Group Leader: Must be at least 18 and have a Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university; or a 2 year college degree in child development or early childhood education from an accredited college or university; or current certification as a Child Development Associate (CDA) or Certified Childcare Professional (CCP) or other Department-approved credential; or completion of 2 years of college education with at least 1 college course in child development, plus 6 months (910 hours) of verified experience in the care and supervision of 4 or more children under 6 years of age who are not related to the individual; or 12 semester hours in college-level credits in the area of child growth and development and /or early childhood education, plus 9 months (1,395) hours of verified experience in the care and supervision of 4 or more children under 6 years of age who are not related to the individual; or completion of a course of training approved by the Department that includes training and work experience with children; or completion of a vocational or occupational education sequence in child growth and development plus 12 months (1,820) hours of verified experience in the care and supervision of 4 or more children under 6 years of age who are not related to the individual; or 36 months (5,460) of verified experience in the care and supervision of 4 or more children under 6 years of age who are not related to the individual.

Age Range	Ratio For Center-based Care
Infants	(1:5)
Toddlers	(1:5)
2 Years	(1:7)
2 ½ - 3 years	(1:8)
3 years	(1:10)
4 years	(1:12)
5 years and up	(1:15)
Age Range	Ratio For Family Child Care
All ages	(1:6) includes family members plus an additional two before and after school children No more than two children under 2 years of age or if provider has been licensed for at least 2 years with no substantiated complaints, provider may be approved for three children under 2 years of age with no additional school-aged children.
Infant/ Toddler	(1:4) or (2:6)
Large Family Care Home	(2:12)includes two children under 2 years of age who are siblings of older children

Child Abuse Reporting
To report suspected child abuse in Colorado, call Local (toll): (303) 866-5932.

For national child abuse information, call Childhelp®, 800-4-A-CHILD (800-422-4453), or your local CPS agency.