State in process of revoking license of Minneapolis child care center after FBI raid

A Minneapolis child care center is getting its license revoked after it was discovered the owner had a previous license taken away at its center in St. Cloud, Minn. The Salama Child Care Center, at 1411 Nicollet Avenue, was raided by the FBI and the Minneapolis Department of Human Services on Wednesday, May 13.

In the process of executing a search warrant, state officials discovered the Minneapolis and St. Cloud centers had the same license holder. Under state law, the same license holder and/or controlling individual may not hold any DHS license for 5 years following the revocation. The Minneapolis center has until Friday, May 29 to appeal the DHS decision.

The Salama Child Care Center in St. Cloud had its license revoked on June 17, 2014. DHS says the center was closed due to serious and chronic violations. One of those instances included the time a 4-year old left the center unattended. Staff did not realize the child was missing for more than an hour.

DOCUMENT: DHS notice of license revocation

The Minneapolis location has had a history of violations from the state dating back to 2011. They range from not properly documenting training, not meeting nutritional guidelines and children not being properly supervised.

In the order of license revocation to the Minneapolis location, it is noted that the DHS Office of Inspector General is actively investigating possible overpayments of public funds to the license holder.

The order also cites a list of violations, several are repeat licensing violations. Some include:

Based on the center's attendance records, the center exceeded the maximum license capacity on multiple dates. (Capacity is 60 total children)
Failure to supervise children at all times
Failure to comply with staff to child ratios
Failure to comply with staff distribution requirements
Failure to comply with staff training in required areas
Failure to comply with indoor space requirements
Failure to keep hazards inaccessible to children
Center did not supply the quantity and type of equipment specified for the age categories of children served

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