The federal Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) law requires states receiving funding through the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) to support training and professional development of the child care workforce. States must also establish specific health and safety requirements for providers that receive CCDF funding. In Arizona, these are child care providers that are contracted or certified by the Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES) to care for children eligible for DES child care assistance. States must ensure that child care providers complete both Pre-Service and Ongoing Health and Safety Training, including annual training requirements.
To help providers successfully meet the annual pre-service and ongoing Health and Safety training requirements, DES has identified a variety of in-person and virtual opportunities offered throughout Arizona. These opportunities include in-person training, and courses available through the Child Care Education Institute (CCEI) in the Registry.
Approved ongoing health and safety training courses are aligned with the Arizona Early Childhood Workforce Knowledge and Competencies, national Caring for Our Children standards, and federal and state guidelines. All completed training hours must be documented in the Arizona Early Childhood Workforce Registry.
All child care providers contracted with DES must complete initial (pre-service) training on Health & Safety within the staff member’s first 90 days of hire. Child care directors must ensure staff is aware of and compliant with the DES Health and Safety Training Requirements for Arizona to maintain compliance with the CCDF (Section 98.41). Child care staff are only required to complete pre-service training once. To confirm which health and safety courses have been completed, child care providers can log into their Arizona Early Childhood Workforce Registry account, select "My Education and Training Report,'' select a date range and click “Go”. Registry users identified as program administrators, or multi-site administrators can view and verify the health and safety compliance status of their staff by clicking on “Compliance Detail Report” under “Program Administration.”
Federal requirements of the CCDF establish the need for states to identify opportunities for ongoing professional development related to health and safety. In order to address the diverse needs of Arizona children and providers, the DES Division of Child Care, in partnership with stakeholders and community organizations, has prioritized specific subject areas that build upon the initial pre-service health and safety training requirements.
The 2021-2026 DES Provider Registration Agreement requires specific annual training or postsecondary education for DES contracted providers in two or more of the health and safety subject areas listed below. ADHS Licensed Group Homes and DES Certified Family Child Care Providers must complete 12 hours of ongoing health and safety training every 12 months (based on hire date), and ADHS Licensed Child Care Center providers must complete 18 or more hours every 12 months (based on hire date):
If you have questions about the health and safety training requirements, please contact:
For more information regarding health and safety training, please view the following documents:
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Pursuant to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other nondiscrimination laws and authorities, ADES does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. Persons that require a reasonable modification based on language or disability should submit a request as early as possible to ensure the State has an opportunity to address the modification. The process for requesting a reasonable modification can be found at Equal Opportunity and Reasonable Modification