Making a Decision

Follow these steps when making a decision on where to send your child for care: 

Screen Preliminary Caregivers

If choosing licensed child care, you should contact Blue Earth County Human Services for public records of the provider. They County's records include any complaints and what was found during investigation, correction orders, and any type of negative action on the license or disqualification on anyone living or working in the household. Check if there were injuries leading to medical attention. 

For child care centers, visit the Minnesota Department of Human Services' Licensing Information Lookup. 

Set up an Interview

After selecting a few providers that meet your criteria, your next step is to set up interviews. During your first phone call with the provider, you will need to tell the person the age of your child, your schedule, and start date. You will want to ask about the following: 

1. References
2. Years of experience. For centers, ask how long they have been in business and how long the teaching staff have been with the program. 
3. The ages and number of children they are currently caring for and how many children they intend to care for. For centers, you'll want to know the staff to child ratio and the maximum number of children that will be in each group. 
4. Completed training. 
5. Fees and hours of operation.
6. Type of programs they offer. 
7. Personal concerns such as pets, smoking, special needs or dietary requirements.