Brightwheel users in Kentucky can easily display their availability on Kentucky’s Child Care Search so that parents and families can find open spots for their children.
The information listed in brightwheel automatically feeds to the Child Care Search, so it is important your brightwheel account is accurate and set up correctly to feed this information. This resources walks you through how to set up your brightwheel account to be used with the Child Care Search.
Step 1: Set up your brightwheel profile
Your brightwheel profile will be used to match your program’s information to the information shown in the Child Care Search.
Log in to brightwheel on the web
Click My School in the sidebar menu > Settings
At the top of the page, click School Profile
Enter the following information for your program:
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Step 2: Create and use Programs in brightwheel
Kentucky schools must organize their students into Programs and assign a capacity to each Program to display their availability and waitlists correctly. Programs allow providers to show if they have specific availability in one or more age grouping at their site.
Note: The steps to set up Programs differ depending on if you are a licenced center or certified in-home childcare. Please refer to the correct steps below depending on your program type.
Instructions for licensed centers
Before creating Programs, click here to review what information must be entered.
Before creating Programs, click here to review what information must be entered.
It's important to note that licensed centers will have their openings and waitlist displayed based by 4 age categories:
Infants
Toddlers
Preschool Age
School Age
Here's an example of how programs will be displayed when families search:
When creating programs in brightwheel, we recommend creating one program for each age range listed in the table below for Infant, Toddler, Preschool Age, and School Age:
Note: School Age Max Age can be any number above 5 years based on program preferences.
Lastly, be sure to also fill out the following fields when creating a program. Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are required for matching to the Child Care Search:
Program Name: The public-facing name of the program that would be shown in the profile to admins, and later, to parents in any forms
Description: A public-facing description of the program
*Max Capacity: The maximum number of students that can be enrolled in this program (full + part-time)
*Min / Max Age: The age range for this program
Start / End Date: The dates for which this program runs
Create a Program
Log in on the web
Click Admissions in the sidebar menu > Programs
Select + New Program
Fill in the fields specific to your program and click Save
[Required] Repeat these steps to create one Program for each recommended age range (Infant, Toddler, Preschool Age, School Age)
Next, add students to your Programs
Log in on the web
Click My School > Students in the sidebar menu
Select the desired student to open their profile
Click Edit next to the Enrollment Details section
Add the relevant programs > click Save
Instructions for certified in-home childcare
Certified in-home childcare providers should create one Program that reflects the overall capacity of their site.
Here's an example of how programs will be displayed when families search:
Create a Program
Log in on the web
Click Admissions in the sidebar menu > Programs
Select + New Program
Fill in the fields specific to this program and click Save. Required fields are:
Capacity
Min. Age
Max. Age
Next, add students to your Programs
Log in on the web
Click My School > Students in the sidebar menu
Select the desired student to open their profile
Click Edit next to the Enrollment Details section
Add the relevant programs > click Save
Step 3: Maintain & add students to Waitlists
In addition to the current students who are enrolled in your Programs, you'll want to ensure students are added to your Program waitlists and they are always up to date.
Add students to a Waitlist
Log in to brightwheel on the web
Click Admissions in the sidebar menu > Waitlists
Hit +Add Student
Choose Current or New
Enter the name and select a program from the drop-down
Click Add or Create Student
Remove students from a Waitlist
Log in to brightwheel on the web
Click Admissions in the sidebar menu > Waitlists
Next to the desired student, click Options > Remove
Confirm your choice by clicking Remove in the pop-up
ℹ️ For more information about waitlists, please visit our Waitlists & Priorities Management resource
Step 4: Review your Program assignments
It's important to ensure your list of students assigned to Programs are accurate. You can easily review the number of students that have been assigned to a Program by using the Admissions Dashboard.
Take the steps below confirm the total number of students assigned to each program is correct:
Log in to brightwheel on the web
Click Admissions in the sidebar menu
In the filter labelled 'Program' select the age range that you would like to review
In the filter labelled 'Student Status' select only Active, then click Apply
Note: The total number of students assigned to this Program will be listed as a total at the top of the list, as seen in purple circle below:
Additionally, you can review the list of students in this list. If a child needs to be moved to a different Program, click their name in the list and update from the Student Profile.
Edit/remove Program assignments
If you have a Program that you no longer want to display on the Child Care Search, you'll have two options to stop it from syncing your enrollment data.
Option 1: Add an end date to a Program in the past
Log in to your Manager or Administrator account on the web
Navigate to the Admissions section in brightwheel and click Programs
Click the name of the Program that you’d like to edit
On the End Date, add an End Date before today’s date (or on the date that you’d like the data to stop being sent to the Child Care Search).
Option 2: Delete a Program
Log in to your Manager or Administrator account on the web
Navigate to the Admissions section in brightwheel and click Programs
Click the name of the Program that you’d like to delete
Follow the instructions on the screen to delete the Program.
Note: A program cannot be added back to your brightwheel account if deleted.