Library: Policy

340:110-3-277. Other business, shared facility, and collaaborations

Revised 6-1-22

(a) Other business.  No other business or activity unrelated to child care is conducted at the facility during operation hours, unless shared facility requirements are met.

(b) Shared facility.  The program may share the facility with other businesses provided the requirements in (1) through (3) of this subsection are met.

(1) Limitations.  Other businesses sharing the facility:

(A) must not pose a health or safety risk to children in care;

(B) have their own entrances, excluding schools;

(C) have their own restrooms, excluding schools, or the program follows a Licensing-approved written plan, addressing prevention of unsupervised access to children by individuals from the other businesses; and

(D) do not use licensed space during operating hours, unless alternate play area requirements are met.

(2) Licensed space.  Licensed space at the facility is clearly defined.

(3) Alternate play areas.  When the program's licensed indoor or outdoor play areas are used by another business in the shared facility during operating hours, the program:

(A) has at least one designated alternate play area children may use when licensed play areas are unavailable.  Alternate play areas:

(i) are indoors, outdoors, or both depending on potential circumstances;

(ii) are temporarily used only on an occasional basis when the licensed play areas are unavailable, unless the area is also a supplemental play area, such as a gymnasium;

(iii) are not calculated in licensed capacity, per Oklahoma Administrative Code (OAC) 340:110-3-301(b) and (c); and

(iv) meet requirements when used by children in care; and

(B) follows a Licensing-approved written agreement between the program and the other businesses, addressing terms for licensed space use and alternate play areas, including the:

(i) designated alternate play areas for indoors, outdoors, or both; and

(ii) circumstances, frequency, and duration of use.

Collaborations.  When the program collaborates with a school, the program submits a collaboration agreement as maintained, per OAC 340:110-3-281.2(c), and chooses whether the collaborative classrooms are included in the licensed capacity during the collaborative times.

(1) Included in licensed capacity.  When the collaborative classrooms are included in the licensed capacity:

(A) all the requirements are met in collaborative classrooms; and

(B) the school teachers are required to meet teaching personnel requirements and may count as master teachers when meeting master teacher qualifications and responsibilities.

(2) Not included in licensed capacity.  When the collaborative classrooms are not included in the licensed capacity, the:

(A) licensed capacity is reduced by the room capacity during the collaborative time;

(B) classrooms have a notice posted on or near the doors, at all times, identifying the collaborative classroom schedule;

(C) classrooms, during the collaborative time, are only required to meet facility requirements, per OAC 340:110-3-300.  However, the physical environment requirements, per OAC 340:110-3-300 through 340:110-3-304, apply to licensed spaces, even when children participating in the collaboration are the only children present;

(D) school teachers are not required to meet personnel requirements and do not count as master teachers;

(E) school is responsible for children participating in the collaboration during the collaborative time; and

(F) school teachers and teaching personnel know their assigned children when children participating in the collaboration are in licensed space.