The Issue The issue is whether Respondent should revoke Petitioner's license to operate a child care facility for failure to comply with the Director Credential requirements in Subsection 402.305(2)(f), Florida Statutes (2003), and Florida Administrative Code Rule 65C-22.003(7).
Findings Of Fact Respondent is the state agency responsible for registering family day care homes in Florida. Petitioner is licensed as a child care facility and has operated as a child care facility since October 4, 1990. It is undisputed that Petitioner has satisfied all of the Director Credential requirements, except one. Respondent alleges that Petitioner has not provided Respondent with written verification that Petitioner successfully completed 20 hours of courses required to be certified as a Child Development Associate (CDA). Petitioner completed the courses required to be a CDA in September 1988, but the record of completion is no longer available from the former state agency responsible for administering the program and maintaining those records. Respondent admits that routine licensing inspection reports by Respondent document that Petitioner completed the courses necessary for the CDA certificate in September 1988, and subsequent inspections never cited Petitioner for failure to comply with the CDA requirement. The testimony of Ms. Terry DeLong, Petitioner's director, was credible and persuasive. Petitioner has satisfied all of the Director Credential requirements. Respondent should not revoke Petitioner's license because another state agency failed to maintain its records. It would be unreasonable to require Ms. Delong to repeat the courses she has already completed in order to keep operating the child care facility. The statutory requirement for a CDA certificate is intended to ensure minimal standards of competence. The legislature did not intend to put competent child care facilities out of business because state agencies are unable to maintain records of completion.
Recommendation Based upon the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that Respondent enter a final order finding that Petitioner has satisfied the statutory Director Credential requirements. DONE AND ENTERED this 2nd day of November, 2004, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. S DANIEL MANRY Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 SUNCOM 278-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 2nd day of November, 2004. COPIES FURNISHED: Beryl Thompson-McClary, Esquire Department of Children and Family Services 400 West Robinson Street, Suite S-1106 Orlando, Florida 32801 Terry DeLong Tuskawilla Montessori School 1625 Montessori Point Oviedo, Florida 32765 Paul F. Flounlacker, Agency Clerk Department of Children and Family Services Building 2, Room 204B 1317 Winewood Boulevard Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0700 Josie Tomayo, General Counsel Department of Children and Family Services Building 2, Room 204 1317 Winewood Boulevard Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0700
The Issue At issue is whether Respondent committed the Class II violation alleged in the Administrative Complaint and, if so, what is the appropriate penalty.
Findings Of Fact Based on the evidence adduced at hearing, and the record as a whole, the following Findings of Fact are made: The Department is authorized to regulate child care facilities pursuant to sections 402.301 through 402.319, Florida Statutes. Section 402.310 authorizes the Department to take disciplinary action against child care facilities for violations of sections 402.301 through 402.319. Chappell operates at eight child care locations in Duval and St. Johns Counties, admitting children from the ages of six weeks to five years. Chappell also has an after school program for children ages five to eight, and a summer camp for children ages five to ten. Chappell is licensed to operate the Child Care Facility at 8400 Baycenter Road, Jacksonville, Florida, pursuant to License Number C04DU0093. The facility on Baycenter Road is commonly called Chappell’s Deerwood facility. Gretrell Marshall works for the Department as a Licensing Counselor. She inspects child care facilities and family daycare homes to ensure they are not operating in violation of Department standards. She has worked for the Department for two years. Ms. Marshall’s previous experience includes operating a family daycare home for two years, and seven years as the owner and director of a licensed child care facility in Jacksonville. She has worked as an infant and toddler development specialist and holds a bachelor's degree in psychology. On October 10, 2019, Ms. Marshall went to Chappell to investigate a parent’s complaint that a child at the facility was repeatedly biting other children. The Department’s rules require child care facilities to document all accidents and incidents that occur while a child is in the care of program staff. The incident reports must be completed on the same day the incident occurs. The documentation of the incident must be shared with the child’s parent or guardian on the day the incident occurs. Chappell’s “accident/incident report” form contained spaces for the name and age of the child, the names of the teachers and other adults present, and the date and time of the incident. It had multiple choice check- boxes for location (classroom, playground, bathroom, cafeteria, or “other”); markings (abrasion, bite, bruise, bump, cut/tear, fracture, puncture, red mark, rug burn, scratch, sprain, or “other”); appendage (a list of 26 body parts); and first aid given (irrigate, antibacterial soap, bandage, ice pack, splint, or “other”). The form also included space for a narrative description of the accident or incident, and whether the parent was called. Ms. Marshall found several accident/incident reports that student E.W., a two-year-old boy, bit other children and a teacher between August 21 and October 4, 2019. On August 21, 2019, E.W. bit another student in the back while jostling for position in a line. The skin was not broken and the bite did not require first aid. Chappell recorded that the bite left bite marks. An August 27, 2019, incident report described two biting incidents on the same day. First, E.W. bit another student “just because” and pulled another student’s hair. Then, E.W. indicated to the teacher that he had to use the bathroom. The teacher took him to the bathroom but the child just ate toilet paper and urinated on himself. When the teacher tried to change his diaper, E.W. bit and kicked the teacher. For the August 27, 2019, incident, Chappell’s accident/incident report form left blank the first aid treatment space. The report noted the bites left bite marks. On September 11, 2019, E.W. bit another child in the back. Chappell’s accident/incident report recorded that first aid was administered, but did not specify the form of treatment. The report noted that the bites resulted in bite marks. Chappell reported that two biting incidents occurred on September 30, 2019. E.W. bit another student on the back during circle time. Later, when the students went outside to play, E.W. bit another child on the back without provocation. The teacher talked to him about being gentle with friends. The accident/incident report left blank the space for reporting first aid. On October 2, 2019, E.W. bit another student in the back. A different form, called a “behavior incident report,” was used by Chappell to record this incident. This form did not contain the check-boxes of the accident/incident report but simply provided space for a narrative “description of behavior incident.” The narrative stated that E.W. and other students were on the castle playhouse in the playground when E.W., “unprovoked,” bit another student on the back. Chappell did not record whether this bite left marks or required first aid. On October 4, 2019, at 12:40 p.m., E.W. bit another student on the right shoulder during play time in their classroom. The accident/incident report recorded that the bite left a bite mark. The space on the form to indicate whether the bite required first aid was left blank. A separate accident/incident report completed on October 4, 2019, documented that E.W. bit another student at 3:15 p.m., while the children were lining up at the door of the classroom. The report did not indicate whether there were bite marks or whether first aid was required. Chappell intended to suspend E.W. for one day on October 4, 2019. The school phoned the parents but was unable to get anyone to come in and pick up E.W. Therefore, the suspension was enforced on the next school day, October 7, 2019. The school warned the parents that another biting incident would result in the child’s permanent removal from Chappell. On October 23, 2019, E.W. bit another child at the school. Chappell expelled E.W. Nancy Dreicer, the Chief Executive Officer of Chappell, testified that there is a societal problem with small children being suspended and expelled from childcare centers. She stated that more children are expelled from child care centers in the United States than are expelled from grade schools and high schools. Ms. Dreicer testified that disciplinary expulsions were problematic for multiple reasons. Behaviors such as biting are common among two year olds, but a child that age learns nothing from being suspended or expelled from school. The parents are forced to find another child care facility and whatever behavioral issue is causing the child’s misbehavior is not addressed. The problem is merely pushed off onto a new child care facility. Ms. Dreicer testified that in 2019, Chappell received a grant from Hope Haven Children’s Hospital and the Community Foundation of Jacksonville to have a behavioral psychologist at the Deerwood facility to work with the children and to train the teachers in dealing with behavior problems. The psychologist worked with E.W., observing the child in the classroom, tracking the timing of his misbehavior, and looking for triggers to his actions. He worked with the teachers on how to identify triggers. Ms. Dreicer pointed out that suspending the child would have meant that the psychologist could not observe him. She noted that nothing approaching a serious injury had occurred, and added that the school would not have kept E.W. in the classroom if there was any possibility of his being a danger to the other students. She believed that E.W.’s behavior was improving, but that biting is such a natural part of a two year old’s development that it was very difficult to stop it completely. The Department has adopted a Child Care Facility Handbook (the “Handbook”), intended to be used on conjunction with sections 402.26 through 402.319. The Handbook has been adopted by reference in Florida Administrative Code Rule 65C-22.001(6).1 The Introduction to the Handbook states, “To protect the health and welfare of children, it is the intent of the Legislature to develop a regulatory framework that promotes the growth and stability of the child care industry and facilitates the safe physical, intellectual, motor, and social development of the child.” Section 2.8 of the Handbook, titled “Child Discipline,” provides, in relevant part: The child care facility shall adopt a discipline policy consistent with Section 402.305(12), F.S., including standards that prohibit children from 1 The cited rule references the May 2019 edition of the Handbook. However, the version of the Handbook provided on the Department’s website and through the hyperlink provided in the rule as published in the Florida Administrative Register is dated December 2019. To further complicate matters, the version of the Handbook introduced at the hearing was dated October 2017. The October 2017 and December 2019 editions are identical in all respects relevant to the determination in this proceeding, which leads to the inference that the May 2019 edition is likewise identical. being subjected to discipline which is severe, humiliating, frightening, or associated with food, rest, or toileting. Spanking or any other form of physical punishment is prohibited. The child care facility operators, employees, and volunteers must comply with written disciplinary and expulsion policies. Verification that the child care facility has provided the parent or guardian a written copy of the disciplinary and expulsion policies used by the program must be documented on the enrollment form with the signature of the custodial parent or legal guardian. * * * E. A copy of the current[2] disciplinary and expulsion policies must be available for review by the parents or legal guardian and the licensing authority. Providers must have a comprehensive discipline policy that includes developmentally appropriate social-emotional and behavioral health promotion practices, as well as discipline and intervention procedures that provide specific guidance on what child care personnel should do to prevent and respond to challenging behaviors. Preventive and discipline practices should be used as learning opportunities to guide children’s appropriate behavioral development …. (emphasis added). Pursuant to section 2.8.A of the Handbook, Chappell has adopted and implemented a discipline policy, titled “Child Management Behavior Protocol.” Chappell’s policy sets forth the following mission statement: Chappell recognizes the importance of promoting acceptable behavior and methods of discipline within the child care setting. We believe that all 2 The word “current” is not in the October 2017 edition of the Handbook. This is the only relevant difference between section 2.8 in the October 2017 Handbook and section 2.8 in the December 2019 edition of the Handbook children have the right to expect positive approaches to discipline, which foster self-esteem, respect, tolerance and self-control. Behaviors which injure people either emotionally or physically or damage property are real problems to adults/staff and the other children. These behaviors must be dealt with in an appropriate manner. After setting forth a catalogue of acceptable and unacceptable methods of discipline to be applied in specific instances of misbehavior, the Chappell discipline policy next stated the process to be followed “In The Case of Persistent Inappropriate Behavior” as follows, in relevant part: The child’s parents/caregivers will be involved at first hit, kick, thrown toy, etc. The Director will discuss the situation with the parents/caregivers in an attempt to find the possible cause of the behavior. The Director and the parents/caregivers will together develop strategies for dealing with the unwanted behavior, which could be implemented at home. Should it be necessary and with the consent of the parent/caregiver, advice and assistance will be sought from relevant external specialists to address the matter. After two incidences in one week, which caused or could have caused injury to self or others, the child will be suspended for one day, and after five such incidences the child will be suspended for a week. However, if the Director at any time feels the behavior is extreme and dangerous to other children or teachers, the child will be removed from the Center. This may be a temporary or permanent expulsion…. There was no question that the Chappell discipline policy meets the requirements of the Handbook. The Class II violation alleged by the Department is that Chappell failed to follow its own discipline policy in the case of E.W., thereby violating section 2.8.B of the Handbook, which requires child care facilities to “comply with written disciplinary and expulsion policies.” The Department points out that the Chappell discipline policy specifies that after two incidences in one week that “caused or could have caused injury,” the child will be suspended for one day, and that five such instances will result in one week’s suspension. The Chappell policy gives the Director discretion to remove a child for extreme or dangerous behavior. The Department notes that the policy does not give the Director discretion to waive the stated discipline schedule. Ms. Marshall calculated that under Chappell’s written policy, E.W. should have been suspended for one day after the two biting incidents on August 27, 2019, and again following the two biting incidents on September 30, 2019. Chappell did not suspend E.W. on either occasion. Ms. Marshall calculated that in the space of the five days between September 30 and October 4, 2019, E.W. was involved in five biting incidents. Ms. Marshall testified that, under Chappell’s policy, E.W. should have been suspended for one week. Chappell gave E.W. a one-day suspension on October 7, 2019. Ms. Dreicer conceded in the abstract that biting is an act that could cause injury to another child. She did not concede that E.W.’s biting was injurious or threatened actual injury to the other children at the child care facility. It was a developmental behavior issue that the facility’s staff and a psychologist were attempting to correct. Chappell ultimately decided that it had to expel the child, but only after making every effort to correct the biting behavior. Chappell argued that neither the Department’s Handbook nor Chappell’s policy defines the term “injury.” Ms. Marshall believed that a bite is always an injury. It leaves a mark, however temporary, and requires some treatment. Chappell noted that none of the bites recorded in its accident/incident reports broke the skin of the other child or required treatment of any kind. Ms. Dreicer and the staff of the Deerwood facility made a determination that E.W.’s behavior presented no danger of injury to the other children. Chappell argues that, whatever the literal language of the written policy, the director of a child care facility must be allowed to exercise discretion on a case-by-case basis in making disciplinary decisions. Chappell points to section 2.8.E of the Handbook, with its admonitions that a comprehensive disciplinary policy must be “developmentally appropriate” and that discipline practices “should be used as learning opportunities to guide children’s appropriate behavioral development.” Ms. Dreicer forcefully made the case that suspending or expelling a two year old teaches nothing and abdicates the facility’s responsibility to the child. Neither party appeared to take note of another section of the Chappell disciplinary policy. The undersigned observes that, while the language of the Chappell policy quoted above appears to prescribe a rigid disciplinary process admitting no exceptions, another portion of the policy gives Chappell discretion as to when the disciplinary process commences: After an incident, our first step: We will tend to the injured child to see if medical attention is needed. We will give the child who hit, kicked, etc. an opportunity to apologize and provide comfort. We will notify both sets of parents and prepare an incident report (Attachment 1). DCF requires the report be signed by a parent or caregiver the day of the incident. If behaviors persist, Chappell will follow the process management flow chart. (Attachment 2)[3] (emphasis added). 3 The referenced attachments were not part of the record. From the context, the undersigned has inferred that the referenced “flow chart” was a graphic representation of the disciplinary procedure quoted at Finding of Fact 26 above. The underscored language, read together with the title of the discipline policy, “In The Case of Persistent Inappropriate Behavior,” gives Chappell discretion to determine when the child’s behaviors have reached the stage of “persistence” warranting commencement of the disciplinary process. The Department did not account for this discretion in finding that Chappell violated section 2.8.B of the Handbook. Ms. Dreicer’s testimony was consistent with the Chappell disciplinary policy. Though the facility eventually expelled the child, it exercised the discretion afforded by the policy to determine whether the child’s behavior was potentially injurious and whether the behavior was persistent enough to warrant invocation of the disciplinary process. Clear and convincing evidence was not presented that Chappell committed the Class II violation alleged by the Department.
Recommendation Based upon the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that the Department of Children and Families enter a final order dismissing the Administrative Complaint. DONE AND ENTERED this 14th day of May, 2020, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. S LAWRENCE P. STEVENSON Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 14th day of May, 2020. COPIES FURNISHED: Nancy Drier Chappell Schools, LLC 8400 Baycenter Road Jacksonville, Florida 32256 Lacey Kantor, Agency Clerk Department of Children and Families Building 2, Room 204Z 1317 Winewood Boulevard Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0700 (eServed) David Gregory Tucker, Esquire Department of Children and Families 5920 Arlington Expressway Jacksonville, Florida 32231-0083 (eServed) Jesse Nolan Dreicer, Esquire Tassone, Dreiver & Hill 1833 Atlantic Boulevard Jacksonville, Florida 32207 (eServed) Chad Poppell, Secretary Department of Children and Families Building 1, Room 202 1317 Winewood Boulevard Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0700 (eServed) Javier Enriquez, General Counsel Department of Children and Families Building 2, Room 204F 1317 Winewood Boulevard Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0700 (eServed)
The Issue Whether Respondent, a licensed child care facility, committed two Class I violations as alleged in the Administrative Complaint; and, if so, the appropriate penalty, including whether Petitioner may terminate Respondent's participation in the Gold Seal Quality Care program.
Findings Of Fact The Department is the state agency responsible for licensing and regulating child care facilities in the state in Florida. StarChild is a licensed child care facility located in Apopka, Florida. StarChild is designated as a Gold Seal Provider and has a contract with the Early Learning Coalition to provide school readiness services. As a designated Gold Seal Quality Care Provider, StarChild is subject to the provisions of section 402.281, Florida Statutes. In order to obtain and maintain a designation as a Gold Seal Quality Care provider, a child care facility must not have had any Class I violations, as defined by rule, within the two years preceding its application for designation as a Gold Seal Quality Care provider. § 402.281(4)(a), Fla. Stat. "Commission of a Class I violation shall be grounds for termination of the designation as a Gold Seal Quality Care provider until the provider has no Class I violations for a period of two years." § 402.281(4)(a), Fla. Stat. 1 By agreeing to an extended deadline for post-hearing submissions beyond ten days after the filing of the transcript, the parties waived the 30-day timeframe for issuance of the Recommended Order. See Fla. Admin. Code R. 28-106.216. As of the date of the final hearing, StarChild had never had a Class I violation. The May 5, 2020, Incident At all times relevant to this case, CJ was a two-year-old boy who attended StarChild. On May 5, 2020, CJ, along with several other children and two teachers, were in a two-year-old classroom at StarChild. The actions of the children and a teacher, Ms. Crisman, were recorded by a surveillance camera mounted in the room. The factual allegations in the Administrative Complaint are primarily based on an incident captured on video. In the video, CJ is seen interacting with other children in the room. The children are all engaged in different activities; some are standing while others are sitting on the floor. CJ stood near a group of children who were sitting on the floor in close proximity to Ms. Crisman, who also sat on the floor. CJ walked up behind another child who sat in front of Ms. Crisman. CJ placed his hands on the other child's shoulders. The other child turned his torso toward CJ, while still sitting, and pushed CJ away from him. This was by no means a hard push. CJ stumbled into a seated position and then immediately thereafter laid on his back. CJ remained laying on his back for approximately five to ten seconds, during which he playfully kicked his feet. Ms. Crisman stood up from her seated position, walked over to CJ, and stood over him. She then grabbed CJ by both wrists and forcefully yanked him off the ground. It is clear from the video that Ms. Crisman used great force when she pulled CJ off the floor—CJ's feet flew up in the air and his head flew back. Ms. Crisman then pulled CJ, by his wrists, approximately ten feet across the room, and placed him in a corner in timeout. CJ sat in the corner clutching his arm. Zuleika Martinez (Ms. Martinez) was one of the two teachers assigned to CJ's classroom. She was not present during the incident, but came back to see CJ sitting in timeout. Ms. Martinez noticed that CJ was favoring one hand over the other. Approximately 30 minutes after noticing this, Ms. Martinez notified Deborah Files (Ms. Files). Ms. Files has been employed by StarChild since March 2005, and has been serving as the Director of StarChild since April 2020. Ms. Files walked over to the classroom to check on CJ and speak to Ms. Martinez. She learned that CJ was holding his arm and he would not use it for play or to eat. Ms. Files brought CJ into StarChild's front-desk area—the area typically used for children who are not feeling well. Ms. Files iced CJ's arm. Shortly thereafter, Ms. Files contacted Shelby Feinberg (Ms. Feinberg). At the time of the incident, Ms. Feinberg was the Executive Director of StarChild. Ms. Feinberg was working remotely and, therefore, not at StarChild's facility. Ms. Files explained to Ms. Feinberg that CJ appeared to be having difficulty utilizing one of his arms. Ms. Feinberg advised Ms. Files to contact CJ's parents. Ms. Files contacted CJ's mother, Meghan Jones, at approximately 11:00 a.m. Ms. Files reported to the mother that CJ was favoring one arm, and that he was not using the other arm at all. Ms. Files encouraged Ms. Jones to pick CJ up. At approximately 12:30 p.m., CJ's father, Kurt Jones (Mr. Jones), arrived at StarChild to pick CJ up. Mr. Jones found CJ in the classroom, lying on the floor. He told CJ to get up. CJ attempted to push himself up off the floor but was unable to do so. CJ appeared to be in pain and unable to support his body weight on his arm. It was clear to Mr. Jones that his son was in pain. Mr. Jones had difficulty getting CJ strapped into his car seat. Mr. Jones drove CJ to their home, which was five minutes away. When at home, Mr. Jones noticed that CJ still appeared to be in pain. Mr. Jones noticed that CJ would not move or touch his arm. He was holding his arm as if it was in a sling. CJ would periodically cry. Mr. Jones grew worried as his son still appeared to be in pain and did not seem to be getting better as time passed. Mr. Jones considered taking CJ to the emergency room but decided against it because of concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic. He could not take CJ to his primary care pediatrician as there were scheduling difficulties also tied to the COVID-19 pandemic. The family's usual after-hours urgent care pediatrics office did not open until 4:00 p.m. At approximately three or four hours after picking CJ up from StarChild, Mr. Jones, with few options, searched for help on the internet. He researched possible causes of CJ's pain and why he was holding his arm like a sling. After watching several videos, he came across a YouTube video made by a nurse who described a condition called "nursemaid elbow." A nursemaid elbow is a dislocated elbow. The symptoms matched what CJ was experiencing and Mr. Jones determined CJ had dislocated his elbow. The video provided instructions on how to correct the nursemaid elbow. Desperate to help his son who was still in pain, he attempted the procedure to put CJ's elbow back in place. Mr. Jones followed the instructions. He heard a "pop" noise, which was to be expected per the instructions in the video. CJ cried for ten to 15 seconds. Thereafter, CJ regained full mobility of his arm and no longer appeared to be in pain. CJ began acting like his typical self. The next day, Mr. and Mrs. Jones took CJ to his pediatrician. CJ was diagnosed with nursemaid elbow. They were advised that the procedure that Mr. Jones conducted the previous day was the correct one. The Department conducted an investigation of the incident. As part of its investigation, the Department scheduled an examination of CJ by its Child Protective Team (CPT). Margarita Diaz (Nurse Diaz) is a pediatric nurse practitioner who works for CPT. She has been with CPT for three years. She has received extensive training in child abuse. On May 7, 2020, she did a complete head- to-toe examination of CJ. She reviewed the history of CJ's injury provided by CJ's parents and collateral information which included the video of the incident. She diagnosed CJ as having suffered a nursemaid elbow due to child abuse. Nurse Diaz described a nursemaid elbow as a condition that occurs when the ligament in the elbow gets trapped between two bones. When a child's arm is pulled away, the tendon slips down. When the arm goes back into place, the tendon gets stuck between the humerus and the radial bones. When this condition happens, it is usually very painful for the child. The child often presents as protective of the arm and will not move it. Nurse Diaz further testified that the most common mechanism of injury is when a child is pulled. Other mechanisms for injury include swinging or lifting a child by the arm. She testified that a nursemaid elbow is easy to correct and once corrected, a child is back to normal in five to ten minutes. Nurse Diaz testified that her finding of child abuse was based on her observations of the actions of the teacher as shown in the video. She confirmed that the actions of the teacher in the video were consistent with the infliction of a nursemaid elbow injury on CJ. StarChild's Response to Incident When Ms. Martinez reported CJ's injury, StarChild took immediate action to address the situation. They removed CJ from the classroom, tended to his injuries, promptly contacted his parents, and set out to find out the cause of the injury. StarChild administrators watched video footage of the activity leading up to CJ's change in behavior. In reviewing the video, StarChild determined that Ms. Crisman used improper form by lifting CJ by his wrists when moving CJ to the timeout corner. By noon on the same day of the incident, StarChild terminated Ms. Crisman's employment. StarChild then contacted the Department to report the incident. Mr. Jones made a request to review video footage of the incident. Danny King, the owner of StarChild, reached out to Mr. Jones personally and agreed to meet with him and Mrs. Jones to review the video together in person. The parents were informed that Ms. Crisman was terminated. Following the incident, StarChild developed a self-imposed Corrective Action Plan, that included re-training its entire staff. Ms. Feinberg met with all members of the staff and conducted in-person training in small class settings. All staff members were provided StarChild's discipline policy and child interaction policies. Staff members were also required to take a child abuse and training course. StarChild re-wrote its staff handbook to include stronger and clearer language about how children are to be moved and repositioned in the classroom. Additionally, StarChild implemented permanent policy changes which required discussions during weekly staff meetings about behavior and how staff members should positively deal with behavior in the classroom. All staff members were also provided with information on nursemaid elbow, specifically. StarChild has current plans to bring in guest speakers, such as a behavior management professional and a CPT speaker, to further educate their staff members. StarChild acted commendably in response to the incident. It took immediate and comprehensive action to try to reduce the probability of an incident like that occurring again. It must be noted that complete prevention is an impossibility. CJ continued to attend StarChild after the incident. Indeed, he attended StarChild the day after the incident and appeared to be in good spirits. CJ's younger sister was also enrolled at StarChild after the incident, when she was three-and-a-half months old.
Recommendation Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that the Department of Children and Families impose a fine of $100.00 against StarChild and revoke its designation as a Gold Seal Quality Care provider. DONE AND ENTERED this 19th day of May, 2021, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. COPIES FURNISHED: Brian Christopher Meola, Assistant General Counsel Department of Children and Families Suite S-1129 400 West Robinson Street Orlando, Florida 32801 Lacey Kantor, Agency Clerk Department of Children and Families Building 2, Room 204Z 1317 Winewood Boulevard Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0700 S JODI-ANN V. LIVINGSTONE Administrative Law Judge 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 19th day of May, 2021. Lucia C. Pineiro, Esquire Lucia C. Pineiro & Associates, P.A. Suite 309 717 Ponce de Leon Boulevard Coral Gables, Florida 33134 Javier A. Enriquez, General Counsel Department of Children and Families Building 2, Room 204F 1317 Winewood Boulevard Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0700
