Updated May 2024
Thanks for helping!
Purpose: Check preschools and daycares on BPN's website to make sure they are still licensed and still have the same capacity.
Overview: You'll be working from a google sheet that contains a list of 600+ daycares & preschools. Each one has a link to its profile page on BPN with a license number that links to their official record in the ca.gov database. If they are no longer licensed, or there are any anomalies, you'll be making a note on the google sheet and highlighting it for me to fix later.
Please send me an email whenever you accumulate 5 or more highlighted facilities (where you made a Note) so I can fix them asap.
- To highlight a line: Select the entire line by clicking the row number in column 1. Choose a color to use for your highlights (aka "fill color" -- the spilling bucket icon).
- Work on it when you have time. You can do one or you can do 100 all at once - your choice!
- If you want to know more about what's on the childcare license, see Reading the Online License Record at DSS.
For each facility:
1. Choose a daycare/preschool to check. Start at the top or skip around. It's possible someone else might be working on the sheet at the same time. If so, carve out a niche for yourself further down on the sheet.
2. Initial and date the line you're checking.
3. View their profile page. Click the link in "URL" to view their profile page on the BPN website.
4. Check their license status. On their profile page, click the license number next to "DSS Facility License #". This takes you to their ca.gov record. Look at "Status" in the upper right-hand corner.
- Status: "Licensed" Go on to #5 below.
- If Status is anything other than the one word "Licensed" make a note and highlight the line and then go on to #5.
- "No facilities match the search criteria ..." [example here] This means they have closed or never got licensed. Type "no license found" under Notes and highlight the line and go on to the next daycare.
- Yes, same capacity: Go on to the next daycare.
- No: Check their profile page to see if they have more than one license -- look under "Editor's Notes". It's not unusual for a preschool to have a license for babies as well as one for preschool kids, and sometimes even a third license for school-aged kids.
- If they have only one license as far as you can tell, write in the Notes "Capacity has increased (or decreased) to ___" . Highlight the line and go on to the next daycare.
- If they have more than one license, look those up too (there should be a link on their profile page under Editor Notes) and confirm the total. If the total agrees with what we have, go on to the next daycare. Otherwise, note the capacity difference, Highlight the line and go on to the next daycare..