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Seattle · Licensed center

St Catherine of Siena Preschool

stcatherineschool.net

At a glance

  • Small play-based center, licensed for 39 children.
  • Hours 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., 5 days a week, school year.

From their website, read September 2026:

“All classrooms maintain a maximum staff: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: 2 years 5 months to 5 years 6 months (state). They serve: ages 2.5 through 5 (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 February 2024 the state found it valid. The state also cited rules at all 3 of its licensing inspections since October 2023.

See each inspection and complaint

Complaints the state found valid

Of the 219 Seattle-area centers licensed for 6 to 40 children, 195 (89%) have no valid complaint in the last three years; 24 (11%) have one or more, as this center does.

How all 219 similar-size centers compare

Of the 219 Seattle-area centers licensed for 6 to 40 children, how many valid complaints each had in the last three years:

  • None89%
  • One or more11%This center

Licensing inspections

  • Feb 9, 20261 citation
    • MedicationSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.

      • “Prescription medications do not have required label on them containing needed information. Prescriptions medications are kept with complete child medication authorization forms.”

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

  • Oct 21, 20244 citations
    • Preservice requirementsSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.

      • “Assistant director missing the licensing orientation; no verification on site or updated in MERIT. This was explained on site with director K.C.”

        WAC 110-300-0105(2)

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

      • “Staff A.H. showing PBC expired on 5/12/2022. Director and staff reported an issue with this process and will follow up.”

        WAC 110-300-0105(2)

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

      • “, Staff will need an updated BBP training. This was explained on site with director K.C.”

        WAC 110-300-0106(12)

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

      • “M.R. and T.K. has an expired food worker card. This was explained on site with director K.C.”

        WAC 110-300-0106(12)

  • Oct 30, 20231 citation
    • Food allergies and special dietary needsSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.

      • “During annual inspection on site, licensor A.S. observed not individual care plan for children with epi pens and other medications. Violation observed with director.”

        WAC 110-300-0186(1)

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 9, 2026
On file
3 visits since October 2023 — all of them cited findings · 1 complaint investigation
Most serious
Serious — Prescription medications do not have required label on them containing needed information. Prescriptions medications are kept with complete child medication authorization forms. · February 9, 2026

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

Feb 2026 Licensing visit 1 finding

Licensing visit · February 9, 2026

Medication

WAC 110-300-0215(3)(a)(i) · Serious

Prescription medications do not have required label on them containing needed information. Prescriptions medications are kept with complete child medication authorization forms.

Report (PDF)

Oct 2024 Licensing visit 4 findings

Licensing visit · October 21, 2024

Preservice requirements

WAC 110-300-0105(2) · Serious

Assistant director missing the licensing orientation; no verification on site or updated in MERIT. This was explained on site with director K.C.

Preservice requirements

WAC 110-300-0105(2) · Serious

Staff A.H. showing PBC expired on 5/12/2022. Director and staff reported an issue with this process and will follow up.

Training requirements

WAC 110-300-0106(12) · Serious

0106(10), Staff will need an updated BBP training. This was explained on site with director K.C.

Training requirements

WAC 110-300-0106(12) · Serious

M.R. and T.K. has an expired food worker card. This was explained on site with director K.C.

Report (PDF)

Nov 2023 Complaint 4 valid issues

Complaint · Received November 24, 2023 · Resolved February 14, 2024

The state’s report (PDF)

Oct 2023 Licensing visit 1 finding

Licensing visit · October 30, 2023

Food allergies and special dietary needs

WAC 110-300-0186(1) · Serious

During annual inspection on site, licensor A.S. observed not individual care plan for children with epi pens and other medications. Violation observed with director.

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
$100

A day here

7 a.m. to 6 p.m., 5 days a week, school year

Meals, sleep, updates for parents and two more
Meals
Optional hot lunch and pizza lunch available for purchase; milk sold by the year; otherwise families provide a sack lunch
Sleep
Full-day children get a daily rest period on Rollee Pollees and cots (laundered weekly by families); quiet activities for children who do not need rest
Updates for parents
Weekly family newsletter by email plus the ALMA online parent portal for grades and updates
Schedule
Full-day, half-day
Closed
Extended Care closed half-days before Christmas break, Thanksgiving break, Easter break, Memorial Day weekend, and the last day of school

How they teach

Play-based and faith-based

“Your child will have ample time to experiment and explore with developmentally appropriate hands-on materials in a play-based environment.”

Policies

When a child is sick
Fever above 99° oral: return after a minimum of 24 hours below 99° without fever-reducing medication; vomiting and diarrhea: symptom-free 24 hours or physician clearance; child sent home for illness cannot return until symptom-free 24 hours
Biting
Biting results in in-school suspension; severe cases require the child be sent home
Special needs
Structured 3-phase process (identification, assessment, planning/placement) to serve students with learning differences

Details

Phone
(206) 525-0581
Address
8524 8th Ave NE, Seattle, 98115
License
PL-79832
Established
1941

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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

Small means the smallest quarter of Seattle-area’s 855 licensed centers by state-licensed capacity: 6 to 40 children. Medium is 41 to 115; 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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