiver or variance for an employee, then it shall have policies
and procedures regarding waivers or variances that do not conflict with
Department policies. The staff person shall not have contact with the children
until the Secretary reaches a decision on the waiver or variance unless the
licensee and the Department agree to a written safety plan that permits the
staff member to continue in a staff position until the Secretary reaches a
decision.
7.6. Staff Health. A program shall secure from the employee a recent health assessment performed not more than 90 days prior to the date hired for the employee and signed by a licensed health care provider. The health assessment shall be on file no later than 30 days from the first date of employment. A health assessment for a volunteer shall be on file if the volunteer is scheduled to work at least 40 hours per month in the program. The health assessment shall include:
7.6.a. Any significant health history
which the program needs to know in order to protect the health of the employee
or the health and safety of children in care;
7.6.b. Vision and hearing
screening;
7.6.c. A statement that
the staff member has no known condition or disease which would interfere with
the proper care of children; and
7.6.d. A tuberculosis risk assessment or a
tuberculosis screening by the Mantoux method, if a screening is indicated by
the tuberculosis risk assessment that is on file upon hire.
7.6.e. Staff health records as described in
this section shall be updated every two years.
7.7. Staff Responsibilities and Training Requirements.
7.7.a. All staff must have
sufficient education, training, and experience to provide the skills necessary
for carrying out the essential functions of his or her job with or without
reasonable accommodation;
7.7.b.
Prior to or during the first week of employment and prior to having sole
responsibility for a group of children, a program shall provide orientation to
the staff member that includes a review of:
7.7.b.1. The program's statement of
purpose;
7.7.b.2. Regulatory
requirements;
7.7.b.3. The center's
administrative manual;
7.7.b.4.
Staff duties;
7.7.b.5. Professional
development plans;
7.7.b.6.
Reporting child abuse and neglect;
7.7.b.7. Emergency and evacuation
procedures;
7.7.b.8. Procedures for
basic sanitation and infection control;
7.7.b.9. Procedures for maintaining an
environment without hazards to children;
7.7.b.10. Procedures for promoting safety,
both indoors and outdoors;
7.7.b.11. The daily schedule of the program
and the specific schedule for the group of children to which the staff person
is assigned, including the planned program of activities, routines, and
transitions; and
7.7.b.12.
Communication at a program, including procedures to inform staff of any special
dietary or other needs of the children for whom they will be
responsible.
7.7.c. A
program shall document that orientation training was provided by having the
staff member and program director sign a statement acknowledging receiving
orientation training and shall keep the statement in the staff member's
file.
7.7.d. A program shall ensure
that all staff members have approved training in:
7.7.d.1. Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)
and first aid within three months of employment or use provided a staff member
who has received the training is present with children on or off site during
the center's operation. The CPR certification and first aid shall be
appropriate to the age of the children in care; and
7.7.d.2. Abuse Recognition and Prevention.
Within three months of employment or use, staff members shall have training in
child abuse recognition and prevention.
7.7.e. A program shall ensure that prior to
any staff member administering medication; the staff member has received
approved training in medication administration.
7.8. Professional Development.
7.8.a. Programs shall have a professional
development plan for each staff member employed more than 120 calendar days
that includes a minimum of 12 clock hours of professional development annually
for Directors and Site Supervisors and 8 clock hours of professional
development annually for other staff positions. The professional development
needs to be related to school age children or providing quality programs to
school age children, or both. Except in the first year of employment, the clock
hours do not include the training required in subdivision 7.7.d.
7.8.b. All staff shall renew child abuse and
neglect recognition every three years and keep first aid and CPR certification
current.
7.9. Staff Positions and Qualifications.
7.9.a. Director
of an out-of-school-time program shall:
7.9.a.1. Be at least 21 years of
age;
7.9.a.2. Have at least one
year of leadership experience in a school age program or similar
program;
7.9.a.3. Be responsible
for the daily operation of the program and oversight of staff;
7.9.a.4. Have a written work plan for the
routine on-site presence for each site under his or her responsibility and
shall post the on-site schedule where it is accessible to staff and parents;
and
7.9.a.5. Be responsible for
appointing a person in charge to take responsibility for the operation of the
program in his or her absence and be responsible for ensuring that there is a
site supervisor for each site when the program operates multiple
sites;
7.9.b. Site
Supervisor of an out-of-school-time program shall:
7.9.b.1. Be at least 21 years of
age;
7.9.b.2. Have 18 months of
supervised relevant work experience;
7.9.b.3. Be responsible for the day-to-day
operation of a single site;
7.9.b.4. Report to the program director;
and
7.9.b.5. Not act in the
capacity of a group leader when more than 60 children are present in the
program.
7.9.c. Group
Leader shall:
7.9.c.1. Be at least 18 years of
age;
7.9.c.2. Have one year of
supervised relevant work experience;
7.9.c.3. Be able to supervise and implement
program activities for a group of children with or without assistance;
and
7.9.c.4. Have primary
responsibility for the direct care of children.
7.9.d. Assistant Group Leader shall:
7.9.d.1. Be at least 18 years of
age;
7.9.d.2. Have met the
requirements for a high school diploma or GED and will receive the same within
six months;
7.9.d.3. Work under the
supervision of at least a Group Leader and shall assist in implementing program
activities for a group of children.
7.9.e. Student Intern shall:
7.9.e.1. Perform duties under the direct
supervision of a Group Leader, Site Supervisor, or Director and in accordance
with a training plan developed jointly by the educational or training
institution and the center;
7.9.e.2. Receive periodic supervision from
the educational or training program sponsoring the intern; and
7.9.e.3. If under the age of 18 years, not be
responsible for a group of children or be left alone with a child or group of
children.
7.9.f. Teen
aid shall:
7.9.f.1. Be between the ages of 13
and 18 years;
7.9.f.2. Be directly
supervised by at least a Group Leader;
7.9.f.3. Aid staff only in the delivery of
program activity; and
7.9.f.4. Not
be responsible for a group of children or be left alone with a child or group
of children.
7.9.g.
Driver. A driver shall:
7.9.g.1. Be at least
21 years of age;
7.9.g.2. Have a
valid driver's license that authorizes the driver to operate the vehicle being
driven;
7.9.g.3. Upon hire, have
evidence of a safe driving record for the five-year period prior to hiring and
have no record of DUI related convictions for a five-year period;
7.9.g.4. Not be impaired to drive at the time
of transporting children including, but not limited to, impairment caused by
medications; and
7.9.g.5. Maintain
a safe driving record while employed.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. West Virginia may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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