Texas Rising Star Program Assessments
Texas Rising Star requires several types of on-site visits to assess and monitor the ongoing quality of Texas Rising Star child care and early learning programs.
All assessments, except the annual monitoring visit and SIA assessment, must be formally requested by the child care and early learning program through the online Texas Rising Star Certification Request Form (also found on the Tools and resources page).
Prior to all assessments, Texas Rising Star staff will screen each child care and early learning program for eligibility and compliance. You can find the screening forms for each facility types on the Tools and resources page.
Types of Assessments
This is a full assessment of all Texas Rising Star measures that is requested by:
- Entry Level-designated programs seeking initial certification;
- programs that are returning to CCS as a certified program; and
- programs that are in suspension status seeking certification
A two-week scheduling window is provided to programs. Certification achieved at this assessment begins the three-year certification cycle.
An unannounced, annual monitoring visit (annual monitoring) occurs before the yearly anniversary date of the Texas Rising Star certification start date. Programs will receive two annual monitoring visits during the duration of their three-year certification period. The program will have all applicable measures scored and have at least 50% of their classrooms observed.
A two-week scheduling window is not provided to programs. A program’s certification status remains unchanged regardless of this visit. However, the visit may result in a Service Improvement Agreement.
Texas Rising Star certification lasts three years. The Recertification Assessment is a full assessment and occurs no later than three years to the month of the previous full-site assessment for any Texas Rising Star–certified program.
A two-week scheduling window is provided to programs. A program’s star level before the Recertification Assessment does not affect the assessment result. Based on a Recertification Assessment, programs may lose, gain, or maintain a star level. Certification achieved at this assessment restarts the three-year certification cycle.
Texas Rising Star Two- and Three-Star programs may request a Star-Level Evaluation to seek a higher star-level. Star-Level Evaluations are requested upon mutual agreement between the Texas Rising Star program and the appropriate Board. Programs can request this assessment at any time during the program’s three-year certification cycle. Star-Level Evaluations are full assessments.
A two-week scheduling window is provided to programs. Certification achieved at this assessment restarts the three-year certification cycle, regardless of the newly assessed star level.
A Category Reassessment is an assessment of up to two of the program’s lowest scoring categories. Programs can only request a Category Reassessment after a full assessment (Initial, Recertification, or Star-Level Evaluation), has been conducted regardless of certification status. Programs must submit this request within 30 days from the Texas Rising Star certification effective date. Category Reassessments will be completed within 60 days of the request. Programs can only request one Category Reassessment after each full assessment.
If a program requesting a Category Reassessment has experienced a change of director or staff within the three months, then Category 1—Director and Staff Qualifications must also be reassessed.
A two-week scheduling window is provided to programs. Certification achieved at this assessment does not restart the three-year certification cycle.
Note: A Texas Rising Star-certified program that is on Texas Rising Star probation or a star-level drop due to licensing violations is not eligible for a Category Reassessment.
There are varying types of changes a certified child care and learning program may go. These changes may affect the type of care that is being provided, requiring action by the Board and/or assessor, to include reassessment. These changes include expanding or splitting the program to a “sister-site”, moving locations, ownership changes, and facility-type changes. Any changes made must occur within the same city, county, or ZIP code of the certified program.
You can find more information about each of these types of changes can be found in the Guidelines.
Types of facility change:
- Facility Expansion: operating at an existing location with the existing classrooms and age groups served, while the owner/program opens a new facility within the same city, ZIP code, or county. The new facility adds classrooms or age groups served.
- Facility Split: operating at an existing location while the owner/program opens a new facility within the same city, ZIP code, or county. Some of the staff and children move to the new facility.
- Facility Move: closing and relocating to a new location within the same city, ZIP code, or county. The director or staff remain, but the new facility may serve more children and/or age groups.
- Facility-type Change: changing facility type (for example, from a registered child care home to a licensed child care home). The director or staff may change, and the program may serve more children and/or age groups.
- Facility Ownership Change: changing owners. The program may change staff or current policies and procedures.
When a facility incurs one of the noted facility changes above, it must initiate a new CCR facility application and obtain a new license number from CCR. The facility may or may not carry its licensing history with it to the new license number.
A Texas Rising Star-certified program that experiences any one of these changes does not need to have 12 months of CCR history in this situation (regardless of permit issued, initial or full/permanent) to retain its star level during the move or change. The program will undergo a Texas Rising Star reassessment per the Facility Change Rubric (found within the Texas Rising Star Guidelines) within the initial three-month period from either the date the CCR issues the new licensing permit associated with the change or the date the change occurred if CCR does not issue a new permit.
A two-week scheduling window is provided to programs.
Certification achieved at this assessment restarts the three-year certification cycle. Exception: Facility moves are a partial assessment and will not restart the certification cycle.
Programs can request a reconsideration after any assessment, including annual monitoring visits. Programs request a reconsideration when they feel the assessor inaccurately scored or unfairly conducted their assessment. Programs must make this request within 10 business days of receiving the assessment results.
The reconsideration request may include a reassessment of a category, a specific measure, or the entire assessment as requested by the program.
The Centralized Assessment Entity (CAE) will review the request to determine if the CAE will uphold or rescore the assessment results.
Certification achieved at this assessment restarts the three-year certification cycle. Exception: Facility moves are a partial assessment and will not restart the certification cycle.