Licensing Standards for DayCare Centers

Section 290-2-2-.03
Definitions

In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires, the symbols, words  

and phrases set forth herein shall mean the following: 

 

(a) * This rule must be complied with prior to the issuance of an initial  

license or commission and the acceptance of any children for care by the  

applicant for a license 

or commission. 

  

(b) An after-school day care center must meet in lieu of compliance with  

all of the rules, in order to obtain a  restricted day care center license to  

serve only school-age children.  

 

(c) ”Administrator" or ”Director“ or ”Executive Officer" means the  

licensee or commission holder, or a person designated in writing by the  

licensee or commission holder, who is responsible for the daily  

on-premises supervision, operation and maintenance of the center.  

 

(d)"Adult“ means any competent individual eighteen(18)years of age or  

older. 

 

(e) "Chaperon" means any adult parent or other adult relative of a child  

enrolled in the center, who occasionally accompanies a group of children  

from the center on a field trip and assists the center's personnel in  

providing supervision of the children during the field trip. The chaperon  

must be under the direct supervision of center personnel at all times.  

 

(f) ”Child with special needs" means a child enrolled in the center who,  

due to a physical problem, mental health disorder, mental retardation or  

developmental disability, which is either permanent or temporary,  

requires some adaptation of the center's standard program of care or  

activities to accommodate the child's special needs. The special  

adaptations that the center agrees to provide must be in writing and the  

result of a mutual agreement between the center and the parents of the  

child with special needs.  The agreement shall be made in connection with  

the child's enrollment or at the time that the special need becomes  

apparent to the center or the parents.  

 

(g) ”Commission" means the document issued by the department in lieu  

of a license upon request of the governing body which authorizes the  

governing body of a local church ministry, religious nonprofit school or  

nonprofit religious charitable organization to operate a day care center in  

compliance with these rules.  The requirements to obtain a commission  

under these rules shall be identical in all respects to those for obtaining a  

license.  

 

(h) ”Commission holder" means the local church ministry, religious  

nonprofit school or nonprofit religious charitable organization which  

holds a commission from the department to operate a day care center at a  

particular location and which is responsible for the operation and  

 

 

 

maintenance of the day care center in accordance with these rules. 

 

(i) "Correctable abuse, dereliction or deficiency" means any conduct of a  

licensee or commission holder which violates any of these rules wherein  

the department has determined that the rule violation is not the result of  

any of the following: flagrant and shocking intentional misconduct on the  

part of the licensee or commission holder or their employees, a reckless  

and serious disregard for the physical or mental health or the safety of a  

child in care whether or not a child sustains a physical injury; some causal  

connection between the rule violated and the death or serious injury of a  

child in care; or, a willfull disregard of a particular rule where the licensee  

or commission holder has previously been cited for noncompliance with  

the particular rule(s) and has failed to maintain the remedial action(s) set  

forth in a previous plan of correction. 

 

(j) ”Crime" means any felony; a violation of O.C.G.A. Sec. 16-5-23,  

relating to simple battery, when the victim is a minor; a violation of  

O.C.G.A. Sec. 16-21-1, relating to contributing to the delinquency of a  

minor; a violation of O.C.G.A.  Sec. 16-6-1 et seq., relating to sexual  

offenses, excluding the offenses of bigamy or marrying a bigamist; a  

violation of O.C.G.A. Sec. 16-4-1, relating to criminal attempt when the  

crime attempted is any of the crimes specified by this paragraph; or any  

other offenses committed in another jurisdiction which, if committed in  

this state, would be one of the enumerated crimes listed in this paragraph. 

 

(k) "Criminal record“ means: 

 

1. Conviction of a crime; or 

 

2. Arrest, charge, and sentencing for a crime where: 

 

(i) A plea of nolo contendere was entered to the charge; or 

 

(ii) First offender treatment without adjudication of guilt pursuant to the  

charge was granted; provided, however, that this division shall not apply  

to a violation of O.C.G.A. Sec. 16-13-l et seq., relating to controlled  

substances, or any other offense committed in another jurisdiction which,  

if it were committed in this state, would be a violation of O.C.G.A. Sec.  

16-13-1 et seq. if such violation or offense constituted only simple  

possession; or 

 

(iii) Adjudication or sentence was otherwise withheld or not entered on  

the charge; provided, however, that this division shall not apply to a  

violation of O.C.G.A. Sec. 16-13-1 et seq. relating to controlled  

substances, or any other offense committed in another jurisdiction which,  

if it were committed in this state, would be a violation of Chapter 13 of  

Title 16 if such violation or offense constituted only simple possession; or 

 

3. Arrest and being charged for a crime if the charge is pending, unless  

the time for prosecuting such crime has expired pursuant to O.C.G.A.   

Sec. 17-3-1 et seq. 

 

(l) "Day Care Center" or "Center" means any place operated by a person,  

society, agency, corporation, institution or group wherein are received for  

pay for group care, for fewer than 24 hours per day without transfer of  

legal custody, 19 or more children under 18 years of age, and which is  

required to be licensed or commissioned by the department.  

 

(m) ”Department" means the Georgia Department of Human Resources.  

 

(n) "Employee" means any person, other than a director, employed by a  

center to perform at any of the center's facilities any duties which involve  

personal contact between that person and any child being cared for at the  

facility and also includes any adult person who resides at the facility or  

who, with or without compensation, performs duties for the center which  

involve personal contact between that person and any child being cared  

for by the center.  

 

(o) "Employment history" means a record of where a person has worked  

for the past ten (10) years.  

 

(p) "Eveningcare" means care provided to children at a center between the  

hours of 7:00 p.m. and 12:00 midnight.  

. 

(q) "Field trip" means an excursion or program activity with a specific  

destination away from the center. It does not include routine school or  

home pick-up and deliveries or transporting children to and from  

activities or events where the provider of the activities or the events  

assume responsibility for the children during the entirety of the event or  

activity, such as in dance classes or art lessons or regularly scheduled 

trips to the local public libraries. 

 

(r) "Fingerprint records check determination" means a satisfactory or  

unsatisfactory determination by the department based upon a   records  

check comparison of Georgia Crime Information  

Center(GCIC)information with fingerprints and other information in a  

records check application. 

 

(s) ”Group" means a specific number of children assigned to specific staff  

throughout the day. More than one group may occupy the same physical  

space. 

 

(t) "Infant" means any child who is under twelve ( 12) months of age or  

any child who is under eighteen (18) months of age and who is not yet  

walking. 

 

(u) "License" means the document issued by the department to authorize  

the licensee to whom it is issued to operate a center under these rules.   

The requirements to obtain a license under these rules shall be identical to  

those for a commission. 

 

(v) "Licensee" means the person, partnership, association, corporation or  

agency holding a license issued by the department to operate a day care  

center at a particular location and having responsibility for the operation  

and maintenance of the day care center in accordance with these rules.  

 

(w) ”Nighttime care" means care provided to children at the center  

between the hours of 12:00 midnight and 6:00 a.m.  

 

(x) "Non-correctable deficiency" means an abuse, dereliction or violation  

of these rules which demonstrates any one the following: flagrant and  

shocking intentional misconduct by the licensee or commission holder or  

center staff where the licensee or commission holder knew or should have  

known of the staff's likelihood to commit such acts; an intentional or  

reckless disregard for the physical or mental health or the safety of a child  

in care which may or may not result in physical injury to the child by the  

licensee or commission holder or the center staff where the licensee or  

commission holder knew or should have known of the staff's likelihood to  

disregard; or some causal connection between the intentional violation of  

a rule and the death or major injury of a child in care; or an intentional  

disregard of a particular rule(s) which relates directly to the health and  

safety of a child in care where the licensee or commission holder has  

previously been cited for non-compliance with the particular rule(s)  

within the past twelve ( 12) months and has failed to sustain the remedial  

action(s) set forth in a previous plan of correction within that  

twelve-month period.  

 

(y) "Parent"means the parent(s)with lawful custody of the child or the  

legal guardian(s) of a child enrolled or in the process of being enrolled in  

a day care center. 

 

(z) ”Preliminary records check application" means an application for a  

preliminary records check determination on forms provided by the  

department. 

 

(aa) ”Preliminary records check determination" means a satisfactory or  

unsatisfactory determination by the department based only upon a  

comparison of Georgia Crime Information Center (GCIC) information  

with other than fingerprint information regarding the person upon whom  

the records check is being performed.  

 

(bb) ”Personnel" or "Staff" means all persons including the administrator,  

all full or part-time employees and volunteers, who perform consistent  

services for the day care center and have 

 

 direct or indirect contact with children at the center. Personnel does not  

include those relatives who function as chaperons on field trips  

occasionally nor does it include students in training for limited periods of  

time provided that these chaperons and students in training work under  

the direct supervision of center personnel at all times.  

 

(cc) ”Plan of correction" means a written plan prepared by the  

administrator submitted to and approved by the department which states  

the procedure(s), method(s) and time frame that will be used by the  

licensee or commission holder to correct the area(s) of non-compliance  

with these rules. 

  

(dd) "Qualified or qualifications" means that a person possesses, in  

addition to the other requirements set forth in these rules, certain  

minimum personal and health requirements necessary to administer or be  

employed in a day care center. A person may be considered by the  

department to be qualified with respect to the minimum personal and  

health criteria when he or she: has no criminal record; is not suffering  

from a physical or mental condition which would interfere with the  

person's ability to perform adequately the job duties of providing for the  

care and supervision of the children enrolled in the center in accordance  

with these rules; has not made any material false statements relating to  

any licensure requirement to the department or the licensee or  

commission holder and has not been shown by credible evidence, e.g. a  

finding of fact made by a court,jury or department investigation or other  

reliable 

 

 

 

evidence, to have abused, neglected, or deprived a child or adult or to  

have subjected any person to serious injury as a result of intentional or  

grossly negligent misconduct.  

 

(ee) ”Qualifying experience" means verifiable experience working 

directly with children. 

 

(ff) ”Satisfactory determination" means a written determination that a  

person for whom a records check was performed was found to have no  

criminal record. 

 

(gg) ”School-age children" means children who are at least five (5)years  

old by the first of September of the current school year and who are  

eligible to attend public school. 

 

(hh) ”School-age day care center" means a day care center, or part thereof  

with separate physical facilities and a separate license, which provides  

day-time care exclusively to school-age children before and/or after the  

normal school day. Such programs may operate a full-day program solely  

for the school-age children enrolled in the program during the regular  

school year during those periods when school is not in session. A  

school-age day care center which only serves school-age children shall be  

eligible to receive a restricted day care license and must meet only the  

rules after which the symbol, appears. 

 

(ii) ”Students in training" means students enrolled in an educational  

course of study which requires or permits them to observe and participate  

in the care of children at a day care center during a limited period of time,  

i.e. one (1) quarter, one (1) trimester or (1) semester, provided that they  

are under the direct supervision of center personnel at all times. 

  

jj) ”Substitute" means a person who is routinely used to replace regular  

personnel and performs consistent services for the day care center during  

the temporary or emergency absence of regular personnel and who has a  

satisfactory criminal records check determination and has received  

orientation training. If any substitutes serve in any one (1) position longer  

than six (6) months, the substitutes so employed must meet all staffing  

requirements for that position. 

 

kk) ”Supervision" means that the appropriate numbers of staff members  

are physically present in the area where children are being cared for 

 

 

and are providing watchful oversight to the children, chaperons and  

students in training.  The persons supervising in the child care area must  

be alert, able to respond promptly to the needs and actions of the children  

being supervised, as well as the actions of the chaperons and students in  

training, and providing timely attention to the children's actions and  

needs.  

 

(ll) "Unsatisfactory determination" means a written determination that a  

person for whom a records check was performed has a criminal record.

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