Wisconsin Department of Children and Families - Division of Early Care and Education
Bureau of Early Care Regulation
Child Care Licensing Procedure Manual
Directly below each rule summary statement, the licensing specialist succinctly describes the administrative rule violation. The description should, as much as possible and appropriate, contain information on who, what, when, where and how the rule is or was violated. The time of day of the monitoring visit is included if it is relevant to the violation. When documenting the violation, the licensing specialist should use the following sentence structure:
“On <date of monitoring visit>, <description of the violation that was observed including who, what and where>.” If all violations cited DCF-294A occurred on the same date and time of day, it is not necessary to repeat the date and time of day in describing each violation.
For example, this is how Wis. Admin. Code § DCF 251.05(3)(c) would be cited:
Wis. Admin. Code § DCF 251.05(3)(c) - CLOSE SUPERVISION OF CHILDREN- On September 1, 2016 at 1 p.m., child #1 was left alone in the outdoor play space without staff supervision for a five minute period following the lunch break.
The following conventions should be followed:
Write in concise, plain English. Any reader, including parents and members of the public who do not have knowledge of child care administrative rules, should be able to understand the description. Jargon and unclear and unnecessary words should be eliminated.
Only use acronyms that are nationally recognized such as CPR/AED. CPS and DCF are examples of acronyms that are not nationally recognized and should be avoided.
Be objective, factual, and descriptive. The description should not include derogatory comments or subjective observations, such as “The program showed a lack of good judgment.” Guesses at the program’s motivations, or the licensing specialist’s personal biases, opinions and feelings about the violation should not be included.
Enough detail should be provided to support the decision to cite each violation, but should not include irrelevant information.
When the DCF-294A is generated by WISCCRS, “Repeat Violation” will be automatically designated if the violation meets the definition of repeat violation.
Be mindful of the public nature of the information contained on the form because the DCF-294A should be posted at the program and can be viewed by parents and the public. The licensing specialist must ensure that necessary confidentiality is maintained when documenting the violation.
Confidential information may not be included on the DCF-294A including staff names and children’s names, birthdays, Social Security Numbers (SSN’s) and Federal Employer Identification Numbers (FEIN’s). Confidential information also includes mental health, alcohol and other drug abuse, child protective services and juvenile delinquency information. If a violation is about missing information from a specific child or staff person’s file or if the violation is about the actions of one or more persons, the identifying information can be documented using a confidential key.
This page last updated 06/2018.