Section 148-31-1 - PURPOSE AND DEFINITIONSA.PurposeMaine's Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS), Rising Stars for ME, is a rating system designed to:
Increase awareness of the basic Standards of Early Care and Education; Recognize and support Early Care and Education Programs (Program) providing care above and beyond those Standards; and Educate the community about the benefits of higher quality care. Rising Stars for ME is funded by the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) Block Grant Program and administered by Maine's Department of Health and Human Service's Office of Child and Family Services (OCFS). Rising Stars for ME's purpose is to recognize Programs that provide quality care, encourage Program Owners to increase their level of quality, and provide parents with identifiable Standards of quality.
This rule relates to the participation of any Program with Rising Stars for ME, whether or not the Program is licensed by OCFS. Many Programs are required to be licensed by the State of Maine. This is not a licensing rule. This rule:
Outlines procedures for Programs' enrollment with Rising Stars for ME; Establishes Standards and Requirements for each Star Rating by Program type; Explains how a Program can attain a Star Rating; Explains how a Program can maintain its Star Rating or advance to the next Star Rating; and Explains how to appeal their Star Rating. B.DefinitionsFor purposes of this rule, the following terms have the following meanings:
1.Abuse or neglect means a threat to a Child's health or welfare by physical, mental, or emotional injury or impairment, sexual abuse or exploitation, deprivation of essential needs or lack of protection from these, by a person responsible for the Child.2.Accreditation means the process that validates a Program employs quality environments, processes, and procedures in delivering programming that conforms to national standards.4.Adult means a person at least eighteen (18) years old and over.5.Building Block Approach means all the Standards in each Star Rating must be met by the Program to advance to the next Star Rating.6.Career Lattice means Maine's Professional Development Network's Career Lattice which awards levels of achievements to persons based on training and employment history or earned credentials. Refer to: https://mrtq.org/registry/.7.Child and Youth Assessment means an ongoing process that includes observation of a child and/or youth that provides information about development over time.8.Child or Children means a person or persons under the age of thirteen (13).9.Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) means the federally funded, State-administered Program that provides assistance to low-income families who need child care due to work, work-related training and/or attending school. Includes CCDF Mandatory, CCDF Discretionary, CCDF Matching, TANF Transfer Funds, and State funds used for State match and maintenance of effort.10.Child Care Facility means a facility licensed as a Child Care Facility (including child care centers, nursery schools, small child care facilities, and other Programs) by the Department.11.Child Care Facility Handbook means the document that includes policies, procedures, guidelines, guidance, or persons employed with a Program.12.Child Care Staff Member means a person:a. Not related to all Children for whom child care services are provided;b. Employed by a Program for compensation (including independent contractors); and, either/or c. Whose activities involve the care or supervision of Children;d. Who otherwise has unsupervised access to Children who are cared for, or supervised by, a Program.13.Child Care Subsidy Program (CCSP) means a Department Program that helps eligible families pay for child care so parents can work, go to school, or participate in a job training program. CCSP is also available for eligible families where the adult(s) are retired and are the legal guardian of a child.14.Child Care Subsidy Program License-Exempt Provider Agreement means the agreement between a Child Care Provider and the Department that outlines the conditions under which the Child Care Provider may receive a Child Care Subsidy Payment from the Department.15.Child Development Associate (CDA) Credential means the national Early Care and Education credential administered by the Council for Professional Recognition.16.Children's Licensing and Investigation Services (CLIS) means a team within the Department that licenses and oversees all Child Care Facilities and Family Child Care Providers in Maine, as well as Children's residential facilities, child placing agencies, and emergency shelters and homeless shelters for youth.17.Child with Special Needs means a Child who: a. Is up to thirteen (13) years of age who has been determined and documented by a qualified professional to be a "Child with a disability" as defined in section 602 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. § 1401);b. Is eligible for early intervention services under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. §§ 1431, et seq.); is eligible for services under section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. § 701);c. Meets the definition of disabled under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) (42 U.S.C. § 12102); ord. Is considered at-risk for health and/or developmental problems as a result of established biological risk factors, and/or as a result of identified environmental risk factors including, but not limited to, homelessness, abuse and/or neglect, lead poisoning, and prenatal drug or alcohol exposure.18.Conditional License means a license issued by the Department to a Family Child Care Provider or Child Care Facility for a term not to exceed twelve (12) months, which specifies when and what corrections the licensee must complete to achieve compliance. A conditional license may be issued by the Department, in accordance with 22 M.R.S. §7802. 19.Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Plan means the support provided to Programs to attain, maintain, or advance to a specific Star Rating.20.Council on Accreditation (COA) means the international, independent, nonprofit, human service accrediting organization.21.Department means the Maine Department of Health and Human Services.22.Department-approved means consent by the Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) State Child Care Administrator or his/her designee.23.Director means a person with primary responsibility for administering a Program and ultimate supervisory authority over any Child Care Staff Members. A Director may or may not be a Program Owner.24.Early Care and Education means the care, education, protection, supervision, and guidance of Children from birth through school age.25.Early Care and Education Program (Program) means any type of child care programming, such as by a Family Child Care Provider, License-Exempt Child Care Provider, Child Care Facility, Recreational Program, or Head Start.26.Early Care and Education Program Improvement Plan means a Department-approved written strategic approach to ensure all Standards will be met by a Program to retain a specific Star Rating.27.Family Child Care Provider means a person licensed as a Family Child Care Provider by the Department.28.Family Survey means a series of questions distributed annually to, and completed by, families to gather input on the Program's strengths and opportunities for improvement.29.Head Start means the federal Program promoting school readiness of Children ages birth to five (5) from low-income families by enhancing their cognitive, social, and emotional development.30.Infant means a Child six (6) weeks of age through twelve (12) months of age.31.Infant and Toddler Maine Early Learning and Development Standards (IT MELDS) means the Infant and Toddler Maine Early Learning and Development Standards, a document first published in 2006 as "Supporting Maine's Infants & Toddlers: Guidelines for Learning and Development" and revised from time to time by Maine's Professional Development Network and OCFS. IT MELDS is available from the Department on request or can be accessed online at https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/ocfs/support-for-families/child-care/qris.32.Informal Review means a review of all necessary documentation by the Department to determine if the Program Star Rating is accurate.33.License means written permission by the Department, whether initial, renewal, temporary or conditional, that authorizes a person to be a Family Child Care Provider or operate a Child Care Facility. For purposes of this rule, license has the same meaning as the certification referred to in 22 MRS §8301- A.34.License-Exempt Child Care Provider means:b. Eighteen (18) years of age or older;c. Who provides child care services, but is not required to be licensed under Maine law.35.Licensing Violations means serious violations of the licensing rule for the Program that pose serious risk to Children.36.Maine's Early Learning and Development Standards (MELDS) means Maine's Early Learning and Development Standards, a guide for state and local early childhood educators' efforts to improve practice and programs for young children from the age of three until kindergarten entrance, jointly published by the Department and the Maine Department of Education in March 2015. MELDS is available from the Department on request, or online at https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/ocfs/support-for-families/child-care/qris.37.Maine's Professional Development Network (PDN) Registry means an on-line portal that uses a member's work, education, and training histories, along with any professional credentials, to assign a level on the appropriate Career Lattice.38.National Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC) means the national professional association dedicated to promoting quality child care by strengthening the profession of Family Child Care.39.National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) means the national professional association dedicated to improving the well-being of all young Children, focusing on the quality of educational and developmental services for all Children from birth through age eight (8).40.Office of Child and Family Services (OCFS) means the office within the Department that administers Rising Stars for ME.41.Out-of-School-Time (OST) means a supervised Program that Children regularly attend when school is not in session. An Out of School Time Program may be one of the following: a licensed as a Family Child Care Provider, or Child Care Facility, a License-Exempt Child Care Provider, or a Recreational Program.42.Portfolio means documentation demonstrating that Standards at each Star Rating are or have been met.43.Program means an Early Care and Education Program.44.Program Owner means a person with any ownership interest in a Program or whose name appears on any license issued by the Department for the Program.45.Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS) means the system that utilizes Standards to evaluate and document the quality of Programs.46.Recreational Program means a Program not licensed as a Family Child Care Provider or Child Care Facility because it is (1) a residential or overnight summer camp established solely for recreational and educational purposes, licensed in accordance with 10-144 CMR Chapter 208, Rules Relating to Youth Camps, Primitive, and Trip Camping, or (2) a Program offering relevant instruction to Children for the purpose of teaching a singular skill such as karate, dance or basketball.47.Relative Child Care Provider means a License-Exempt Child Care Provider who: a. Provides child care services to no more than two (2) of their grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews, or siblings;b. Is eighteen (18) years of age or older;d. Does not live with the relative Children for whom they care.48.Requirement means activities and/or education a Program must conduct, provide, or receive in each Rising Stars for ME Standard to attain, maintain, or advance to the next Star Rating.49.Restricted Rating means a licensed Program that falls below a Star 1 (one) Rating due to having a Conditional License. The Restricted Rating is for the duration of the Conditional License.50.Rising Stars for ME means Maine's QRIS, which assigns Programs a Rating of Star 1 (one) through 5 (five) Stars.51.Rising Stars for ME Inclusive Practices Checklist means a document that expands on Rising Stars for ME QRIS with explicit indicators that focus on evidence-informed practices that support the inclusion of Children with special needs and/or disabilities.52.Standard means a level of achievement identified as necessary in Maine's Rising Stars for ME Quality Rating and Improvement System.53.Star Rating means a Program's Rating of Star 1 (one) through 5 (five) Stars, assigned by the Department based on satisfaction of the Requirements for its Program type for that Star Rating as provided in this rule.54.Self-assessment means the process of self-reflection to refine practices toward Program improvement and the provision of high-quality care.55.Site Visit means a formal in-person visit by the Department to a Program to review and assess the quality of child care being provided as well as compliance with Department rules and policies for providing such care.56.State Child Care Administrator means the person in the Department responsible for administering the CCDF grant.57.Technical Assistance means the provision of targeted and customized supports by a professional with subject matter and adult learning knowledge and skills to develop or strengthen processes, knowledge, application, or implementation of services by recipient.58.Toddler means a Child thirteen (13) through thirty-six (36) months of age.59.Volunteer means a person who helps or provides services without compensation in a Program.60.Youth means a person who has reached their thirteenth (13) birthday, but who has not yet reached their eighteenth (18) birthday.10-148 C.M.R. ch. 31, § 1