Wanda Meshack Smith Head Start
A licensed child care center in Dallas, Texas 75237
3950 Gannon Ln, Dallas, Texas 75237. (972) 283-7700.
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The short answer
Record last released by Texas Workforce Commission on Nov 2, 2026.
- 7 deficiencies cited in the last three years Middle in Dallas County: 2
- 3 rated High by Texas, its most serious level (needs attention)
- 16 inspections on record
- Not rated Texas Rising Star rating
Each figure’s source sits beside it, in its section below.
What these words mean5
- Inspection (survey)
- A visit by state inspectors, often unannounced, who check a place against the rules it must meet. For nursing homes and other places Medicare pays, CMS calls these visits surveys: a standard survey of a nursing home comes at least every 15 months, and a complaint survey whenever a complaint calls for one. Source: CMS; 42 CFR 488.308.
- Deficiency, citation, violation
- What inspectors write up when a place didn’t meet a rule: the rule, what they saw, and when. CMS calls it a deficiency; states may say citation or violation. It is the inspectors’ finding, not a court’s, and the place is usually asked for a plan to correct it. Source: CMS, statement of deficiencies (Form CMS-2567); each state’s licensing agency.
- Texas’s risk levels
- Texas gives each child care deficiency a risk level, by how likely it is to harm a child: Low, Medium Low, Medium, Medium High or High. High is its most serious. Source: Texas Health and Human Services Commission, Child Care Regulation.
- Licence status
- Whether the state’s licence lets the place operate now, in the state’s own words: licensed, on probation (allowed to keep operating on conditions, after problems), provisional, pending or expired. Source: Each state’s licensing agency.
- Capacity
- The most people the licence or certification lets the place care for at once: residents, children, beds or apartments, as the state counts them. It isn’t how many are there now. Source: Each state’s licensing agency.
What did inspectors find?
7 deficiencies cited in the last three years
The middle of the 986 child care providers in Dallas County had 2.
16 inspections on record. The latest, on Mar 26, 2026: 1 deficiency cited.
Rated High by Texas: Mark Cleaning Supplies, Toxic Materials; Keep Separate from Food and Inaccessible to Children, at the inspection on Apr 29, 2025
Rated High by Texas: AP Background check results - Must receive notification prior to allowing subject to be present at your operation, at the inspection on Jan 23, 2025
Rated High by Texas: Prohibited Punishments - Grabbing and Pulling, at the report to the state on Jan 22, 2025
Texas HHSC, deficiencies (non-compliance data) and inspections and investigations. Released Oct 31, 2026. Updated daily.
When those deficiencies happened
7 deficiencies in 4 months of the last 36. Last cited Mar 2026. Most serious: High. The last 3 years, to Nov 2, 2026.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Dec | |||||||||||
| 2024 | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| 2025 | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| 2026 | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov |
Hover or focus a month to read it.
Hearth Record drew this from the dates and levels in the source’s own records.
Each deficiency, in Texas’s words
Grouped by visit, newest first, with the risk level Texas gave it, from Low to High.
Texas HHSC, deficiencies (non-compliance data). Released Oct 31, 2026. Updated daily.
Mar 26, 2026: inspection1 deficiency
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Documented Annual Training - Caregivers of Children Under 24 Months Required
“During the monitoring visit, one caregiver did not complete the shaken baby syndrome head trauma, Prevention of SIDS, and Understanding brain childhood development training. Another caregiver did not complete the Prevention of SIDS and Understanding Early Childhood Brain Development trainings.”
Apr 29, 2025: inspection3 deficiencies
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Mark Cleaning Supplies, Toxic Materials; Keep Separate from Food and Inaccessible to Children
“During the monitoring visit, eight classrooms did not have sanitation bottles labeled. The caregivers labeled the bottles during the monitoring visit.”
-
Documented Annual Training - Caregivers of Children Under 24 Months Required
“During the monitoring visit, one caregiver did not complete annual training for shaken baby syndrome, prevention of SIDS, and understanding early childhood brain development.”
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Emergency Preparedness Plan - Evacuation, relocation, and sheltering/lock-down procedures
“The emergency preparedness plan did not describe how Early Head Start will be transported during an evacuation or fire drill.”
Jan 23, 2025: inspection1 deficiency
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AP Background check results - Must receive notification prior to allowing subject to be present at your operation
“During the monitoring visit on January 23, 2025. I completed observations in the classroom of the caregiver teaching the children. There were eleven children in the classroom. I also interviewed the caregiver yesterday at the operation. After reviewing documentation on the 24th, it was determined the caregiver does not have a background check. During the phone call today, the operation stated the individual will leave the premises today.”
Jan 22, 2025: report to the state1 deficiency
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Prohibited Punishments - Grabbing and Pulling
“This standard was evaluated with regard to an investigation, and a violation was found. The caregiver grabbed the victim inappropriately while trying to redirect the victim and caused injury to the victim.”
Jun 20, 2024: inspection1 deficiency
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Annual Fire Inspection - Conducted by Fire Marshal
“The annual fire inspection expired on May 5, 2023.”
5 deficiencies older than three years
Apr 12, 2023: report to the state4 deficiencies
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Responsibilities of Employees and Caregivers -Demonstrate Competency, Good Judgment, Self-control
“A caregiver did not demonstrate self-control with a child in care by yelling and pulling the child’s shirt.”
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Prohibited Punishments - Grabbing and Pulling
“A caregiver pulled a child shirt collar.”
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Prohibited Punishments - Humiliating, Rejecting, Yelling
“A caregiver yelled in a child’s face as a form of inappropriate discipline.”
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Report Situation Placing Children at Risk
“The operation did not report an incident to licensing when a child was inappropriately disciplined while in care.”
Aug 26, 2022: report to the state1 deficiency
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Report Situation Placing Children at Risk
“The operation failed to report an incident that placed a child at risk.”
All 21 visits on record
| Date | Visit | What the record says |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 26, 2026 | Inspection | 1 deficiency cited |
| Aug 28, 2025 | Inspection | No violation found |
| May 7, 2025 | Inspection | No violation found |
| Apr 29, 2025 | Inspection | 3 deficiencies cited |
| Feb 11, 2025 | Inspection | No violation found |
| Feb 4, 2025 | Inspection | No violation found |
| Jan 23, 2025 | Inspection | 1 deficiency cited |
| Jan 22, 2025 | Report to the state | 1 deficiency cited |
| Jun 20, 2024 | Inspection | 1 deficiency cited |
| Oct 9, 2023 | Inspection | No violation found |
| Oct 5, 2023 | Report to the state | No violation found |
| Sep 19, 2023 | Inspection | No violation found |
| Sep 13, 2023 | Report to the state | No violation found |
| Aug 23, 2023 | Inspection | No violation found |
| Jul 21, 2023 | Inspection | No violation found |
| May 2, 2023 | Inspection | No violation found |
| Apr 17, 2023 | Inspection | No violation found |
| Apr 12, 2023 | Report to the state | 4 deficiencies cited |
| Sep 14, 2022 | Inspection | No violation found |
| Aug 30, 2022 | Inspection | No violation found |
| Aug 26, 2022 | Report to the state | 1 deficiency cited |
Is it licensed?
- Licensed Center, permit issued Jun 25, 2004.
- Licensed for ages: Infant, Toddler, Pre-Kindergarten, School.
- Capacity: 221 children.
Texas HHSC, child care operations. Released Oct 31, 2026. Updated daily.
Has Texas acted against it?
- No corrective or adverse action by Texas on record.
- 5 reports to the state on record; Texas doesn’t publish whether they were A complaint allegation the state investigated and found true: the evidence showed it more likely than not happened. Inconclusive means the evidence couldn’t show it either way. Neither inconclusive nor unsubstantiated proves it didn’t happen. Source: California Department of Social Services, complaint findings; each state’s licensing agency..
Texas HHSC, child care operations and inspections and investigations. Released Oct 31, 2026. Updated daily.
Who does the caring?
- Texas doesn’t publish staffing levels for individual providers. State rules set staff-to-child ratios by age.
Who owns it?
- Texas’s open data doesn’t list owners.
How is it rated?
- Not rated in Texas Rising Star.
Texas Workforce Commission, subsidy providers and Texas Rising Star. Released Nov 2, 2026. Updated daily.
How does it compare nearby?
- Among 986 child care providers in Dallas County, the middle value for deficiencies cited in the last three years was 2; this one had 7.
Texas HHSC, deficiencies (non-compliance data). Released Oct 31, 2026. Updated daily.
| Place | Deficiencies, 3 years |
|---|---|
| Kims Palace Home Day Care | 4 |
| A+ Highpointe Academy | 14 |
| Childrens Genesis | 10 |
| The Ivy League Child Development Center & Outreach, Inc. | 20 |
| The Gifted Minds | 7 |
| Kings & Queens to Be Learning Center | 38 |
| Golden Eagle Program | 19 |
| A Missionary Cogic Learning Center | 22 |
| Kce Champions LLC @ Idea A.w. Brown | 11 |
| Vogel Redbird Childcare Center | 3 |
| Mary Rush Children’s College at Iboc | 9 |
| Wanda Meshack Smith Head Start This child care provider | 7 |
What the record doesn’t say
- Texas doesn’t publish whether a complaint was substantiated.
- Texas rates some paperwork slips as High risk, so read what was actually cited.
- Texas doesn’t publish staffing levels or owners for individual providers.
Sources
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Texas Health and Human Services Commission, Child care operations (bc5r-88dy).
Released Oct 31, 2026 and checked Nov 2, 2026. Updated daily. Creative Commons 1.0 Universal (Public Domain Dedication).
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Texas Health and Human Services Commission, Inspections and investigations (m5q4-3y3d).
Released Oct 31, 2026 and checked Nov 2, 2026. Updated daily. Creative Commons 1.0 Universal (Public Domain Dedication).
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Texas Health and Human Services Commission, Deficiencies (non-compliance data) (tqgd-mf4x).
Released Oct 31, 2026 and checked Nov 2, 2026. Updated daily. Creative Commons 1.0 Universal (Public Domain Dedication).
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Texas Workforce Commission, Subsidy providers and Texas Rising Star.
Released Nov 2, 2026 and checked Nov 2, 2026. Updated daily. No licence stated.
If you believe something here is wrong, a correction starts with the agency whose record this copies: Texas HHSC or Texas Workforce Commission. Texas’s own record is on its child care search. If Hearth Record copied something wrongly, it will fix it and log the correction publicly, with its date: how corrections work.
This copy of the record was made on Nov 2, 2026.
From the provider
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Replies
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Paid listing
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