Beginning September 30, 2023, states could be forced to deal with the loss of billions of dollars in federal funding, which will lead to a mass disruption in the child care landscape.
The $24 billion that went to child cares was part of a pandemic program, and has been the largest investment in child care in history. Without that funding, 3.2 million children could lose spots in child cares and more than 70,000 centers could close, according to a Century Foundation report.
In this podcast, Cindy Lehnhoff, the director of the National Child Care Association, explains what's happening and what measures are being taken to save at least some of the funding. She also discusses the consequences of losing the funding — on centers, staffing, families and the economy — and what some states are doing.
Learn more about the NCCA and its work.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Welcome to the Childcare Business Podcast,
brought to you by ProCareSolutions. This podcast is all
about giving childcare ,preschool, daycare, after
school , and other earlyeducation professionals. A fun
and upbeat way to learn aboutstrategies and inspiration you
can use to thrive. You'll hearfrom a variety of childcare
(00:29):
thought leaders, includingeducators, owners, and industry
experts on ways to innovate, tomeet the needs of the children
you serve. From practical tipsfor managing operations to
uplifting stories oftransformation and triumph,
this podcast will be chock fullof insights you can use to
fully realize the potential ofyour childcare business. Let's
(00:50):
jump in.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Hello everyone, and welcome to the Childcare
Business Podcast. My name isLeah Woodbury, and I'm happy to
have you join us today. I'mfilling in for our normal host,
Ryan Gwaltney . Um, and we arein luck because we have a
terrific guest today who'sgonna talk to us about a topic
that I'm sure you've all beenthinking about a great deal.
(01:20):
Um, Cindy Layoff, she's thedirector of the National
Childcare Association, is withus. Um, so what we're gonna
talk about is this cliff infunding that is projected to
happen on September 30th. Um,and I should note that we are
recording this podcast onSeptember 12th. Um, and that
states are gonna face a hugedrop in federal funds for
(01:42):
childcare businesses. AndCindy's gonna share what's
happening with that, what E c eproviders should be doing at
this moment, any tips she have. So, welcome, Cindy. We really
appreciate your time talkingabout this important topic.
Speaker 3 (01:57):
Well, thank you Leah, for inviting me. Uh, I,
my mission personally, alongwith the mission of N C C A,
involves making sure that theearly childhood community knows
what is happening and what, ifanything, they might be able to
do to affect it.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Oh, perfect. So before we start talking about,
about the funding and thepossible end of funding, could
you tell us a little bit aboutyour organization and what you
do?
Speaker 3 (02:27):
Yes. Our mission is to promote the success of
licensed providers in qualitycare and education. This
includes the provision ofprofessional development mm-hmm
. advocacy andengagement. We offer virtual
training in the form of amonthly webinar. We have been
very fortunate to have somewell-known presenters with
(02:50):
different areas of expertise inthe early care and education
space for those professionaldevelopment webinars. Our
members are able to count those, uh, as training that is
required by the states on anannual basis. We provide them
for free, and we provide themwith certi certificates that
(03:12):
they've attended. Um, we alsohave business affiliates , uh,
like Leston Education andKaplan, and , um, many more
learning beyond paper. I Ican't even mention 'em all ,
uh, that offer services , um,to early , uh, care and
education providers at adiscounted price. And lastly,
(03:36):
but most importantly, we keepour members very well informed
of the latest activity as itpertains to federal legislation
that can either positively ornegatively affect their ability
to serve the families in theircommunity. Uh, we also partner
with other advocacy groups in ,uh, DC such as Childcare Aware
(04:01):
of America, the Early Care andEducation Consortium, the
National Women's Law CenterFamily Focus , just to name a
few , uh, to ensure that we arespeaking in a unified voice.
Uh, we have found that that'svery important , uh, so that
the numbers of people speakingon this are not, you know,
(04:23):
going different directions withwhat kind of support is needed.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
Great. And that ties directly into what we're, what
we're gonna talk about rightnow , um, that this clock is
set to run out on $24 billionin government aid. Is that the
correct number, Cindy? I'veseen a few tossed around, but
it's, it's a staggered. That
Speaker 3 (04:44):
Is , that is the correct number for the
childcare stabilization fundsthat were provided through the
ARPA Act in 2021, in responseto the pandemic and the crisis
that it put childcare in.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
So, can you talk a little bit about those ARPA
funds and what they weredesigned to do and, and what
they continue to do forchildcares around the country?
Speaker 3 (05:09):
Yes. And you know, let me just start by saying,
according to the Department ofHealth and Human Services,
which is the lead agency, youknow, over childcare , um, at
the federal level, Uhhuh , this money was
allocated to approximately220,000 childcare programs,
including centers in familychildcare homes nationwide.
(05:33):
Okay . It benefitedapproximately 9.6 million
children that are in care,which is a phenomenal, you
know, number. Um, it could beused to support operating costs
such as rent , uh, the suppliesthat were needed to combat the
Covid pandemic itself fromspreading in the centers , uh,
(05:56):
utilities and additionalcleaning processes and
supplies, again to reduce covidoutbreaks. But most
importantly, it could be usedto help recruit, hire, and
retain qualified workforce.
Unfortunately, at the onset ofCovid , uh, the industry lost
(06:18):
about one third of itschildcare workforce. And the
reason for this, you know, was, uh, not just any one thing,
you know, some centers closed,and so their staff were
completely laid off. Somecenters could only afford to
have , uh, part of their staff, uh, come to work and be paid
(06:39):
because of the socialdistancing required in
childcare settings. It reducedthe number of children that
could be in care. There wasalso those childcare providers
that , um, may have hadautoimmune diseases that just
felt like it wasn't safe.
Mm-hmm. . We alsohad childcare providers that
had to stay home and take careof their own children that were
(07:00):
in , um, elementary schoolsthat had been shut down. And
even now, we have neverregained the number of
childcare professionals andeducators that we lost. It is
estimated that we still lackabout 40,000 , uh, people in
the industry , uh, that werehere pre pandemic. And, and it
(07:23):
also should be noted, Liam ,that pre pandemic, we were
already struggling to , uh,attract and retain high quality
individuals. And unfortunately, uh, the teacher shortage, the
public school teacher shortagemm-hmm . has been
(07:44):
contributing to that for a verylong time because, oh ,
approximately 20 years ago ,uh, we were pushed to put
people in credentialing anddegreed programs that states
sometimes, you know, help fundand ultimately raise the bar on
the people working in theindustry. But because of the
(08:07):
shortages in public schools,our credentialed and degree
teachers have turned to the ,uh, the public schools to earn
more money mm-hmm . To have ,uh, to work less hours. And
because they don't work yearround and to have better
benefits, and you can't blamethem. Mm-hmm . You absolutely
cannot blame them. So, and theother reason is wages in the
(08:31):
industry have just not kept upwith wages in even less skilled
jobs because you are a skilledworker when you work in
childcare, whether you're onthe care or the education side,
or both. Absolutely. 'cause youhave to have certain entry
level training to work in achildcare center, and then you
(08:53):
have to continue withprofessional develop hours
annually. And unfortunately, Icould go to my local childcare
center with the experience I'vehad mm-hmm . over
40 years, and probably not earnmore than $15 an hour in a
(09:14):
childcare setting, but I can goto , uh, McDonald's in my area
and earn $17 an hour. And sothat's where we are today.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
Okay. And then, so the, the ARPA funding, so that
was largely for hiring or , ordo you know, like what, what
roughly the percentage it wasabout how centers, I suppose
it's probably all over theplace, what they used it for,
right. Depending on their needs,
Speaker 3 (09:39):
It is all over . It is all over the place. Yeah .
But , um, some of the data thatwe have, you know, received and
seen , uh, is that the majorityof them used a majority of the
funding to support theirworkforce, either in bonuses ,
uh, periodic bonuses, becausethe way the money, the way the
(10:02):
states dispense the money wastypically, like on a quarterly
basis, providers would receive,you know, a , a a , a certain
dollar amount based on theirlicense capacity or other
factors , uh, that the statemay have, you know, put into
play. And they paid bonuses totheir current staff, you know,
(10:22):
in hopes of keeping them. They,some providers did recruitment
bonuses to help get moreapplicants in, and then many of
them raise the pay of their ,uh, providers. In fact,
according to the last time Ilooked at Indeed mm-hmm .
, when we, beforewe started the pandemic, the
(10:43):
average wage for childcarenationwide, and remember it
varies demographically and byeducation and experience was
only about $11 an hour. And ithas risen throughout the
pandemic to almost $14 an hour.
And this money paid for that.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
Okay. So what are you hearing from childcares
that , um, are a part of yourgroup about what's gonna happen
if these funds expire, ifnothing happens to extend them?
Speaker 3 (11:17):
Well, there's a , a few different , uh, uh,
circumstances out there. Andagain, a lot of things depend
on demographics and what incomeareas you're in. But many are
concerned that they're gonnalose families that are
receiving subsidy assistancebecause their state assigned
co-payments and or overagepayments, which is the
(11:39):
difference between what thestate reimburses a provider and
the amount they actually chargetheir private pay customers
will have to be increased. Andthis is due to the loss of
funding, or mainly due to theloss of funding and the
increased expenses in thisinflationary environment. And
that is mainly the cost oflabor. Other things have gone
(12:02):
up, you know, gas for those whotransport children to and from
school, food , uh, paper towels, uh, you know, anything you
need to run a childcare center.
But more than anything, thecost of labor, which is the
greatest expense for anychildcare facility due to child
teacher ratio requirements ,um, that's where the biggest
(12:23):
increase, you know, has, hascome. And again, it's been
funded by these wonderful,generous funds , uh, in the R
Act . So now that they're goingaway, we're gonna see states
have to assign more parentsthat are on subsidy, higher
copayments. So they're payingpart of their care. And then in
(12:45):
many states, some childcareproviders to, you know, pay
their bills. We'll have tocharge parents what's called an
overage, and that is thedifference between what their
copayment and state , uh,subsidy , uh, the difference
between that and their privatepay rate. And I'd like to kind
of offer an example of whatthat might look like for
(13:08):
people, because sometimes it'sa , uh, you know, there's a ,
it , it , it's hard to , uh,you know, just hear it and
think how, how, how does thatwork? Uhhuh . So
for example, I was recentlylooking at , uh, I live in
Florida in Volusia County, andI thought, what would it be if
(13:28):
I were a single parent livingin Volusia County with an
infant and a three-year-oldmm-hmm . ? Well,
according to , um, the rules of, um, C C D F and childcare
Development Block Grant, Icould make $37,000 a year and
qualify for childcare subsidy.
Now, even if the agency doesnot apply a copayment, which
(13:51):
they probably will, but let'sjust say, okay, maybe they
won't, maybe they'll findfunding somewhere for that.
Okay . Um , I'm still going tohave to pay my local licensed
childcare provider the overage,which in this case is $125 a
week. Of course, that's a , alow figure considering what a
(14:14):
private pay customer would haveto pay. But this is a single
mother, two children making$37,000 a year gross. So if I
have to pay the childcarecenter $125 a week of my
income, that is $6,500 a year,which is 17.5% of my gross
(14:35):
income. Now think about that. Imean, that's typically more
than I might be paying forrent. Uh , it , and it, it
doesn't leave much, you know,for the necessities of life.
And that's what it pretty muchlooks like in most states
where, you know, this willoccur. The other thing that ,
(14:58):
uh, providers , uh, in ourorganization are worried about
is that many of their familiesthat are living above the
poverty level, and I, and even, uh, significantly above the
poverty level , uh, but closerto the medium income , uh, will
be priced out of high qualitychildcare because providers
(15:18):
will lose, you know, theirstabilization funding that help
them afford the increased costof labor goods and services.
Just like I already, you know,said mm-hmm . ,
what'll happen is under thesecircumstances, they will have
to increase their rates tothese families who are already
paying 10% or more of theirincome for childcare services,
(15:39):
and many already pay more thantheir rent, mortgage or tuition
to a state college for theirchild, especially if they have
more than one. Um, this was aconcern that was in play before
the pandemic, and it got worseduring the pandemic until this
funding was made available.
(16:01):
And, and it's actually gonnajust , uh, it's gonna be worse
than it was even before the prethe pre pandemic because wages
haven't kept up with the , theinflationary economy that we
currently have.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
So it's, it's gonna affect these families. And I
mean, what kind of effect isthis gonna have on hiring then?
I mean, are centers gonna haveto say, well, I have to cut
your wages to these teachersand other staff, or, I mean,
it's gonna make recruitmenteven harder. Right?
Speaker 3 (16:34):
Right. And , uh, and that is, all that's gonna do is
contribute to the loss, youknow , of programs mm-hmm .
, because, youknow, when you have a childcare
center , uh, you know, yourrent is the same whether you
have 10 children or a hundredchildren. And if you're , if,
if you have to drop your , uh,the amount of children that you
(16:57):
can bring in because you can'tstaff it , then obviously your
rent becomes such a highpercentage of your operating
costs that it could push yououtta business. And that is a
huge concern, especially in thelower and middle income areas.
And I just kind of gave you,you know, some of the reasons
(17:20):
or some of the things that aregonna happen that will cause
that to occur. And it's sounfortunate because most of the
lower and lower middle incomefamilies live in rural and
urban communities and prepandemic those communities
already had a shortage ofchildcare providers. In fact, I
(17:44):
don't know if you've ever heardthe term childcare desert
mm-hmm. , but alittle over 50% of the children
pre pandemic were living incommunities referred to as
childcare deserts. And thatmeant that they had more
children between the age ofzero and six needing childcare
than was actually availablewithin the community. So no
(18:08):
doubt this percentage is goingto rise with this loss of
funding.
Speaker 2 (18:13):
Well, and the , um, nci , the National Association
for the Education of YoungChildren, that survey , uh, 43
per , they're predicting that ,um, 43% of childcare , excuse
me, I shouldn't say predictingit , found that 43% of
childcare centers, 37% offamily childcare providers say
they're gonna have to force toraise tuition once those grants
(18:35):
end. And we're talking aboutchildcare deserts already.
Exactly.
Speaker 3 (18:41):
And we, and we already have millions of , uh,
children, well, that have beenpriced out of childcare, and
not because providers aregreedy, but because the high
cost of producing high qualitycare
Speaker 2 (18:53):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
Cost money. And over the years, we've had a lot of,
you know, mandates, whetherthey're state or federal, you
know, that have pushed quality.
And everybody that works inthis industry, that's what they
want. I mean, you don't open achildcare center , you know, to
get rich and you want goodthings for kids, but then
you're put in a situation ofhaving to make some really ,
(19:16):
uh, tough choices. And again,we're to the point where the
only choice might be to raiseyour tuition rates beyond what
parents can afford, and that'sgonna put parents back in their
homes, or children, you know,back in with, you know , uh,
friends and family, whichthere's nothing wrong with
(19:37):
that. Absolutely nothing wrongwith that, except for we do
want to , uh, also offerfamilies while they're working
the opportunity for theirchildren, you know, to be in an
educational environment. Andchildcare centers provide that
so that they , uh, so that the,the years of brain development
(19:59):
that are so critical betweenzero and five mm-hmm .
, you know, canoccur , um, while their parents
are working, those children arestimulated and educated through
wonderful play experiences thatare developmentally correct for
them to move forward socially,intellectually, and
developmentally.
Speaker 2 (20:19):
Mm-hmm.
. Yeah. It seemslike recently we have been
seeing more, you know, statestrying to say, yes, e c e it is
so important, like , um, herein Colorado where , um, ProCare
is based in Denver, this 15hours free , um, for everyone
regardless of income. So youhave , it seems like there's
(20:39):
that push and pull of, youknow, supporting it, but then
also then we have this comingright on the radar that we have
to worry, worry about it . It'sa tug and it , it just seems
very complicated. Verycomplicated .
Speaker 3 (20:53):
It is . I've had the opportunity to work in three
states where the very firststates that offered what is
called Universal pre-K Okay .
Which is Colorado is doing, andthey're doing their version.
And the three states I workedin , uh, that offered it, and I
was actually , um,operationally responsible for
programs, state programs thatwere in my centers , uh, was
(21:16):
Georgia, Oklahoma, and Florida.
Mm-hmm. . Andultimately , um, there are
still funding issues with that. Uh , it , it's not always ,
uh, as much as it needs to beto be as good as it could be.
Uhhuh, , um,these are state funded
programs, not federal, ofcourse, in Joe Biden's , uh,
(21:38):
president Joe Biden's , uh,bill back Better Bill, he
wanted to put $400 billion infederal funds into , uh, pre-K
for all. And then of course,there's the , uh, you know,
opportunity and for thechildcare industry and the high
quality centers that arealready operating to be a part
(22:01):
of that. We call it mixeddelivery. And that's what
Colorado was doing as well,where childcare centers that
meet the criteria can alsooffer the program. But we know
that build back better, youknow, did not pass. And so it's
just a handful of states like,you know, Colorado and the
three I mentioned, and a fewothers that, that are doing it.
Speaker 2 (22:22):
Okay . So let's dig into this recent report from
the Century Foundation that's ,um, getting a lot of notice for
good reason. Um, that report ispredicting about one third of
childcare providers who receivestabilization funding are
likely to close as the resultof this loss of funding. Um, so
that equates to 70,000childcare programs projected to
(22:45):
close , um, and eliminatingchildcare slots for 3.2 million
children and their families.
And that's, that's a lot of , a lot of figures, and
a lot of data. But, and Cindy ,forgive me, this is such a
broad question, but what isthis gonna mean for the, for
the industry as a whole?
Speaker 3 (23:04):
Well, you know, it's going to affect the industry in
that we are going to putpeople, you know, out of work
that are very passionate andvery willing to work and
provide quality care andeducation to young children so
other people can work. Mm-hmm.
. So in additionto many people in the industry
(23:26):
already, you know, going out ofbusiness, and we're talking
about mostly small businesses,which are the backbone of the
childcare infrastructure, bythe way. Mm-hmm .
, uh, there , uh, the backboneof our industry is small
businesses. About 93% ofchildcare , licensed childcare
centers are either centerlicensed centers or homes. And
(23:49):
so , uh, it's, it's gonna behuge for these individuals that
have really dedicated theirtime and effort and life, you
know, to this mission. Uh, it'sgonna be a bigger hit to the ,
uh, working families becausethey're already struggling in
many places to be able to work, uh, and utilize their talents
(24:13):
and strengths and contribute tothe economy. And unfortunately,
when all of this occurs, you'regoing to have a lot of
employers that are going to bestruggling to find the talent
and the strength of worker theyneed, because you're taking so
(24:35):
many people out of theworkforce that can't get
childcare. And of course,unfortunately, this involves a
lot of men . Uh , a lot ofwomen more so than men. It will
involve men. There are men thatsometimes, you know, are the ,
uh, you know, that are the, theparent at home , uh, and that
while the wife works, I mean,it's not as common. And it's
(24:58):
also going to really hurt therural communities and, and, and
people of color, because womenof color are already , uh, not
able to , uh, find jobs intheir rural communities and
urban communities where , uh,there is not, you know, as many
opportunities.
Speaker 2 (25:19):
Well, and the , and the effect on state economies
too. The, the loss in taxrevenue and jobs, and Yeah .
It's businesses losingemployees, a huge ripple
effect.
Speaker 3 (25:29):
And other businesses will go out of , you know,
business too, because if youcan't get somebody to, you
know, work in your restaurantor somebody to, you know, work
in whatever business it is thatyou have, I mean, I see signs
all over my , uh, the area Ilive in in Florida, they're
looking for welders and, youknow, they're looking for
(25:51):
machinists and they're lookingfor all kinds of skilled trades
as well as, you know, everyrestaurant in town. Uh, I live
in a, in a, in a beachcommunity. And, you know, you
have to wait a very long timeto be served a meal , uh,
because of the shortage. And,and small business owners are,
you know, apologizing. Youknow, I , I , I, I'm so sorry
(26:14):
that you have to wait. Thankyou for waiting. Um, and we're
all doing the best we can doto, to be , uh, you know,
patient, you know? Yeah . As ,as kind citizens. Um, I would
also add that one of the thingsthat's going to happen, and it,
it , it's, and it's, it'shappening right now, is that
(26:34):
the childcare industry willgrow in, in numbers. Uh , it ,
it will, it will growdifferently though. It's gonna
grow, and it is growing in moreaffluent geographies as we
speak. Um, because the largercompanies and the franchisees
(26:56):
that, you know, have investorsare building centers in more
affluent parts of the country,in more affluent parts of a
state where the upper middleclass are working and need
childcare, and they can commandthe rate that it actually takes
to produce a high qualityprogram. So it's not a
(27:18):
criticism at all. I worked fora large company for 36 years. I
totally appreciate theircontributions to the industry.
But at the same time , uh, youknow, that's, the data's gonna
be a little, a little twistedif we just say, okay, childcare
had this many centers, youknow, in 2022, but by 2024, we
(27:42):
had this many, it might notlook as bad as it sounds right
now because of how we're goingto lose programs and how we'll
gain. And so the children thatneed this the most, and the
families that need it the mostare gonna be the ones that are
gonna be doing without. And itjust creates a bigger divide.
(28:04):
Mm-hmm . , youknow, between, it , it's, it's
part of that middle classmoving away , um, and the
divide getting larger. Andthat's, that's unfortunate
because it , it , it's just notgonna serve our, our country
well now or in the future.
Speaker 2 (28:23):
So what is happening at the legislative level to get
more funding as far as lobbyingefforts or what's going on
behind the scenes? ?
Okay.
Speaker 3 (28:33):
Well , first of all, let me give you a , a little ,
uh, view of maybe what isn'tgoing on. Okay. Um , but some
might say it is going on. Uh,first of all , um, just in
going back to, we're gonna goback to regular federal
childcare development blockgrant funding. And in fiscal ,
(28:55):
uh, year 23, that was still inplay along with the additional
stabilization , uh, money. And, uh, it was , uh, about $8
billion. So basically we'regonna lose the, the 24 and keep
the 8 billion, because what isalso happening is, is that the
(29:18):
house , uh, is not looking torecommend an increase in , uh,
childcare. Um, it all has to dowith the debt ceiling, which,
you know, is another wholepolitical conversation. But the
bottom line is they're notrecommending any additional
(29:39):
funding. So we're gonna go from24 billion plus 8 billion in
fiscal year 23 to just the 8billion. Now, the Senate,
however, is looking at puttingin about a billion extra
dollars for early , earlylearning programs, which again,
that takes us from eight to 9billion, which in that kind of
(30:03):
environment, you're onlyserving about one in six
children that qualify forsubsidy. So think about that
number, and then think aboutthe millions of children that
aren't on the subsidy , uh,radar that are in the lower to
middle, middle class homes thatare priced out. And so , uh,
(30:29):
that's where we are right now.
Now , uh, we do have , um, uh,a group of senators and also
advocacy organizations like myown, that have come together,
and we are asking for 16billion emergency dollars to be
(30:50):
put in childcare for fiscal2024. Um, in fact , um, almost
a thousand organizations like NC C A signed on to a letter
developed by the NationalWomen's Law Center asking for
these funds. And , uh, again,there , there's about 30
(31:12):
senators that, you know, havesupported that money being
appropriated in next year'sbudget. But of course, that's
not near enough for , uh,providers. Uh, it's , it's not
near enough for it to pass theSenate. And then we'd still
have to, you know, have somecooperation from the house. So
(31:35):
at this point, we really,really need to have what I call
all voices on deck. We used totalk about having all hands on
deck and childcare, becausethere never seems to be enough
hands. You know, when you'redealing with children and
things happen, and you know,Murphy's Law, you know , a
(31:56):
hundred percent phonerings, the child has an
accident , um mm-hmm .
, you know,something is going , there's
multiple things going on at atime. It's like being at home.
Only you have multiples, , . And , uh,
so at this point , uh, if wehave any hope at all of getting
(32:19):
emergency funding, we are goingto have to be heard loud and
clear. And I'd like to, at thistime, really encourage courage.
Parents, educators, owners,directors, grandparents who
might have to be watching theirchildren, their grandchildren,
(32:40):
or great-grandchildren whiletheir , uh, kids work instead
of enjoying their retirement.
Mm-hmm . , uh,business owners in the
community to join forces, firstof all start by joining and
becoming active in a local orstate childcare association.
(33:00):
It's, that's not an immediatesolution to the problems
providers are having, but it'sa start. And state governors
and legislators need to hearfrom their constituents loud
and clear that childcareproviders or essential to
providing affordable andacceptable quality care and
education to our nation's , uh,uh, children , uh, while their
(33:26):
parents work. And in , and Imentioned this I think a little
earlier, is that in stateswhere this has occurred, there
has been additional state monfunds invested in childcare
beyond just the federal levelcontribution. Uh, they started
working on this in anticipationof this, of, in anticipation of
(33:47):
the loss of this funding. Andso they are much better
equipped than the majority ofstates. New Mexico and Vermont
are a couple that really standout because it was actually ,
uh, a coalition of individualslike I just described, in each
state that worked to be heardmm-hmm . in their
(34:10):
state legislators. But for theimmediate timeframe, and this
is an important timeframebecause September is when the
Senate Appropriations Committeeis meeting and allocating funds
to different budgets, and it'sreally clear that there's gonna
have to be some shifting ofmoney. Uh, and unlike the N R A
(34:35):
or Big Pharma, and I use themas examples because they have
plenty of money to do lobbyingmm-hmm. , you
know, so that their, theirvoice and expectations for
their members and employees areheard. We, we don't have the
money. I mean, we , that'spretty clear. And, but what we
(34:55):
do have is voice and passion,and, and we can tell a story
and everyone that can possiblypick up a phone and call their
federal legislature during themonth of September to say,
please support the $16 billionemergency fund in 2024 for
(35:20):
childcare and any other billsor action that might, you know,
rise to the surface. 'causethere's always bills in front
of Congress for childcare .
Mm-hmm. , youknow, we'd even take some tax
breaks, you know, for ourproviders and our parents,
because those are veryoutdated. Um, and, and we could
improve on that. It would help.
(35:42):
So , uh, in order to easilyparticipate in the ad
advocating, you know, forchildcare , uh, people
listening to, you know, this ,uh, podcast and people that
they talk to , uh, couldactually join the National
(36:03):
Childcare Association for $30 ayear. And we consistently
inform you via email of thethings that are happening in ,
at the federal level, both, youknow , uh, for and against, you
know, the needs of childcare.
And we also put out actionalerts that we receive from
(36:27):
some of our partners, likeChildcare Aware of America and
National Women's Law Center,that actually all you have to
do is push a button, type inyour name, type in your zip
code, and up comes your twosenators and yours , uh,
federal , uh, legislature , uh,in the house. And you can type
(36:49):
an email or you can just submitthe one that we typed , uh,
supporting, you know, thespecific bill or action that
we're requesting. But I, Icannot emphasize enough if , if
enough people, if enough of ourlegislators at the federal
level would hear from theirconstituents that this is huge.
(37:12):
This is what we expect, this iswhat we need to keep our
country moving forward, bothnow and many years to come. Uh
, uh, I , I , I know that itwould make a difference. It
really would, because theywould be forced to, to hear
(37:33):
what a lot of people aresaying, and not just what a few
advocates are saying. And ifthey go and , and if you wanna
join the national organizationand do your advocating , uh,
you know, by the click of abutton, you can go to national
childcare.org. And again,excuse me, you don't have to
(37:54):
work in a center to be a memberand support childcare, be a
parent, a business owner, agrandparent, because so many
people are affected by, by thisissue.
Speaker 2 (38:09):
Yeah, definitely.
And what do you, what do youthink the odds are that
something is gonna happenbefore this , um, this cutoff
at the end of September? Anypredictions?
Speaker 3 (38:20):
Um, the predictions is, you know, if you don't do
something different, nothing'sgoing to change. Um , and so ,
uh, it, it is a concern uhhuh ,that the silent majority will
remain silent. And that's oneof the reasons why our
organization really pushes, youknow , uh, the voices of the
(38:46):
people coming forward and lotsof voices. Um, really what,
what we're hearing right now isthat, and this may, this may
sound, I don't know, it kind ofbreaks my heart to say it, but
(39:06):
I've heard people say, well, weshould be grateful that we're
not being cut, because a lot ofbudgets in our federal, in our
federal budget are going to becut because of the debt ceiling
. Uh, however, there are somebudgets that will continue to
(39:26):
have more, and some have hadmoney that you have to wonder
why they're still getting it.
And I'm not gonna throw out whothose folks are, but I,
you know, I think the, a theaverage American, and , and I
am an average American. I was aworking , uh, mother of three.
Uh, my , uh, my daughters areworking mothers. My
(39:50):
daughter-in-law is a workingmother, , uhhuh ,
. We absolutelycannot continue, you know, the
way we are and having to worryabout picking something less
than for our children , or notbeing able to provide for them
because we really need to work.
(40:11):
Or what if we just want to workand contribute, you know, to
society , uh, that's, you know,we should have that option. But
unfortunately, like I said, it, it , it's not looking good,
and something big is gonna haveto happen. And I would say big
voices, lots of voices, and beunified. And let's ask, don't,
(40:35):
let not, not just call and say,we need childcare. We need $16
billion in emergency funds.
Let's be very specific in whatwe ask for together.
Speaker 2 (40:50):
Okay . And what other tips do you have for
childcare providers? I mean,other than being vocal, other
than reaching out, any, anyresources you can share?
Speaker 3 (40:59):
Um, I would always say , uh, to be very , uh, uh,
close to their , uh, working inrelationships and working with
their lead agencies, childcareagencies, because sometimes
there is money available forgrants , uh, that may provide
equipment, may provideprofessional development for
(41:23):
their staff at no charge. Uh,so make sure that you're taking
advantage of all of the, thethings out there. Um, I think
there's still childcareproviders that could take
advantage of childcare foodprogram because of at least 25%
of the children that areenrolled in their programs in ,
in low income and middle incomeneighborhoods will qualify, and
(41:47):
it will reimburse childcarecenters , uh, on their food
expenses. Uh, so, you know,that's an opportunity. Also,
many states offer highersubsidy reimbursement rates for
centers that are participatingin quality rating scales or
national accreditation. So ifyou put some of those resources
(42:12):
together, instead of shyingaway from them mm-hmm .
, uh, you're ,you'll raise your revenue line
for children that are receivingsubsidy. I just taught , um, a
, a , a class on accreditation,actually two classes on
accreditation at a stateconference , um, in New Mexico
(42:32):
this past weekend. And that'sbecause their childcare
association and their statelead agency want more providers
to participate in their , uh,quality rating , uh, uh, system
and or national accreditationbecause it raises the bar on
what, you know, care andeducation you are producing.
(42:53):
And as a result, New Mexicopays a very generous amount to
those that reach what is calleda five star , which includes
national accreditation. Andthere are several states out
there that do that. I mean,Oklahoma does it, Georgia does
it, Florida does it, SouthCarolina. I mean, I could go
on. And so providers sometimestake , uh, some providers are,
(43:17):
are a little scared of, of whatthey call , uh, uh, getting too
close to, you know, governmentprograms. But quite honestly,
this is a government program.
$24 billion was a governmentprogram mm-hmm. ,
and, you know, so you , youcan't talk out of both sides of
your mouth. You gotta , yougotta take advantage of what's
(43:40):
out there. And at the N C C A ,we can help you with that
because our parent company isthe National Early Childhood
Program accreditation, and weactually are approved to
accredit , uh, uh, centers andhomes in states that offer
these kind of ascent uh, thesekind of incentives, monetary
incentives.
Speaker 2 (44:01):
Well, that, that is really good to know. And is
there anything that I did notask you that I should have or
that you think is important forproviders, families,
communities to know a , aboutthis issue?
Speaker 3 (44:14):
Well, I, I think that one of the things that's
really important to know isthat childcare providers
outside of the monetarystruggles
Speaker 2 (44:28):
Mm-hmm .
Speaker 3 (44:28):
really
don't feel very appreciate,
appreciate , excuse me,appreciated.
Speaker 2 (44:33):
Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (44:34):
Because , uh, there's always a lot of , uh,
individual thinking that goesinto what, you know, what you ,
uh, expect for your individualchild mm-hmm . .
But there are a lot of thingsthat we cannot do because we
know that it is notdevelopmentally appropriate. We
(44:57):
know that it is going toviolate a childcare licensing
or health regulation. And I ,I, please don't take it out on
your childcare provider. Andthe other thing is, parents
need to realize when thechildcare provider raises their
rates, they hate it more thanthe parent does. And if they
(45:19):
really, really hate that therates are being raised, and
I've seen this, I've been avictim of it before, where
people come after the providerlike, we're greedy. Well,
instead of doing that, pick upthe phone and call your
legislator or go to yourcompany that you work for,
because that's anotheropportunity is that we're
(45:41):
starting to see companies offersome help with childcare
because their recruitmentdepartments see that it is
almost a greater need thanhealth insurance at this time
Wow . To get people employed.
So, you know, that's, that'spretty much, you know, what,
(46:04):
what people can do to helpthemselves.
Speaker 2 (46:09):
All right . Well, thank you so much, Cindy, for
sharing your time. And for onelast time, can you give some
info about your website, how toreach out, any other contact
information you'd like toshare?
Speaker 3 (46:20):
Yes. Um, we are the National Childcare Association,
and as I said, we are part ofthe NEBA family, which is the
National Early ChildhoodProgram accreditation. And our
website is nationalchildcare.org , where you can
see our, the list of ourbenefits. And we , uh, you
(46:42):
know, post , uh, all of ouremails that go out to our
members, they're on the web.
You can read 'em withoutjoining if that's what you
choose to do. Uh, we also , um,appreciate hearing from people
by phone. I take those callspersonally because as the
(47:03):
director, I want to know eitherthe pain or the success of
what, what it is , uh, that youare experiencing or doing.
Because then part of my job isto share it with the rest of
the United States, because one,we don't want anybody to feel
isolated or alone in theirchallenge . And we also wanna
(47:26):
share successes so thathopefully , you know, those
successes can spread, you know,it can light a fire somewhere
where somebody didn't thinkabout it. And my, my personal
number , uh, is 4 0 5 9 2 2 2 14 oh . And I am always happy to
(47:47):
talk to a provider or a parent, um, to help, you know, solve
any problem they might behaving.
Speaker 2 (47:55):
Alright . Well, thank you again. This was
really great. And thank you toeverybody who's listening
today. Um, subscribe. If youare not to this podcast, we're
always trying to get peoplelike Cindy here to share her
expertise and help you run yourbusinesses. Have a great day,
everyone.
Speaker 3 (48:11):
Bye. Thank you . Dan ProCare.
Speaker 4 (48:25):
Thank
Speaker 1 (48:25):
You for listening to this episode of the Childcare
Business Podcast. To get moreinsights on ways to succeed in
your childcare business, makesure to hit subscribe in your
podcast app so you never missan episode. And if you want
even more childcare , businesstips, tricks, and strategies,
head over to our resourcecenter@procaresoftware.com.
(48:45):
Until next time,
Welcome to the Childcare Business Podcast,
brought to you by ProCareSolutions. This podcast is all
about giving childcare ,preschool, daycare, after
school , and other earlyeducation professionals. A fun
and upbeat way to learn aboutstrategies and inspiration you
can use to thrive. You'll hearfrom a variety of childcare
(00:29):
thought leaders, includingeducators, owners, and industry
experts on ways to innovate, tomeet the needs of the children
you serve. From practical tipsfor managing operations to
uplifting stories oftransformation and triumph,
this podcast will be chock fullof insights you can use to
fully realize the potential ofyour childcare business. Let's
(00:50):
jump in.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Hello everyone, and welcome to the Childcare
Business Podcast. My name isLeah Woodbury, and I'm happy to
have you join us today. I'mfilling in for our normal host,
Ryan Gwaltney . Um, and we arein luck because we have a
terrific guest today who'sgonna talk to us about a topic
that I'm sure you've all beenthinking about a great deal.
(01:20):
Um, Cindy Layoff, she's thedirector of the National
Childcare Association, is withus. Um, so what we're gonna
talk about is this cliff infunding that is projected to
happen on September 30th. Um,and I should note that we are
recording this podcast onSeptember 12th. Um, and that
states are gonna face a hugedrop in federal funds for
(01:42):
childcare businesses. AndCindy's gonna share what's
happening with that, what E c eproviders should be doing at
this moment, any tips she have. So, welcome, Cindy. We really
appreciate your time talkingabout this important topic.
Speaker 3 (01:57):
Well, thank you Leah, for inviting me. Uh, I,
my mission personally, alongwith the mission of N C C A,
involves making sure that theearly childhood community knows
what is happening and what, ifanything, they might be able to
do to affect it.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Oh, perfect. So before we start talking about,
about the funding and thepossible end of funding, could
you tell us a little bit aboutyour organization and what you
do?
Speaker 3 (02:27):
Yes. Our mission is to promote the success of
licensed providers in qualitycare and education. This
includes the provision ofprofessional development mm-hmm
.
training in the form of amonthly webinar. We have been
very fortunate to have somewell-known presenters with
(02:50):
different areas of expertise inthe early care and education
space for those professionaldevelopment webinars. Our
members are able to count those, uh, as training that is
required by the states on anannual basis. We provide them
for free, and we provide themwith certi certificates that
(03:12):
they've attended. Um, we alsohave business affiliates , uh,
like Leston Education andKaplan, and , um, many more
learning beyond paper. I Ican't even mention 'em all ,
uh, that offer services , um,to early , uh, care and
education providers at adiscounted price. And lastly,
(03:36):
but most importantly, we keepour members very well informed
of the latest activity as itpertains to federal legislation
that can either positively ornegatively affect their ability
to serve the families in theircommunity. Uh, we also partner
with other advocacy groups in ,uh, DC such as Childcare Aware
(04:01):
of America, the Early Care andEducation Consortium, the
National Women's Law CenterFamily Focus , just to name a
few , uh, to ensure that we arespeaking in a unified voice.
Uh, we have found that that'svery important , uh, so that
the numbers of people speakingon this are not, you know,
(04:23):
going different directions withwhat kind of support is needed.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
Great. And that ties directly into what we're, what
we're gonna talk about rightnow , um, that this clock is
set to run out on $24 billionin government aid. Is that the
correct number, Cindy? I'veseen a few tossed around, but
it's, it's a staggered. That
Speaker 3 (04:44):
Is , that is the correct number for the
childcare stabilization fundsthat were provided through the
ARPA Act in 2021, in responseto the pandemic and the crisis
that it put childcare in.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
So, can you talk a little bit about those ARPA
funds and what they weredesigned to do and, and what
they continue to do forchildcares around the country?
Speaker 3 (05:09):
Yes. And you know, let me just start by saying,
according to the Department ofHealth and Human Services,
which is the lead agency, youknow, over childcare , um, at
the federal level, Uhhuh
allocated to approximately220,000 childcare programs,
including centers in familychildcare homes nationwide.
(05:33):
Okay . It benefitedapproximately 9.6 million
children that are in care,which is a phenomenal, you
know, number. Um, it could beused to support operating costs
such as rent , uh, the suppliesthat were needed to combat the
Covid pandemic itself fromspreading in the centers , uh,
(05:56):
utilities and additionalcleaning processes and
supplies, again to reduce covidoutbreaks. But most
importantly, it could be usedto help recruit, hire, and
retain qualified workforce.
Unfortunately, at the onset ofCovid , uh, the industry lost
(06:18):
about one third of itschildcare workforce. And the
reason for this, you know, was, uh, not just any one thing,
you know, some centers closed,and so their staff were
completely laid off. Somecenters could only afford to
have , uh, part of their staff, uh, come to work and be paid
(06:39):
because of the socialdistancing required in
childcare settings. It reducedthe number of children that
could be in care. There wasalso those childcare providers
that , um, may have hadautoimmune diseases that just
felt like it wasn't safe.
Mm-hmm.
had to stay home and take careof their own children that were
(07:00):
in , um, elementary schoolsthat had been shut down. And
even now, we have neverregained the number of
childcare professionals andeducators that we lost. It is
estimated that we still lackabout 40,000 , uh, people in
the industry , uh, that werehere pre pandemic. And, and it
(07:23):
also should be noted, Liam ,that pre pandemic, we were
already struggling to , uh,attract and retain high quality
individuals. And unfortunately, uh, the teacher shortage, the
public school teacher shortagemm-hmm .
(07:44):
contributing to that for a verylong time because, oh ,
approximately 20 years ago ,uh, we were pushed to put
people in credentialing anddegreed programs that states
sometimes, you know, help fundand ultimately raise the bar on
the people working in theindustry. But because of the
(08:07):
shortages in public schools,our credentialed and degree
teachers have turned to the ,uh, the public schools to earn
more money mm-hmm . To have ,uh, to work less hours. And
because they don't work yearround and to have better
benefits, and you can't blamethem. Mm-hmm . You absolutely
cannot blame them. So, and theother reason is wages in the
(08:31):
industry have just not kept upwith wages in even less skilled
jobs because you are a skilledworker when you work in
childcare, whether you're onthe care or the education side,
or both. Absolutely. 'cause youhave to have certain entry
level training to work in achildcare center, and then you
(08:53):
have to continue withprofessional develop hours
annually. And unfortunately, Icould go to my local childcare
center with the experience I'vehad mm-hmm .
40 years, and probably not earnmore than $15 an hour in a
(09:14):
childcare setting, but I can goto , uh, McDonald's in my area
and earn $17 an hour. And sothat's where we are today.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
Okay. And then, so the, the ARPA funding, so that
was largely for hiring or , ordo you know, like what, what
roughly the percentage it wasabout how centers, I suppose
it's probably all over theplace, what they used it for,
right. Depending on their needs,
Speaker 3 (09:39):
It is all over . It is all over the place. Yeah .
But , um, some of the data thatwe have, you know, received and
seen , uh, is that the majorityof them used a majority of the
funding to support theirworkforce, either in bonuses ,
uh, periodic bonuses, becausethe way the money, the way the
(10:02):
states dispense the money wastypically, like on a quarterly
basis, providers would receive,you know, a , a a , a certain
dollar amount based on theirlicense capacity or other
factors , uh, that the statemay have, you know, put into
play. And they paid bonuses totheir current staff, you know,
(10:22):
in hopes of keeping them. They,some providers did recruitment
bonuses to help get moreapplicants in, and then many of
them raise the pay of their ,uh, providers. In fact,
according to the last time Ilooked at Indeed mm-hmm .
(10:43):
average wage for childcarenationwide, and remember it
varies demographically and byeducation and experience was
only about $11 an hour. And ithas risen throughout the
pandemic to almost $14 an hour.
And this money paid for that.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
Okay. So what are you hearing from childcares
that , um, are a part of yourgroup about what's gonna happen
if these funds expire, ifnothing happens to extend them?
Speaker 3 (11:17):
Well, there's a , a few different , uh, uh,
circumstances out there. Andagain, a lot of things depend
on demographics and what incomeareas you're in. But many are
concerned that they're gonnalose families that are
receiving subsidy assistancebecause their state assigned
co-payments and or overagepayments, which is the
(11:39):
difference between what thestate reimburses a provider and
the amount they actually chargetheir private pay customers
will have to be increased. Andthis is due to the loss of
funding, or mainly due to theloss of funding and the
increased expenses in thisinflationary environment. And
that is mainly the cost oflabor. Other things have gone
(12:02):
up, you know, gas for those whotransport children to and from
school, food , uh, paper towels, uh, you know, anything you
need to run a childcare center.
But more than anything, thecost of labor, which is the
greatest expense for anychildcare facility due to child
teacher ratio requirements ,um, that's where the biggest
(12:23):
increase, you know, has, hascome. And again, it's been
funded by these wonderful,generous funds , uh, in the R
Act . So now that they're goingaway, we're gonna see states
have to assign more parentsthat are on subsidy, higher
copayments. So they're payingpart of their care. And then in
(12:45):
many states, some childcareproviders to, you know, pay
their bills. We'll have tocharge parents what's called an
overage, and that is thedifference between what their
copayment and state , uh,subsidy , uh, the difference
between that and their privatepay rate. And I'd like to kind
of offer an example of whatthat might look like for
(13:08):
people, because sometimes it'sa , uh, you know, there's a ,
it , it , it's hard to , uh,you know, just hear it and
think how, how, how does thatwork? Uhhuh
for example, I was recentlylooking at , uh, I live in
Florida in Volusia County, andI thought, what would it be if
(13:28):
I were a single parent livingin Volusia County with an
infant and a three-year-oldmm-hmm .
according to , um, the rules of, um, C C D F and childcare
Development Block Grant, Icould make $37,000 a year and
qualify for childcare subsidy.
Now, even if the agency doesnot apply a copayment, which
(13:51):
they probably will, but let'sjust say, okay, maybe they
won't, maybe they'll findfunding somewhere for that.
Okay . Um , I'm still going tohave to pay my local licensed
childcare provider the overage,which in this case is $125 a
week. Of course, that's a , alow figure considering what a
(14:14):
private pay customer would haveto pay. But this is a single
mother, two children making$37,000 a year gross. So if I
have to pay the childcarecenter $125 a week of my
income, that is $6,500 a year,which is 17.5% of my gross
(14:35):
income. Now think about that. Imean, that's typically more
than I might be paying forrent. Uh , it , and it, it
doesn't leave much, you know,for the necessities of life.
And that's what it pretty muchlooks like in most states
where, you know, this willoccur. The other thing that ,
(14:58):
uh, providers , uh, in ourorganization are worried about
is that many of their familiesthat are living above the
poverty level, and I, and even, uh, significantly above the
poverty level , uh, but closerto the medium income , uh, will
be priced out of high qualitychildcare because providers
(15:18):
will lose, you know, theirstabilization funding that help
them afford the increased costof labor goods and services.
Just like I already, you know,said mm-hmm .
what'll happen is under thesecircumstances, they will have
to increase their rates tothese families who are already
paying 10% or more of theirincome for childcare services,
(15:39):
and many already pay more thantheir rent, mortgage or tuition
to a state college for theirchild, especially if they have
more than one. Um, this was aconcern that was in play before
the pandemic, and it got worseduring the pandemic until this
funding was made available.
(16:01):
And, and it's actually gonnajust , uh, it's gonna be worse
than it was even before the prethe pre pandemic because wages
haven't kept up with the , theinflationary economy that we
currently have.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
So it's, it's gonna affect these families. And I
mean, what kind of effect isthis gonna have on hiring then?
I mean, are centers gonna haveto say, well, I have to cut
your wages to these teachersand other staff, or, I mean,
it's gonna make recruitmenteven harder. Right?
Speaker 3 (16:34):
Right. And , uh, and that is, all that's gonna do is
contribute to the loss, youknow , of programs mm-hmm .
center , uh, you know, yourrent is the same whether you
have 10 children or a hundredchildren. And if you're , if,
if you have to drop your , uh,the amount of children that you
(16:57):
can bring in because you can'tstaff it , then obviously your
rent becomes such a highpercentage of your operating
costs that it could push yououtta business. And that is a
huge concern, especially in thelower and middle income areas.
And I just kind of gave you,you know, some of the reasons
(17:20):
or some of the things that aregonna happen that will cause
that to occur. And it's sounfortunate because most of the
lower and lower middle incomefamilies live in rural and
urban communities and prepandemic those communities
already had a shortage ofchildcare providers. In fact, I
(17:44):
don't know if you've ever heardthe term childcare desert
mm-hmm.
pre pandemic were living incommunities referred to as
childcare deserts. And thatmeant that they had more
children between the age ofzero and six needing childcare
than was actually availablewithin the community. So no
(18:08):
doubt this percentage is goingto rise with this loss of
funding.
Speaker 2 (18:13):
Well, and the , um, nci , the National Association
for the Education of YoungChildren, that survey , uh, 43
per , they're predicting that ,um, 43% of childcare , excuse
me, I shouldn't say predictingit , found that 43% of
childcare centers, 37% offamily childcare providers say
they're gonna have to force toraise tuition once those grants
(18:35):
end. And we're talking aboutchildcare deserts already.
Exactly.
Speaker 3 (18:41):
And we, and we already have millions of , uh,
children, well, that have beenpriced out of childcare, and
not because providers aregreedy, but because the high
cost of producing high qualitycare
Speaker 2 (18:53):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
Cost money. And over the years, we've had a lot of,
you know, mandates, whetherthey're state or federal, you
know, that have pushed quality.
And everybody that works inthis industry, that's what they
want. I mean, you don't open achildcare center , you know, to
get rich and you want goodthings for kids, but then
you're put in a situation ofhaving to make some really ,
(19:16):
uh, tough choices. And again,we're to the point where the
only choice might be to raiseyour tuition rates beyond what
parents can afford, and that'sgonna put parents back in their
homes, or children, you know,back in with, you know , uh,
friends and family, whichthere's nothing wrong with
(19:37):
that. Absolutely nothing wrongwith that, except for we do
want to , uh, also offerfamilies while they're working
the opportunity for theirchildren, you know, to be in an
educational environment. Andchildcare centers provide that
so that they , uh, so that the,the years of brain development
(19:59):
that are so critical betweenzero and five mm-hmm .
are working, those children arestimulated and educated through
wonderful play experiences thatare developmentally correct for
them to move forward socially,intellectually, and
developmentally.
Speaker 2 (20:19):
Mm-hmm.
seeing more, you know, statestrying to say, yes, e c e it is
so important, like , um, herein Colorado where , um, ProCare
is based in Denver, this 15hours free , um, for everyone
regardless of income. So youhave , it seems like there's
(20:39):
that push and pull of, youknow, supporting it, but then
also then we have this comingright on the radar that we have
to worry, worry about it . It'sa tug and it , it just seems
very complicated. Verycomplicated
Speaker 3 (20:53):
It is . I've had the opportunity to work in three
states where the very firststates that offered what is
called Universal pre-K Okay .
Which is Colorado is doing, andthey're doing their version.
And the three states I workedin , uh, that offered it, and I
was actually , um,operationally responsible for
programs, state programs thatwere in my centers , uh, was
(21:16):
Georgia, Oklahoma, and Florida.
Mm-hmm.
still funding issues with that. Uh , it , it's not always ,
uh, as much as it needs to beto be as good as it could be.
Uhhuh,
programs, not federal, ofcourse, in Joe Biden's , uh,
(21:38):
president Joe Biden's , uh,bill back Better Bill, he
wanted to put $400 billion infederal funds into , uh, pre-K
for all. And then of course,there's the , uh, you know,
opportunity and for thechildcare industry and the high
quality centers that arealready operating to be a part
(22:01):
of that. We call it mixeddelivery. And that's what
Colorado was doing as well,where childcare centers that
meet the criteria can alsooffer the program. But we know
that build back better, youknow, did not pass. And so it's
just a handful of states like,you know, Colorado and the
three I mentioned, and a fewothers that, that are doing it.
Speaker 2 (22:22):
Okay . So let's dig into this recent report from
the Century Foundation that's ,um, getting a lot of notice for
good reason. Um, that report ispredicting about one third of
childcare providers who receivestabilization funding are
likely to close as the resultof this loss of funding. Um, so
that equates to 70,000childcare programs projected to
(22:45):
close , um, and eliminatingchildcare slots for 3.2 million
children and their families.
And that's, that's a lot of
a lot of data. But, and Cindy ,forgive me, this is such a
broad question, but what isthis gonna mean for the, for
the industry as a whole?
Speaker 3 (23:04):
Well, you know, it's going to affect the industry in
that we are going to putpeople, you know, out of work
that are very passionate andvery willing to work and
provide quality care andeducation to young children so
other people can work. Mm-hmm.
(23:26):
already, you know, going out ofbusiness, and we're talking
about mostly small businesses,which are the backbone of the
childcare infrastructure, bythe way. Mm-hmm .
, uh, there , uh, the backboneof our industry is small
businesses. About 93% ofchildcare , licensed childcare
centers are either centerlicensed centers or homes. And
(23:49):
so , uh, it's, it's gonna behuge for these individuals that
have really dedicated theirtime and effort and life, you
know, to this mission. Uh, it'sgonna be a bigger hit to the ,
uh, working families becausethey're already struggling in
many places to be able to work, uh, and utilize their talents
(24:13):
and strengths and contribute tothe economy. And unfortunately,
when all of this occurs, you'regoing to have a lot of
employers that are going to bestruggling to find the talent
and the strength of worker theyneed, because you're taking so
(24:35):
many people out of theworkforce that can't get
childcare. And of course,unfortunately, this involves a
lot of men . Uh , a lot ofwomen more so than men. It will
involve men. There are men thatsometimes, you know, are the ,
uh, you know, that are the, theparent at home , uh, and that
while the wife works, I mean,it's not as common. And it's
(24:58):
also going to really hurt therural communities and, and, and
people of color, because womenof color are already , uh, not
able to , uh, find jobs intheir rural communities and
urban communities where , uh,there is not, you know, as many
opportunities.
Speaker 2 (25:19):
Well, and the , and the effect on state economies
too. The, the loss in taxrevenue and jobs, and Yeah .
It's businesses losingemployees, a huge ripple
effect.
Speaker 3 (25:29):
And other businesses will go out of , you know,
business too, because if youcan't get somebody to, you
know, work in your restaurantor somebody to, you know, work
in whatever business it is thatyou have, I mean, I see signs
all over my , uh, the area Ilive in in Florida, they're
looking for welders and, youknow, they're looking for
(25:51):
machinists and they're lookingfor all kinds of skilled trades
as well as, you know, everyrestaurant in town. Uh, I live
in a, in a, in a beachcommunity. And, you know, you
have to wait a very long timeto be served a meal , uh,
because of the shortage. And,and small business owners are,
you know, apologizing. Youknow, I , I , I, I'm so sorry
(26:14):
that you have to wait. Thankyou for waiting. Um, and we're
all doing the best we can doto, to be , uh, you know,
patient, you know? Yeah . As ,as kind citizens. Um, I would
also add that one of the thingsthat's going to happen, and it,
it , it's, and it's, it'shappening right now, is that
(26:34):
the childcare industry willgrow in, in numbers. Uh , it ,
it will, it will growdifferently though. It's gonna
grow, and it is growing in moreaffluent geographies as we
speak. Um, because the largercompanies and the franchisees
(26:56):
that, you know, have investorsare building centers in more
affluent parts of the country,in more affluent parts of a
state where the upper middleclass are working and need
childcare, and they can commandthe rate that it actually takes
to produce a high qualityprogram. So it's not a
(27:18):
criticism at all. I worked fora large company for 36 years. I
totally appreciate theircontributions to the industry.
But at the same time , uh, youknow, that's, the data's gonna
be a little, a little twistedif we just say, okay, childcare
had this many centers, youknow, in 2022, but by 2024, we
(27:42):
had this many, it might notlook as bad as it sounds right
now because of how we're goingto lose programs and how we'll
gain. And so the children thatneed this the most, and the
families that need it the mostare gonna be the ones that are
gonna be doing without. And itjust creates a bigger divide.
(28:04):
Mm-hmm .
part of that middle classmoving away , um, and the
divide getting larger. Andthat's, that's unfortunate
because it , it , it's just notgonna serve our, our country
well now or in the future.
Speaker 2 (28:23):
So what is happening at the legislative level to get
more funding as far as lobbyingefforts or what's going on
behind the scenes?
Okay.
Speaker 3 (28:33):
Well , first of all, let me give you a , a little ,
uh, view of maybe what isn'tgoing on. Okay. Um , but some
might say it is going on. Uh,first of all , um, just in
going back to, we're gonna goback to regular federal
childcare development blockgrant funding. And in fiscal ,
(28:55):
uh, year 23, that was still inplay along with the additional
stabilization , uh, money. And, uh, it was , uh, about $8
billion. So basically we'regonna lose the, the 24 and keep
the 8 billion, because what isalso happening is, is that the
(29:18):
house , uh, is not looking torecommend an increase in , uh,
childcare. Um, it all has to dowith the debt ceiling, which,
you know, is another wholepolitical conversation. But the
bottom line is they're notrecommending any additional
(29:39):
funding. So we're gonna go from24 billion plus 8 billion in
fiscal year 23 to just the 8billion. Now, the Senate,
however, is looking at puttingin about a billion extra
dollars for early , earlylearning programs, which again,
that takes us from eight to 9billion, which in that kind of
(30:03):
environment, you're onlyserving about one in six
children that qualify forsubsidy. So think about that
number, and then think aboutthe millions of children that
aren't on the subsidy , uh,radar that are in the lower to
middle, middle class homes thatare priced out. And so , uh,
(30:29):
that's where we are right now.
Now , uh, we do have , um, uh,a group of senators and also
advocacy organizations like myown, that have come together,
and we are asking for 16billion emergency dollars to be
(30:50):
put in childcare for fiscal2024. Um, in fact , um, almost
a thousand organizations like NC C A signed on to a letter
developed by the NationalWomen's Law Center asking for
these funds. And , uh, again,there , there's about 30
(31:12):
senators that, you know, havesupported that money being
appropriated in next year'sbudget. But of course, that's
not near enough for , uh,providers. Uh, it's , it's not
near enough for it to pass theSenate. And then we'd still
have to, you know, have somecooperation from the house. So
(31:35):
at this point, we really,really need to have what I call
all voices on deck. We used totalk about having all hands on
deck and childcare, becausethere never seems to be enough
hands. You know, when you'redealing with children and
things happen, and you know,Murphy's Law, you know , a
(31:56):
hundred percent
accident , um mm-hmm .
multiple things going on at atime. It's like being at home.
Only you have multiples,
so at this point , uh, if wehave any hope at all of getting
(32:19):
emergency funding, we are goingto have to be heard loud and
clear. And I'd like to, at thistime, really encourage courage.
Parents, educators, owners,directors, grandparents who
might have to be watching theirchildren, their grandchildren,
(32:40):
or great-grandchildren whiletheir , uh, kids work instead
of enjoying their retirement.
Mm-hmm .
community to join forces, firstof all start by joining and
becoming active in a local orstate childcare association.
(33:00):
It's, that's not an immediatesolution to the problems
providers are having, but it'sa start. And state governors
and legislators need to hearfrom their constituents loud
and clear that childcareproviders or essential to
providing affordable andacceptable quality care and
education to our nation's , uh,uh, children , uh, while their
(33:26):
parents work. And in , and Imentioned this I think a little
earlier, is that in stateswhere this has occurred, there
has been additional state monfunds invested in childcare
beyond just the federal levelcontribution. Uh, they started
working on this in anticipationof this, of, in anticipation of
(33:47):
the loss of this funding. Andso they are much better
equipped than the majority ofstates. New Mexico and Vermont
are a couple that really standout because it was actually ,
uh, a coalition of individualslike I just described, in each
state that worked to be heardmm-hmm .
(34:10):
state legislators. But for theimmediate timeframe, and this
is an important timeframebecause September is when the
Senate Appropriations Committeeis meeting and allocating funds
to different budgets, and it'sreally clear that there's gonna
have to be some shifting ofmoney. Uh, and unlike the N R A
(34:35):
or Big Pharma, and I use themas examples because they have
plenty of money to do lobbyingmm-hmm.
know, so that their, theirvoice and expectations for
their members and employees areheard. We, we don't have the
money. I mean, we , that'spretty clear. And, but what we
(34:55):
do have is voice and passion,and, and we can tell a story
and everyone that can possiblypick up a phone and call their
federal legislature during themonth of September to say,
please support the $16 billionemergency fund in 2024 for
(35:20):
childcare and any other billsor action that might, you know,
rise to the surface. 'causethere's always bills in front
of Congress for childcare .
Mm-hmm.
breaks, you know, for ourproviders and our parents,
because those are veryoutdated. Um, and, and we could
improve on that. It would help.
(35:42):
So , uh, in order to easilyparticipate in the ad
advocating, you know, forchildcare , uh, people
listening to, you know, this ,uh, podcast and people that
they talk to , uh, couldactually join the National
(36:03):
Childcare Association for $30 ayear. And we consistently
inform you via email of thethings that are happening in ,
at the federal level, both, youknow , uh, for and against, you
know, the needs of childcare.
And we also put out actionalerts that we receive from
(36:27):
some of our partners, likeChildcare Aware of America and
National Women's Law Center,that actually all you have to
do is push a button, type inyour name, type in your zip
code, and up comes your twosenators and yours , uh,
federal , uh, legislature , uh,in the house. And you can type
(36:49):
an email or you can just submitthe one that we typed , uh,
supporting, you know, thespecific bill or action that
we're requesting. But I, Icannot emphasize enough if , if
enough people, if enough of ourlegislators at the federal
level would hear from theirconstituents that this is huge.
(37:12):
This is what we expect, this iswhat we need to keep our
country moving forward, bothnow and many years to come. Uh
, uh, I , I , I know that itwould make a difference. It
really would, because theywould be forced to, to hear
(37:33):
what a lot of people aresaying, and not just what a few
advocates are saying. And ifthey go and , and if you wanna
join the national organizationand do your advocating , uh,
you know, by the click of abutton, you can go to national
childcare.org. And again,excuse me, you don't have to
(37:54):
work in a center to be a memberand support childcare, be a
parent, a business owner, agrandparent, because so many
people are affected by, by thisissue.
Speaker 2 (38:09):
Yeah, definitely.
And what do you, what do youthink the odds are that
something is gonna happenbefore this , um, this cutoff
at the end of September? Anypredictions?
Speaker 3 (38:20):
Um, the predictions is, you know, if you don't do
something different, nothing'sgoing to change. Um , and so ,
uh, it, it is a concern uhhuh ,that the silent majority will
remain silent. And that's oneof the reasons why our
organization really pushes, youknow , uh, the voices of the
(38:46):
people coming forward and lotsof voices. Um, really what,
what we're hearing right now isthat, and this may, this may
sound, I don't know, it kind ofbreaks my heart to say it, but
(39:06):
I've heard people say, well, weshould be grateful that we're
not being cut, because a lot ofbudgets in our federal, in our
federal budget are going to becut because of the debt ceiling
. Uh, however, there are somebudgets that will continue to
(39:26):
have more, and some have hadmoney that you have to wonder
why they're still getting it.
And I'm not gonna throw out whothose
you know, I think the, a theaverage American, and , and I
am an average American. I was aworking , uh, mother of three.
Uh, my , uh, my daughters areworking mothers. My
(39:50):
daughter-in-law is a workingmother,
way we are and having to worryabout picking something less
than for our children , or notbeing able to provide for them
because we really need to work.
(40:11):
Or what if we just want to workand contribute, you know, to
society , uh, that's, you know,we should have that option. But
unfortunately, like I said, it, it , it's not looking good,
and something big is gonna haveto happen. And I would say big
voices, lots of voices, and beunified. And let's ask, don't,
(40:35):
let not, not just call and say,we need childcare. We need $16
billion in emergency funds.
Let's be very specific in whatwe ask for together.
Speaker 2 (40:50):
Okay . And what other tips do you have for
childcare providers? I mean,other than being vocal, other
than reaching out, any, anyresources you can share?
Speaker 3 (40:59):
Um, I would always say , uh, to be very , uh, uh,
close to their , uh, working inrelationships and working with
their lead agencies, childcareagencies, because sometimes
there is money available forgrants , uh, that may provide
equipment, may provideprofessional development for
(41:23):
their staff at no charge. Uh,so make sure that you're taking
advantage of all of the, thethings out there. Um, I think
there's still childcareproviders that could take
advantage of childcare foodprogram because of at least 25%
of the children that areenrolled in their programs in ,
in low income and middle incomeneighborhoods will qualify, and
(41:47):
it will reimburse childcarecenters , uh, on their food
expenses. Uh, so, you know,that's an opportunity. Also,
many states offer highersubsidy reimbursement rates for
centers that are participatingin quality rating scales or
national accreditation. So ifyou put some of those resources
(42:12):
together, instead of shyingaway from them mm-hmm .
for children that are receivingsubsidy. I just taught , um, a
, a , a class on accreditation,actually two classes on
accreditation at a stateconference , um, in New Mexico
(42:32):
this past weekend. And that'sbecause their childcare
association and their statelead agency want more providers
to participate in their , uh,quality rating , uh, uh, system
and or national accreditationbecause it raises the bar on
what, you know, care andeducation you are producing.
(42:53):
And as a result, New Mexicopays a very generous amount to
those that reach what is calleda five star , which includes
national accreditation. Andthere are several states out
there that do that. I mean,Oklahoma does it, Georgia does
it, Florida does it, SouthCarolina. I mean, I could go
on. And so providers sometimestake , uh, some providers are,
(43:17):
are a little scared of, of whatthey call , uh, uh, getting too
close to, you know, governmentprograms. But quite honestly,
this is a government program.
$24 billion was a governmentprogram mm-hmm.
and, you know, so you , youcan't talk out of both sides of
your mouth. You gotta , yougotta take advantage of what's
(43:40):
out there. And at the N C C A ,we can help you with that
because our parent company isthe National Early Childhood
Program accreditation, and weactually are approved to
accredit , uh, uh, centers andhomes in states that offer
these kind of ascent uh, thesekind of incentives, monetary
incentives.
Speaker 2 (44:01):
Well, that, that is really good to know. And is
there anything that I did notask you that I should have or
that you think is important forproviders, families,
communities to know a , aboutthis issue?
Speaker 3 (44:14):
Well, I, I think that one of the things that's
really important to know isthat childcare providers
outside of the monetarystruggles
Speaker 2 (44:28):
Mm-hmm .
Speaker 3 (44:28):
appreciate , excuse me,appreciated.
Speaker 2 (44:33):
Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (44:34):
Because , uh, there's always a lot of , uh,
individual thinking that goesinto what, you know, what you ,
uh, expect for your individualchild mm-hmm .
But there are a lot of thingsthat we cannot do because we
know that it is notdevelopmentally appropriate. We
(44:57):
know that it is going toviolate a childcare licensing
or health regulation. And I ,I, please don't take it out on
your childcare provider. Andthe other thing is, parents
need to realize when thechildcare provider raises their
rates, they hate it more thanthe parent does. And if they
(45:19):
really, really hate that therates are being raised, and
I've seen this, I've been avictim of it before, where
people come after the providerlike, we're greedy. Well,
instead of doing that, pick upthe phone and call your
legislator or go to yourcompany that you work for,
because that's anotheropportunity is that we're
(45:41):
starting to see companies offersome help with childcare
because their recruitmentdepartments see that it is
almost a greater need thanhealth insurance at this time
Wow . To get people employed.
So, you know, that's, that'spretty much, you know, what,
(46:04):
what people can do to helpthemselves.
Speaker 2 (46:09):
All right . Well, thank you so much, Cindy, for
sharing your time. And for onelast time, can you give some
info about your website, how toreach out, any other contact
information you'd like toshare?
Speaker 3 (46:20):
Yes. Um, we are the National Childcare Association,
and as I said, we are part ofthe NEBA family, which is the
National Early ChildhoodProgram accreditation. And our
website is nationalchildcare.org , where you can
see our, the list of ourbenefits. And we , uh, you
(46:42):
know, post , uh, all of ouremails that go out to our
members, they're on the web.
You can read 'em withoutjoining if that's what you
choose to do. Uh, we also , um,appreciate hearing from people
by phone. I take those callspersonally because as the
(47:03):
director, I want to know eitherthe pain or the success of
what, what it is , uh, that youare experiencing or doing.
Because then part of my job isto share it with the rest of
the United States, because one,we don't want anybody to feel
isolated or alone in theirchallenge . And we also wanna
(47:26):
share successes so thathopefully , you know, those
successes can spread, you know,it can light a fire somewhere
where somebody didn't thinkabout it. And my, my personal
number , uh, is 4 0 5 9 2 2 2 14 oh . And I am always happy to
(47:47):
talk to a provider or a parent, um, to help, you know, solve
any problem they might behaving.
Speaker 2 (47:55):
Alright . Well, thank you again. This was
really great. And thank you toeverybody who's listening
today. Um, subscribe. If youare not to this podcast, we're
always trying to get peoplelike Cindy here to share her
expertise and help you run yourbusinesses. Have a great day,
everyone.
Speaker 3 (48:11):
Bye. Thank you . Dan ProCare.
Speaker 4 (48:25):
Thank
Speaker 1 (48:25):
You for listening to this episode of the Childcare
Business Podcast. To get moreinsights on ways to succeed in
your childcare business, makesure to hit subscribe in your
podcast app so you never missan episode. And if you want
even more childcare , businesstips, tricks, and strategies,
head over to our resourcecenter@procaresoftware.com.
(48:45):
Until next time,
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