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Seattle · Licensed center

Ballard Community Center

seattle.gov

At a glance

  • Medium Creative Curriculum center, licensed for 66 children.
  • Hours 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., 5 days a week.

From their website, read July 2026:

“Low teacher-child ratio of 1:10”

The state’s rule

Washington sets the most children one adult may care for by age, and the largest group size, in WAC 110-300-0356(5).

Infants (birth through 11 months): one adult for every four.

Toddlers (12 through 29 months): one adult for every seven.

Preschoolers (30 months through 6 years, not in kindergarten): one adult for every ten.

School-age children: one adult for every fifteen.

What to know

License: 3 years to 13 years (state). They serve: Ages 5-12 (school-age care), grades K-5 for the 2026-2027 school year (their website).

The license is the range the state allows. It does not say which ages have openings.

What the state has found

Someone reported a concern to the state, and in December 2023 the state found it valid. The state also cited rules at all 3 of its licensing inspections since November 2023.

See each inspection and complaint

Complaints the state found valid

Licensing inspections

  • Feb 26, 20262 citations
    • MedicationSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.

      • “Licensor found that a child's Individual Care Plan (ICP) required albutirol, but the medication was not at the site.”

        WAC 110-300-0215(3)(a)(i)

    • Outdoor early learning program spaceShort Term. Fix within 10 business days. Rechecked within 15.

      • “Licensor observed the plastic fence in the Pre-K outdoor play area as having gaps greater than three and one-half inches along the bottom.”

        WAC 110-300-0145(8)

  • Mar 17, 20252 citations
    • Outdoor early learning program spaceSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.

      • “The outdoor area has 2 different fences surrounding it. The temporary chainlink fence surrounds the entire play area so that the only exit from the space is one door into the building. There is not a 2nd exit. There are multiple areas where the fence is farther than 3.5 inches from the ground. The 2nd type of fence is plastic mesh fencing attached to movable poles in concrete filled buckets. This fence does not enclose the entire playground area. It is loose and laying on the ground in places.”

        WAC 110-300-0145(6)

    • Emergency preparation and exitingSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.

      • “Fire door is blocked and has items hanging on it.”

        WAC 110-300-0166(3)(c)

  • Nov 7, 20233 citations
    • Storage of hazardous and maintenance suppliesSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.

      • “Janitorial equipment was observed to be accessible to children in the licensed area at the time of inspection.”

        WAC 110-300-0260(5)

    • Preservice requirementsSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.

      • “The center director was unable to provide the teachers' background check statuses at the time of inspection.”

        WAC 110-300-0105(2)

    • Training requirementsSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.

      • “MERIT reflected that 2 staff members' bloodborne pathogen training were missing at the time of inspection. MERIT reflected that 1 staff member's CPR and first-aid training were missing at the time of inspection. MERIT reflected that 2 staff members' food worker cards were missing at the time of inspection.”

        WAC 110-300-0106(12)

The state cited rules at all 3 of this center's inspections. Most Seattle-area centers inspected 3 times had fewer: 67% of 364.

How all 364 Seattle-area centers inspected 3 times compare

Of the 364 Seattle-area centers the state inspected 3 times, how many of those inspections cited a rule:

  • None12%
  • 1 of 321%
  • 2 of 335%
  • All 333%This center
Read every record and the state’s reports

State record — Washington DCYF

Last visit
February 26, 2026
On file
3 visits since November 2023 — all of them cited findings · 1 complaint investigation
Most serious
Serious — Licensor found that a child's Individual Care Plan (ICP) required albutirol, but the medication was not at the site. · February 26, 2026

Washington DCYF publishes each citation in the licensor’s own words, with a risk level.

Feb 2026 Licensing visit 2 findings

Licensing visit · February 26, 2026

Outdoor early learning program space

WAC 110-300-0145(8) · Short Term

Licensor observed the plastic fence in the Pre-K outdoor play area as having gaps greater than three and one-half inches along the bottom.

Medication

WAC 110-300-0215(3)(a)(i) · Serious

Licensor found that a child's Individual Care Plan (ICP) required albutirol, but the medication was not at the site.

Report (PDF)

Mar 2025 Licensing visit 2 findings

Licensing visit · March 17, 2025

Outdoor early learning program space

WAC 110-300-0145(6) · Serious

The outdoor area has 2 different fences surrounding it. The temporary chainlink fence surrounds the entire play area so that the only exit from the space is one door into the building. There is not a 2nd exit. There are multiple areas where the fence is farther than 3.5 inches from the ground. The 2nd type of fence is plastic mesh fencing attached to movable poles in concrete filled buckets. This fence does not enclose the entire playground area. It is loose and laying on the ground in places.

Emergency preparation and exiting

WAC 110-300-0166(3)(c) · Serious

Fire door is blocked and has items hanging on it.

Report (PDF)

Nov 2023 Licensing visit 3 findings

Licensing visit · November 7, 2023

Storage of hazardous and maintenance supplies

WAC 110-300-0260(5) · Serious

Janitorial equipment was observed to be accessible to children in the licensed area at the time of inspection.

Preservice requirements

WAC 110-300-0105(2) · Serious

The center director was unable to provide the teachers' background check statuses at the time of inspection.

Training requirements

WAC 110-300-0106(12) · Serious

MERIT reflected that 2 staff members' bloodborne pathogen training were missing at the time of inspection. MERIT reflected that 1 staff member's CPR and first-aid training were missing at the time of inspection. MERIT reflected that 2 staff members' food worker cards were missing at the time of inspection.

Report (PDF)

Oct 2023 Complaint 3 valid issues

Complaint · Received October 30, 2023 · Resolved December 8, 2023

The state’s report (PDF)

Shortlist replaces people’s names in the state’s text with initials. This is done by rule, not by hand, so it can miss a name or shorten a word that isn’t one. The state’s report, linked on each row, has the original.

What it costs

Application fee
$50

A day here

7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., 5 days a week

Meals, schedule and closed
Meals
Morning and afternoon snack provided; families asked to pack lunch (the brand’s policy for all its schools)
Schedule
Full-day (the brand’s policy for all its schools)
Closed
9/7 Labor Day; 10/9 State In-Service Day; 10/12 Indigenous Peoples' Day; 11/11 Veteran's Day; 11/26-11/27 Thanksgiving Break; 12/21-1/2 Winter Break; 1/18 Martin Luther King Jr. Day; 2/15 President's Day; 2/16-2/19 Mid-Winter Break; 4/12-4/16 Spring Break; 5/31 Memorial Day (the brand’s policy for all its schools)

How they teach

Creative Curriculum

“Seattle Preschool Program (SPP) utilizes Creative Curriculum for Preschool from Teaching Strategies Gold (TSG).”

Policies

When a child is sick
Return when symptoms are improving and fever-free for at least 24 hours without fever-reducing medication (the brand’s policy for all its schools)
Special needs
Additional forms completed for children with special needs or disabilities (the brand’s policy for all its schools)

Details

Phone
(206) 684-4093
Address
6020 28th Ave NW, Seattle, 98107
License
PL-80504
Quality program
Early Achievers Enrolled

We couldn’t find some information that may matter to your decision: openings, Working Connections subsidy, tuition and who owns it. We can ask the program for you and copy you in.

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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.

Children per adult

How they teach

What it costs

State record

From Washington DCYF’s published reports, last checked November 3, 2026.

Washington’s four risk levels, highest first: Immediate, Serious, Short Term, Long Term. Deadlines from DCYF procedure PRO 10.1.21.

Ages

Age groups as Washington defines them: WAC 110-300-0005 (infant to 11 months, toddler 12 to 29 months, preschool 30 months to 6 years, school age 5 to 12 years).

A day here

Policies

Details

Medium means the middle half of Seattle-area’s 855 licensed centers by state-licensed capacity: 41 to 115 children. Small is 6 to 40; large is 116 to 323.

The ages on the license are what the state licenses it to care for, which can be wider than the ages it takes.

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