Creative Explorers
Creative Explorers is a licensed child care center in Sunnyvale, CA, licensed for up to 45 children and serving preschool-age children. It has held its California license since 2014. Since February 2021, state licensing staff have inspected it 2 times and investigated 2 complaints, 1 of them substantiated. The state issued 3 citations, 0 of them Type A (the most serious), most often for records & paperwork (2 of 3). 1 citation came in the last 12 months. Measured by weighted citations per inspection, it is tied for #39 of 43 centers in Sunnyvale and better than 24% of licensed centers statewide.
Inspection record
Every state visit
What inspectors cited most
Citations, newest first
Based on LPA and LPM observations and records review, the licensee did not comply with the section cited above in Child # 1, Child # 2 and Child # 3, medications were expired which poses a potential health, safety risk to persons in care.
Facility had four staff (teachers) test positive for COVID between July 26, 2024 and August 7, 2024 & the Facility did not report the epidemic outbreak to the Dept. This presents a potential risk to the health, safety, or personal rights of children in care.
Darcy Hellums, Licensee/Director, agreed to submit a written Plan of Correction indicating what steps the Facility will implement to ensure that the Facility will report all epidemic outbreaks to the local health officer within the required time frames as noted in the Department's reporting requirements. Facility had four staff (teachers) test positive for COVID between July 26, 2024 and August 7, 2024 & the Facility did not report the epidemic outbreak to the local health officer. This presents a potential risk to the health, safety, or personal rights of children in care.
Complaint investigations
Facility did not report an epidemic outbreak to the Department
Facility did not report an epidemic outbreak to the local health officer
About this center
Common questions
Does Creative Explorers take infants?
Not under this license, which covers preschool-age children.
Has Creative Explorers had any serious violations?
No Type A citations since 2021. It has 3 Type B citations, listed above.
Have there been complaints about Creative Explorers?
California investigated 2 complaints since 2021 and substantiated 1. Allegations are shown only for substantiated complaints.
How does Creative Explorers compare with other daycares in Sunnyvale?
It is tied for #39 of 43 centers in Sunnyvale by weighted citations per inspection, and is better than 24% of licensed centers statewide (out of 10,948 California centers with enough inspection history).
When was Creative Explorers last inspected?
Jan 8, 2026. The state issued at least one citation during that visit.
Who runs Creative Explorers?
The licensee is Darcy Hellums, and the administrator listed with the state is Darcy Hellums.
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Citations are quoted from California Department of Social Services inspection and complaint reports. Type A citations are the state’s most serious category (an immediate risk to children’s health, safety or personal rights); Type B citations are a potential risk. A citation is a finding about one rule, not a judgment about a center overall. Complaint allegations appear here only when the state substantiated them.
To read the full state reports, search facility number 434414100 on the California Care Facility Search. Data refreshed Oct 2, 2026.