A community-development nonprofit is helping to counter the sharp decline in child care providers in Maine by offering the training needed to start and maintain a child care business.
The Childcare Business Lab, launched by Coastal Enterprises, is a free, six-month program of in-person and online workshops to help people secure the startup funds required to open a home-based or commercial child care location.
Cynthia Murphy, senior program director for workforce solutions at Coastal Enterprises, said participants also learn how to recruit and hire employees and navigate the licensing process.
"And then we also pair everyone up with an individual business adviser who helps to tailor what they learn in the workshops to meet the needs of each individual community," Murphy outlined.
Murphy pointed out it includes a program in Lewiston for English-language learners interested in running centers incorporating their own culture's music or food. She noted some 40 future providers are currently enrolled in the Child Care Business Lab with the hope of opening their own businesses in time for next school year.
Gov. Janet Mills allocated $10 million through the Maine Jobs and Recovery Plan to help child care businesses launch or expand, and hopefully eliminate so-called "child care deserts" throughout the state.
Murphy pointed out many parents and grandparents are using the Child Care Business Lab to prevent others from experiencing the same struggles they have in finding affordable, quality care.
"We're finding people who have an interest and a passion in early childhood education who have long commutes to work and are interested in creating a good job for themselves," Murphy observed.
Murphy added one recent graduate opened a facility for shift workers at the Poland Springs bottling factory after struggling to find child care to match her own work schedule. A Coastal Enterprises survey found 20% of parents sending their children to centers started through the Child Care Business Lab were able to start a full-time job.
Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.
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New York families are still dealing with child care barriers despite improvements.
A new report found more than half the state is a child care desert with parents having to leave the workforce because they cannot access it.
While the Child Care Assistance Program has improved, it does not make up for other shortcomings.
Lara Kyriakou, associate director of early childhood policy and advocacy for Ed Trust-New York and the report's co-author, said one of the biggest barriers is lacking knowledge about available child care programs.
"Many families reported difficulties just learning about available programs including navigating application processes," Kyriakou observed. "A lot of families spoke about learning of programs from other parents or other key trusted relationships that they had in the community."
Other issues include restrictions due to a person's immigration status, or benefits cliffs where a family earns a little too much to qualify for programs. Some recommendations to fix the situation include further expanding New York's child tax credit and working families tax credit and investing in the child care workforce to hire new and retain existing workers.
Reports showed the state's child care industry workforce fell 32% from 2019 to 2023.
Enacting such changes could help New York State reach its goal of cutting child poverty in half by 2032. The report calls for a $1.2 billion sustaining investment in the child care industry.
Jenn O'Connor, director of partnerships and early childhood policy for Ed Trust-New York, said making it a sustaining investment would give child care workers a salary matching the cost of living.
"Child care providers who are predominantly women and predominantly women of color make less than your pizza delivery guy half the time," O'Connor emphasized. "They're providing an essential service and they're educating our youngest children."
The newly announced Invest in Our New York Act could pay for this. The package of bills would have corporations and New York's ultra-wealthy residents pay their fair share of taxes and the money would then be spent on child care, education and affordable housing.
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Pandemic-era federal aid for early childhood educators expired last month and Wyoming lawmakers this year failed to pass a bill which could have helped. Some hope offering a higher degree could be an answer.
The 2024 Early Childhood Workforce Index shows the median wage for Wyoming early childhood educators in 2022 was $10.60 per hour, 28% lower than what is considered a living wage of $14.70.
Nikki Baldwin, director of the Wyoming Early Childhood Outreach Network at the University of Wyoming, said child care programs close regularly in the state.
"We hear about them almost weekly and it can be really devastating for Wyoming families," Baldwin observed.
The study's recommendations include increasing public funding for the early childhood education sector. The U.S. currently invests just $4,000 per child, per year, compared with $14,000 invested in other wealthy nations.
Baldwin pointed out the University of Wyoming is currently developing a bachelor's degree in early childhood education. In Wyoming, the owners and directors need a high school diploma. The new program will be offered in-person or fully remote, which could help more rural and isolated educators.
"They're so motivated to continue to learn," Baldwin emphasized. "Even though compensation isn't tied to their continued learning, they're still saying yes and trying to do more and trying to learn more and improve every day."
Baldwin hopes the new program will roll out in 2026.
Anna Powell, senior research and policy associate for the Berkeley Center for the Study of Childcare Employment at the University of California-Berkeley, noted pandemic-era federal aid through American Rescue Plan grants expired in September.
"That means that it's time for states and localities to really step up and think about how they're going to address the need to sustain early care and education workers going forward," Powell contended.
The Wyoming Joint Education Committee sponsored a bill last spring which would have allowed qualified families struggling with poverty to put state funds toward limited early education childhood expenses. Instead, the Wyoming Education Savings Accounts Act passed, which did not include child care or preschool.
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Idaho has suspended enrollment in a child-care benefits program, and families are expected to feel the squeeze.
The Department of Health and Welfare has temporarily paused enrollment in the Idaho Child Care Program, which provides assistance to low-income families. The income requirement for families to qualify is expected to drop from 175% of the federal poverty level to 130% when the pause is lifted.
Lori Fascilla, executive director of Giraffe Laugh Early Learning Centers, which serve people of all income levels with help from the Idaho Child Care Program, said it could be in jeopardy now.
"We're talking at least 30 kids that now we're looking at our situation going, 'How are we going to support these families until the pause is over, and will they even qualify once it is?'" Fascilla explained.
Families in a few situations will still be able to enroll in the Idaho Child Care Program, including those experiencing homelessness, caring for a foster child or caring for a child with a disability. The Department of Health and Welfare said it paused enrollment because the program is projected to go over its budget.
Fascilla noted child care is a struggle across the state, with hundreds of centers closing since the start of the pandemic.
"Part of that is there are zero state investments in children five and under in Idaho," Fascilla contended. "We're one of only three states that is still holding out on investing in early childhood or preschool programs, or anything like that."
Fascilla argued child care is crucial for ensuring parents can work and children are ready for school when they start kindergarten.
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