What Are the Requirements to Be a Daycare Teacher in Nevada?

Nevada state child care licensing is run by Child Care Licensing (CCL) in the Division of Social Services (formerly DWSS, the Division of Welfare and Supportive Services) of the Nevada Department of Human Services, under NRS and NAC chapter 432A.

One Nevada quirk matters when you apply: a county or city that has its own child care licensing agency and ordinance licenses facilities there instead of the state Division, and its standards must be no less restrictive than the state's.

Which jurisdictions license locally today was not confirmed in our research, so check which agency licenses the center you are applying to.

In the state rule text we read, there is no lead-teacher title for centers — the rulebook speaks of caregivers, and the caregiver rule is the standard a classroom caregiver must meet.

A caregiver must be at least 16 years old, become an active member of The Nevada Registry within 120 days of starting work, and keep that membership active.

The rule text we read sets no diploma, CDA or college-credit requirement for caregivers, and local jurisdictions may set additional requirements.

Individual centers may still ask for more in the job posting, so read each one.

The state rules we read set no separate assistant-teacher tier, so an assistant meets the same caregiver standard: at least 16 years old, Registry membership within 120 days, and the pre-service training lists.

Nevada does cap how many caregivers can be minors.

No more than 50 percent of the caregivers in a child care center may be under 18, and an under-18 caregiver must have completed, or be enrolled in, an approved child development course and work under the supervision of an employee who is at least 18.

Nevada staggers new-hire training across three deadlines.

Within the first 2 weeks of employment, new staff receive a written and oral orientation covering regulations, policies, emergency procedures, hand-washing, diapering, food handling, blood-borne pathogens and medication.

Within 90 days of hire, staff complete 1 hour on preventing shaken baby syndrome and abusive head trauma, 2 or more hours each on medication administration including allergies, building safety and emergency preparedness, and 2 or more hours on recognizing and reporting child abuse and neglect, which is repeated every 5 years.

Within 120 days, the list adds CPR training, 3 or more hours of child development or guidance, and 2 or more hours each of first aid, illness recognition and blood-borne pathogens, SIDS, and lifelong wellness.

Every Nevada child care employee and director must complete 24 hours of training each year.

At least 12 of those hours must be specific to the age group served, and 2 must cover lifelong wellness, obesity, nutrition or physical activity; no more than 3 of the hours may be CPR.

Nevada licensing also allows annual training hours to be met through an early childhood course at a community college or university, as well as informal training.

Every Nevada child care employee and director must obtain certification in pediatric CPR — infant CPR where the facility serves infants — within 120 days of starting, and keep it current.

First aid sits on the 120-day pre-service list at 2 or more hours.

On staff health checks such as a pre-employment physical or tuberculosis test, the rule sections we read cover training rather than medical exams, and our research did not confirm a health-screening requirement; ask Child Care Licensing, or your county or city agency where one licenses, what documentation they require.

Nevada child care employees, adult residents and adult volunteers must be fingerprinted and submit to a background investigation within 24 hours of the date of hiring or of presence in the facility, and every 5 years after that.

Ask the center director what to submit and when.

The Nevada Registry is the organization that operates the statewide system of career development and recognition for the early childhood workforce, and Nevada licensing turns it into a job requirement: caregivers must become active members within 120 days of starting work and keep the membership active.

The Registry approves and tracks informal training and publishes a training calendar of Registry-approved courses — in-person, virtual and online — that meets initial training requirements.

It also places members on a Career Ladder based on college credits or degrees earned, reassessed at each annual renewal, and administrators may use those levels to recruit staff and justify wage increases.