Incident investigation·May 14, 2025

On 05/14/25, Licensing Program Analyst (LPA), Kelli Waters, conducted a subsequent unannounced Case Management visit to follow up on Unusual Incident Report (UIR) that was submitted to Licensing by the facility on 04/09/25, regarding an incident that took place on 04/09/25. LPA met with Center Director, Nialea Ortega-Guachena to discuss incident. The Director reported the following; on 04/09/25, during transition time from outside to inside, Director witnessed Staff #1 (S1) place their hand behind Child #1\342\200\231s (C1) ear and immediately saw C1 start to cry and state they had been hurt. During the investigation, LPA Waters interviewed staff, reviewed records, reviewed photographs and gathered documents. Director confirmed, while assisting S1 in Classroom PS 2, they witnessed S1 put their hand on C1\342\200\231s head and left ear area as a means of moving C1. Other interviews with staff revealed that following the incident, C1 had a mark on their left ear and was visibly upset, crying and pointing to S1. S1 was immediately removed from providing care to children and has not been able to return to the facility pending an internal investigation. Based on the information obtained during the visit, LPA Waters determined that C1\342\200\231s personal rights were violated and the facility will be issued a Type A citation under Title 22 California Code of Regulations Personal Rights 101223 (a)(3). An exit interview was conducted, and a copy of this report was provided. A copy of this report must be made available to the public, at the facility site, for 3 years.