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Mercer Island · Licensed center

St. Monica Catholic School Early Learning Center

stmonicasea.org

At a glance

  • Small nature and outdoor center, licensed for 39 children.
  • Hours 8 a.m. to 3:10 p.m., 5 days a week.
  • Tuition Preschool $1,050 a month. See costs

What to know

License: 3 years to 6 years (state).

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

What the state has found

The state cited rules at all 4 of its licensing inspections since December 2023. It lists no valid complaint about this center.

See each inspection

Licensing inspections

  • Nov 19, 20253 citations
    • MedicationSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.
      • “The EpiPen medication for one child was stored without the required prescription label.”

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

    • Safety requirementsShort Term. Fix within 10 business days. Rechecked within 15.
      • “The cords forming a loop were accessible to children in both classrooms. Additionally, a long hose was observed on the ground outside, forming multiple loops.”

        WAC 110-300-0165(2)(c)

    • Supervising childrenShort Term. Fix within 10 business days. Rechecked within 15.
      • “Both exit doors did not have a sound mechanism installed to alert when the door is opened.”

        WAC 110-300-0345(5)(b)

  • Apr 10, 20252 citations
    • Equipment and surfaces in outdoor early learning spaceShort Term. Fix within 10 business days. Rechecked within 15. Serious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.
      • “Five slides were placed too close to each other, not meeting the 6-foot fall zone requirement. The 4-foot fall zone was measured between the climbing wall and black platform on one side. 110-300-0146(1)(a)(b) - The chipped ground cover near the plastic slides measured less than 1 inch in some areas.”

        WAC 110-300-0146(1), WAC 110-300-0146(1)(a)(b)

    • Food allergies and special dietary needsSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.
      • “The individual care plan for one child with an allergy was incomplete and did not include all required information.”

        WAC 110-300-0186(1)

  • Jan 4, 20242 citations
    • MedicationSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.
      • “Child NE has Non-prescription medication that is not labeled with child's name and missing medication authorization form.”

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

    • Training requirementsSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.
      • “Staff, MM, does not have child abuse and neglect training.”

        WAC 110-300-0106(4)

  • Dec 7, 20235 citations
    • Food allergies and special dietary needsSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.
      • “Individual care plan don't have all the necessary information.”

        WAC 110-300-0186(1)

    • MedicationSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.
      • “Child NE has Non-prescription medication that is not labeled with child's name and missing medication authorization form.”

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

    • Emergency preparation and exitingSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.
      • “Baby gate placed in an emergency exit. Sign in table placed in front of the emergency exit door.”

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

    • Training requirementsSerious. Fix within 5 business days. The licensor rechecks within 10.
      • “Staff MM and BS have expired food worker's permits. Staff MM don't have Basic training after 4 months of employment and none of the 5 required health and safety trainings.”

        WAC 110-300-0106(12), WAC 110-300-0106(4)

    • Emergency preparedness planShort Term. Fix within 10 business days. Rechecked within 15.
      • “Monthly fire and quarterly emergency drills not performed as per WAC schedule. Staff not getting emergency preparedness training annually.”

        WAC 110-300-0470(4)(a)

The state cited rules at all 4 of this center's inspections. Most Seattle-area centers inspected 4 times had fewer: 71% of 272.

How all 272 Seattle-area centers inspected 4 times compare

Of the 272 Seattle-area centers the state inspected 4 times, how many of those inspections cited a rule:

  • None7%
  • 1 of 415%
  • 2 of 417%
  • 3 of 433%
  • All 429%This center
Read every record and the state’s reports

State record — Washington DCYF

Last visit
November 19, 2025
On file
4 visits since December 2023 — all of them cited findings
Most serious
Serious — The EpiPen medication for one child was stored without the required prescription label. · November 19, 2025

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

Nov 2025 Licensing visit 3 findings

Licensing visit · November 19, 2025

Safety requirements

WAC 110-300-0165(2)(c) · Short Term

The cords forming a loop were accessible to children in both classrooms. Additionally, a long hose was observed on the ground outside, forming multiple loops.

Medication

WAC 110-300-0215(3)(a)(i) · Serious

The EpiPen medication for one child was stored without the required prescription label.

Supervising children

WAC 110-300-0345(5)(b) · Short Term

Both exit doors did not have a sound mechanism installed to alert when the door is opened.

Report (PDF)

Apr 2025 Licensing visit 2 findings

Licensing visit · April 10, 2025

Equipment and surfaces in outdoor early learning space

WAC 110-300-0146(1) / 110-300-0146(1)(a)(b) · Short Term / Serious

110-300-0146(1) - Five slides were placed too close to each other, not meeting the 6-foot fall zone requirement. The 4-foot fall zone was measured between the climbing wall and black platform on one side. 110-300-0146(1)(a)(b) - The chipped ground cover near the plastic slides measured less than 1 inch in some areas.

Food allergies and special dietary needs

WAC 110-300-0186(1) · Serious

The individual care plan for one child with an allergy was incomplete and did not include all required information.

Report (PDF)

Jan 2024 Licensing visit 2 findings

Licensing visit · January 4, 2024

Medication

WAC 110-300-0215(3)(a)(ii) · Serious

Child NE has Non-prescription medication that is not labeled with child's name and missing medication authorization form.

Training requirements

WAC 110-300-0106(4) · Serious

Staff, MM, does not have child abuse and neglect training.

Report (PDF)

Dec 2023 Licensing visit 5 findings

Licensing visit · December 7, 2023

Food allergies and special dietary needs

WAC 110-300-0186(1) · Serious

Individual care plan don't have all the necessary information.

Medication

WAC 110-300-0215(3)(a)(ii) · Serious

Child NE has Non-prescription medication that is not labeled with child's name and missing medication authorization form.

Emergency preparation and exiting

WAC 110-300-0166(3)(c) · Serious

Baby gate placed in an emergency exit. Sign in table placed in front of the emergency exit door.

Training requirements

WAC 110-300-0106(12) / 110-300-0106(4) · Serious

Staff MM and BS have expired food worker's permits. Staff MM don't have Basic training after 4 months of employment and none of the 5 required health and safety trainings.

Emergency preparedness plan

WAC 110-300-0470(4)(a) · Short Term

Monthly fire and quarterly emergency drills not performed as per WAC schedule. Staff not getting emergency preparedness training annually.

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

$1,050 a month for a preschooler

Preschool$1,050

Seattle-area comparison hidden until they say whether this is a full-time price.

Application fee
$150

A day here

8 a.m. to 3:10 p.m., 5 days a week

Meals, outdoors, sleep and two more
Meals
Families pack a lunch from home or order hot lunch; parents take turns providing a shared snack
Outdoors
Outside about an hour daily for recess in all weather, including a running recess before small-group academics
Sleep
Daily rest time or quiet reading after small group; a nap period is on the Wednesday schedule
Updates for parents
Monthly classroom calendar, phone or email with 24-48 hour response, daily parent mailbox cubbies, October parent-teacher conferences
Schedule
Full-day, with early release (noon dismissal) option

How they teach

Nature and outdoor, play-based and faith-based

“We are a child-directed program that gives our students 3 hours of free play time each day (2 indoor and 1 outdoor)”

Policies

Enrollment
Withdrawal requires written notice; tuition owed ranges from 40% to 100% depending on withdrawal date, and 100% of school fees are due at withdrawal

Details

Phone
(206) 232-5432
Address
4320 87th Ave SE, Mercer Island, 98040
License
PL-14121
Established
1960

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

Run St. Monica Catholic School Early Learning Center? Correct or add anything here, free.
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.

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

  • Meals, Outdoors, Sleep, Updates for parents, Hours, Schedule — Checked September 2026 stmonicasea.org

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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