Palo Alto · Licensed center

Stratford School

What these mean, and where they come from

Large means the biggest quarter of Bay Area’s 439 licensed centers by state-licensed capacity: 76 to 312 children. Small is 8 to 30; medium is 31 to 75.

Shortlist doesn’t have these yet: cost, hours and late pickup, teaching approach, ratios and staff, a typical day, sick and biting policies.

What the state has found

Routine visits: 1 of 6 cited something

Bay Area centers: the state cites something at about 1 in 4 routine visits.

From California CDSS Community Care Licensing’s published reports, last checked September 25, 2026.

Read every record and the state’s reports

State record — California CDSS Community Care Licensing

Last visit
July 22, 2026
On file
6 visits since August 2022 — 5 cited nothing · 5 complaint investigations
Most serious
No finding carrying a severity level in the last 24 months.

California CDSS publishes the full investigation narrative for a complaint, including its disposition, and classifies a citation Type A — an immediate risk to a child — or Type B.

Jun 2026 Complaint Unsubstantiated

Complaint · June 12, 2026

Unsubstantiated

ALLEGATION(S): One (1) allegation: Staff used an unusual form of discipline with a child in care. INVESTIGATION FINDINGS: On 07/22/2026 at 8:35am, Licensing Program Analyst (LPA) Jialing “Julianne” Zhu conducted an UNANNOUNCED COMPLAINT SITE INSPECTION. LPA met with Director H.C. LPA advised director the purpose of the inspection is to deliver the findings to the investigation of the above allegation. LPA toured the facility for a health and safety inspection. Present during the inspection were eight (8) fingerprint-cleared staff and 35 children. Throughout the course of the investigation, LPA obtained relevant documents (e.g., facility roster, personnel report). LPA also conducted interviews with Director M.K.R., Director Harini Chandramouli, teachers, children, and parents. Although the allegation may have happened or is valid, there is not a preponderance of evidence to prove the alleged violation did or did not occur, therefore the allegation is unsubstantiated. A Notice of Site Visit was given and must remain posted for 30 days. Exit interview was conducted, report was reviewed, and Appeal Rights were provided to Director H.C. Unsubstantiated Estimated Days of Completion: 0

Individual employees are shown by initials. The state’s report, linked above, names them in full.

State report

Feb 2026 Complaint Unsubstantiated

Complaint · February 12, 2026

Unsubstantiated

ALLEGATION(S): Two (2) allegations: 1. Staff pinched a child 2. Staff are not adequately supervising children INVESTIGATION FINDINGS: On 03/18/2026 at 9:00am, Licensing Program Analyst (LPA) Jialing “Julianne” Zhu conducted an UNANNOUNCED COMPLAINT SITE INSPECTION. LPA met with Director M.K.R. LPA advised director the nature of the inspection is to continue the investigation into the complaint and to deliver findings. Present during the inspection were 19 fingerprint-cleared staff and 122 children. Throughout the course of the inspection, LPA confirmed with Director that the Facility Roster and Personnel Report from recent inspections are still current. LPA conducted interview with Director. LPA and director toured the facility inside and outside for health and safety inspection. LPA also obtained relevant documents. During today’s inspection, LPA interviewed 11 teachers. Although the above allegations may have happened or are valid, there is not a preponderance of evidence to prove the alleged violations did or did not occur, therefore the allegations are unsubstantiated. A Notice of Site Visit was given and must remain posted for 30 days. Exit interview was conducted, report was reviewed, and Appeal Rights were provided to Director K.R. Unsubstantiated Estimated Days of Completion: 0

Individual employees are shown by initials. The state’s report, linked above, names them in full.

State report

Dec 2025 Licensing visit nothing cited
Dec 2025 Complaint Unsubstantiated

Complaint · December 3, 2025

Unsubstantiated

ALLEGATION(S): 1. Staff do not ensure that children are hydrated INVESTIGATION FINDINGS: On 01/29/2026 at 2:45pm, Licensing Program Analyst (LPA) Jialing “Julianne” Zhu conducted an UNANNOUNCED COMPLAINT SITE INSPECTION. LPA met with Director M.K.R. LPA advised director the nature of the inspection is to deliver the findings of the complaint investigation regarding the above allegations. LPA and director toured the facility inside and outside for health and safety inspection. Present during the inspection were 18 fingerprint-cleared staff and 116 children. Through the course of the investigation, LPA requested and obtained a copy of the Facility Roster and the current Personnel Report. LPA conducted interviews with Director and a random sampling of parents. LPA and director toured the facility inside and outside for health and safety inspection. LPA also made observations in the classrooms during classroom instruction and in the outdoor play area when children were outside. Although the allegation may have happened or is valid, there is not a preponderance of evidence to prove the alleged violation did or did not occur, therefore the allegation is unsubstantiated. A Notice of Site Visit was given and must remain posted for 30 days. Exit interview was conducted, report was reviewed, and Appeal Rights were provided to Director K.R. Unsubstantiated Estimated Days of Completion:

Individual employees are shown by initials. The state’s report, linked above, names them in full.

State report

Aug 2025 Complaint Unsubstantiated

Complaint · August 26, 2025

Unsubstantiated

ALLEGATION(S): One (1) allegation: -Personal Rights: Staff did not ensure that day care child's diapering needs were met while in care. INVESTIGATION FINDINGS: On 09/03/2025 at 2:10PM, Licensing Program Analyst (LPA) Jialing “Julianne” Zhu conducted an UNANNOUNCED COMPLAINT SITE INSPECTION. LPA met with Director M.K.K. aka Kate Roisman. LPA advised Director the nature of the inspection: a complaint regarding three (3) Children’s Personal Rights allegations and one (1) Other/Overall Operations allegation was filed against the facility. Present during the inspection were 15 fingerprint-cleared staff and 102 children. Director confirmed the LIC 500 Personnel Report that Licensing has on file is still accurate. LPA conducted interviews with administrators (Director, Head of School, and Regional Director) and facility staff. LPA toured the classroom and outdoor play area where the alleged incident occurred. Statements provided by the Reporting Party (RP) and teachers are conflicting, so LPA cannot determine if the child’s diapering needs were met or not met. Facility does not have a log of diaper changes available for that day. Although the allegation may have happened or is valid, there is not a preponderance of evidence to prove the alleged violation did or did not occur, therefore the allegation is unsubstantiated. Report was reviewed, exit interview was conducted, and Appeal Rights were provided with Director K.R. A Notice of Site Visit was given and must remain posted for 30 days. Unsubstantiated Estimated Days of Completion:

Individual employees are shown by initials. The state’s report, linked above, names them in full.

State report

Oct 2024 Licensing visit nothing cited
Apr 2024 Licensing visit nothing cited
Dec 2023 Licensing visit 1 finding

Licensing visit · December 14, 2023

CCR 101700.3(b)(1) · Type B

101700.3(b)(1)A result with values of 5.5 ppb or greater shall be deemed an Action Level Exceedance. Sample ID Room B1, B2 and B3 had a Lead Action Level of Exceedance Response of more than 5.5ppb. This poses a potential health, safety and personal rights risk to children in care.

State report

Jul 2023 Licensing visit nothing cited
Aug 2022 Licensing visit nothing cited

How the comparison is built

Routine visits: across Bay Area centers, the state cites something at about 1 in 4 routine visits (2,260 visits).

Details

(650) 493-1151

Address
870 North California Avenue
License
434408056, active

Do you run Stratford School? Shortlist has no tuition, hours or ratios for it, because the state does not publish that. Adding it is free and takes about ten minutes.

Add what is missing
Sources and dates

Where every fact on this page came from, and when Shortlist last checked it against that source. Anything Shortlist could not source is named here rather than left blank.

All checked July 2026.

State record

Every state visit and complaint on file, shown in full and never edited. Open a date to read what the state wrote.

The state’s licensing transparency data reports 6 complaint-related visit(s) to this facility, while 4 complaint investigation report(s) are published on the transparency portal. State complaint counts: substantiated=0, inconclusive=0, unsubstantiated=5, unfounded=CONFIDENTIAL, Type A citations=0, Type B citations=0. The state publishes no further detail for the difference.

Details