North Dakota Child Care Training Hours: What You Need Each Year - post

Training rules are based on license type and, for many staff, the number of hours worked each week. North Dakota Health and Human Services says providers and staff must complete approved training each licensing year, and ChildCareEd’s North Dakota guide gives a clear summary of those yearly totals.

Here is the basic breakdown ChildCareEd lists for North Dakota:

• Self-declared provider: 3 hours each year

• Family license: 9 hours each year

• Group license supervisor/director: 10 hours each year

• Group license staff:

  • 30 to 40 hours a week: 8 hours

  • 20 to 30 hours a week: 6 hours

  • 10 to 20 hours a week: 4 hours

  • under 10 hours a week: 2 hours

• Center, preschool, or school-age director/supervisor: 13 hours each year

• Center, preschool, or school-age staff:

  • 30 to 40 hours a week: 13 hours

  • 20 to 30 hours a week: 11 hours

  • 10 to 20 hours a week: 9 hours

  • under 10 hours a week: 7 hours

What other required training should programs remember?

Yearly hours are only one part of the picture. North Dakota also has important training rules for new staff and special topics.

North Dakota HHS says:

• New Provider Orientation is required for new owners or operators before approval, and for new directors and supervisors within 30 days of employment.

• Getting Started, the state’s 15-hour basic child care course, must be completed within the first three months of becoming licensed or employed.

• Mandated Reporter Training is required every year for all providers and staff.

• Safe Sleep is required before caring for infants and then every year after that for staff who care for infants.

• Pediatric CPR/AED and Pediatric First Aid must be completed within 90 days of employment and before unsupervised access to children; online CPR can count only if there is also an in-person skills test.

• CPR and First Aid do not count toward annual training hours.

Training cannot be duplicated within a three-year period, except for yearly Safe Sleep and Mandated Reporter training.

Which courses count, and where should staff get them?

The safest way to choose training is to use approved sources. ChildCareEd’s North Dakota portal says ChildCareEd is an approved training sponsor in the North Dakota Early Childhood Workforce Registry, also called Growing Futures. That means approved ChildCareEd courses can count for licensing, employment, and annual training needs in the state.

A helpful ChildCareEd resource page for this topic is:

• North Dakota Approved Training
  https://www.childcareed.com/stateportals-40-nd-north-dakota.html

This page supports the topic because it gathers North Dakota-approved courses, bundles, and the state catalog in one place.

North Dakota’s registry system also matters. ChildCareEd explains that if users add their Growing Futures Registry ID to their ChildCareEd account, attendance data for approved courses is uploaded weekly, and completed training usually appears on the registry account after at least five business days.

Which ChildCareEd courses are directly related to North Dakota yearly training?

Here are three ChildCareEd course options that fit this topic well because they are built around North Dakota annual training needs:

• North Dakota Family Child Care Provider 9-Hour Annual Training Bundle
  https://www.childcareed.com/bundle-28-north-dakota-family-child-care-provider-9-hour-annual-training-bundle-version-1.html

• North Dakota Child Care Staff 13-Hour Annual Training Bundle
  https://www.childcareed.com/bundle-29-north-dakota-child-care-staff-13-hour-annual-training-bundle-version-1.html

• North Dakota Child Care Director 13-Hour Annual Training Bundle
  https://www.childcareed.com/bundle-30-north-dakota-child-care-director-13-hour-annual-training-bundle-version-1.html

How can directors plan training across the year?

A simple plan works best. Instead of waiting until the last month, spread training out over the licensing year.

A useful yearly plan looks like this:

• list each staff member

• write down their license type or role

• note how many hours they work each week

• match that to the required yearly hours

• add due dates for required state trainings

• save every certificate right away

• check the Growing Futures record during the year

It also helps to break the year into smaller parts. For example:

• first quarter: assign one or two courses

• mid-year: review hours and fix gaps

• last quarter: finish remaining hours and check records

How do programs track training correctly?

Good record keeping saves time and lowers stress during licensing visits.

Keep a simple record for each staff member with:

• full name

• job title

• weekly work hours

• Growing Futures ID

• course title

• course date

• training hours earned

• certificate copy

• date the training appeared in the registry

ChildCareEd’s Growing Futures article explains that the registry gives users a training report they can share with a licensing specialist. That makes it easier to show progress and prove compliance.

What common mistakes should programs avoid?

A few mistakes cause trouble again and again:

• waiting until the end of the year

• taking training that is not approved

• forgetting to add the Growing Futures ID

• losing certificates

• repeating the same course too soon

The easiest fix is to build one simple system and use it every time. Save certificates in a digital folder. Check the registry during the year. Use North Dakota-approved pages instead of guessing.

A relevant ChildCareEd article for this topic is:

• How Many Training Hours Do Childcare Staff in North Dakota Need Each Year?
  https://www.childcareed.com/a/how-many-training-hours-do-childcare-staff-in-north-dakota-need-each-year.html