1. (a) In addition to program managers, all child care staff who are responsible for the supervision of children, or who are necessary for the staff to child ratios, shall have on file documentation of completion of training in accordance with (b) below, which shall:

   1. (1) Be completed within 90 days of the first date of employment;
   2. (2) Be completed within 2 weeks for programs operating 3 months of the year or less; or
   3. (3) If completed prior to employment, provide documentation of previous completion.

2. (b) The training required in (a) above shall include:

   1. (1) Child care licensing orientation;
   2. (2) Prevention and control of infectious diseases, including immunization requirements, exemptions, and grace periods as referenced in He-C 4002.10;
   3. (3) Prevention of SIDS and use of safe sleep practices, if the program is licensed for infants 12 months and younger;
   4. (4) Medication administration;
   5. (5) Prevention of and response to emergencies due to food and other allergic reactions;
   6. (6) Building and safety of physical premises, including identification of and protection from hazards that can cause bodily injury such as electrical hazards, bodies of water, and vehicular traffic;
   7. (7) Prevention of shaken baby syndrome and abusive head trauma;
   8. (8) Emergency preparedness and response planning, including training on all required components in the emergency operations plan as specified in He-C 4002.16;
   9. (9) Handling and storage of hazardous materials and the appropriate disposal of bio-contaminants;
   10. (10) Appropriate precautions in transporting children for child care staff who will provide transportation or accompany children during transportation;
   11. (11) Pediatric first aid and pediatric CPR;
   12. (12) Prevention, recognition, and reporting of child abuse and neglect; and
   13. (13) Child development, including cognitive, physical, social, and emotional development, and approaches to learning.

3. (c) In addition to the training required in (b) above, child care staff shall:

   1. (1) Complete training on prevention of SIDS and use of safe sleep practices and prevention of shaken baby syndrome and abusive head trauma prior to working with infants 12 months and younger;
   2. (2) Complete training on appropriate precautions in transporting children prior to transporting or accompanying children during transportation; and
   3. (3) Complete training on medication administration prior to administering medication to children.

4. (d) Child care staff who have not yet completed the training in (1) through (3) below shall work under the direct supervision and observation of a staff member who has completed the following trainings:

   1. (1) Prevention, recognition, and reporting of child abuse and neglect;
   2. (2) Prevention of shaken baby syndrome and abusive head trauma; and
   3. (3) Pediatric first aid and pediatric CPR.

5. (e) The program manager and all child care staff shall complete 12 hours of professional development within their first 12 months of hire, and annually thereafter, in accordance with the following:

   1. (1) A minimum of 3 hours shall be in health and safety topics listed in (b)(2)-(13) above; and
   2. (2) The remaining 9 hours shall be in any other areas listed in (o) below.
6. (f) Beginning on the employee’s start date, the employee shall complete the equivalent of one hour of professional development per month for the remainder of the calendar year, which may include the training in health and safety topics listed in (b)(2)-(13) above.
7. (g) Assistant teachers, associate teachers, group leaders, assistant group leaders, child care workers, and child care assistants shall be exempt from (e) above, if they work fewer than 25 hours per week year-round or more than 25 hours per week during school vacations, or both, for the same licensee.
8. (h) The child care staff exempt in (g) above shall instead obtain 8 hours of professional development annually, of which a minimum of 3 hours shall be in any of the health and safety areas listed in (b)(2)-(13) above, and the remaining hours shall be in any areas in (o) below.
9. (i) Child care staff attending high school or college full time shall obtain 3 hours of professional development in health and safety areas listed in (b)(2)-(13) above annually.
10. (j) Full time college attendance shall mean enrolled in a minimum of 12 credit hours per semester.
11. (k) All substitutes and any volunteer who works alone with children or is counted in staff-to-child ratios shall complete the health and safety trainings as required by (b) above and 3 hours of annual professional development in health and safety areas listed in (b)(2)-(13).
12. (l) Professional development shall include trainings, workshops, technical assistance, self-study, or college courses.

13. (m) Self-study projects shall:

    1. (1) Not exceed 4 of the required 12 hours of professional development; and
    2. (2) Not be utilized to obtain the professional development in health and safety requirements in (b)(2)-(13) above.

14. (n) Self-study projects referenced in (m) above shall:

    1. (1) Be based on current research in child development or early childhood;
    2. (2) Demonstrate developmentally appropriate practice;
    3. (3) Support the knowledge and skills needed to care for young children; and
    4. (4) Be documented and include an evaluation component.

15. (o) In addition to (b) above, professional development shall be in any of the following areas:

    1. (1) Health and safety;
    2. (2) Caring for children with exceptionalities;
    3. (3) Nutrition;
    4. (4) Any child care related courses sponsored or funded by the department;
    5. (5) Indoor and outdoor learning environments;
    6. (6) Behavior guidance;
    7. (7) Leadership, child care administration, or mentoring;
    8. (8) Financial management;
    9. (9) Working with families; or
    10. (10) Legal issues in child care.

16. (p) The department shall accept the following toward meeting in-service professional development requirements:

    1. (1) Credit courses offered by a regionally accredited college or university with one credit equal to 12 hours;
    2. (2) Non-credit courses offered for continuing education units by an accredited college or university;

    3. (3) Conference sessions, workshops, or technical assistance presented by an individual who meets one of the following criteria:

       1. a. Is credentialed by the department’s bureau of child development and head start collaboration, NH early childhood professional development system in accordance with RSA 170-E:50;
       2. b. Has at least a bachelor’s degree in the subject area which they are providing professional development;
       3. c. Meets the minimum qualifications for the position of center director;
       4. d. Holds a professional license or certification through a professional organization relevant to the subject area which they are providing professional development; or
       5. e. Is employed or was previously employed in a position such as a trainer, instructor, or consultant by an organization specializing in one of the areas referenced in (o) above in which they are providing professional development;

    4. (4) Provision of training or technical assistance developed and presented live, in real time, or via live remote learning by an employee of the program or an individual hired by the program shall be in accordance with the following:

       1. a. The training is conducted when the trainees are not responsible for children;
       2. b. Except for classroom observations, technical assistance is provided when the subject(s) of the technical assistance are not responsible for children; and

       3. c. Information regarding credentials of the individual, their methods, content and objective, dates and times of trainings or technical assistance, and a list of participants is on file at the program and available for review by the department to assist the department in determining that:

          1. 1. The individual meets the requirements specified in (3)a. through e. above; and
          2. 2. The training or technical assistance is designed to increase the knowledge or skills of an individual to prepare them to work with children more effectively in a program; and

    5. (5) Online training and correspondence courses, provided documentation of completion includes:

       1. a. The title of the training;
       2. b. The completion date;
       3. c. The hours awarded; and
       4. d. A description which indicates the training is designed to increase the knowledge or skills of an individual to prepare them to work with children more effectively in a program.
17. (q) Unless otherwise specified on the training certificate or course description for more or fewer hours, training hours for certification in first aid shall count as 2 hours and training for certification in CPR shall count as 3 hours towards annual professional development requirements.

Source. #4871, eff 7-24-90; ss by #5203, eff 8-16-91; ss by #6558, INTERIM, eff 8-16-97, EXPIRED: 12-14-97 New. #6719, eff 3-25-98; ss by #7294, eff 5-26-00; ss by #9160, INTERIM, eff 5-26-08; ss by #9310, eff 11-23-08 (from He-C 4002.33); ss by #12046, INTERIM, eff 11-19-16; ss by #12174, EMERGENCY RULE, eff 5-17-17; ss by #12415, eff 11-6-17; ss by #13373, eff 4-22-22 (formerly He-C 4002.30); ss by #14356, eff 9-22-25, EXPIRES: 9-22-35 (formerly He-C 4002.33)