State Training And Registry System (STARS)

The State Training and Registry System (STARS) offers initial and ongoing child care training linked to the state's minimum licensing requirements. The Washington Associaton for the Education of Young Children (WAEYC) administers the training program that provided training scholarships to 6,418 child care providers in 2007.

STARS is a career development system designed to improve child care through basic and ongoing training for child care providers. The Department of Early Learning (DEL) administers the STARS Registry, a web-based database that tracks provider records.

WAEYC is contracted to oversee other parts of the program, including training and the scholarship program.

The STARS Model Curriculum [24 MB] is a 20-hour basic child care training that is required for all child care center lead teachers, program supervisors and directors. This curriculum will provide a foundation of basic core knowledge about child development, guidance and behavior, health and safety.

Newly licensed child care providers must take this 20-hour basic child care training course within the first six months of licensure. Ten hours of ongoing training are required each year.

How to receive STARS credit for out-of-state and non-STARS-approved trainings

Early childhood education trainings obtained outside Washington or from non-STARS-approved trainers/training organizations may qualify as a STARS-approved training.

To qualify for STARS credit, the training must relate to one or more of the 11 Washington State Core Competency Areas [49K] and be one of the following:

  • Training that was provided by an organization outside early childhood education field
  • A college class that is NOT within a college’s early childhood department
  • Distance learning by an out-of-state or national sponsor
  • Out-of-state training by a nationally recognized sponsor

To receive STARS credit, the provider must complete the “Continuing Education Proposal” form located on the STARS Web site.