A bill promoting quality childcare in the state passed the first step to becoming law.
Senate Bill 203 is a comprehensive package to promote child care throughout the state. It would maintain most subsidy programs created or expanded during the pandemic and start new funding streams for increased access.
The bill would start a new associates degree at state community colleges that focus on early childhood entrepreneurship. This degree would not only educate students on early childhood education but on how to run an early childhood education center.
The bill would also rename all state offices from Division of Child Care to Division of Early Childhood Education putting more emphasis on the education component involved in working with young children.
Sarah Vanover is the Policy and Research Director for Kentucky Youth Advocates. She said Kentucky needs more quality childcare education programs.
“79 of our 120 counties are considered childcare deserts and there is not enough childcare there available for the working families that need them.”
Vanover said that parents and caregivers can’t work without childcare. A big part is making sure families can go to work and be independent with stable living conditions, food sources, reliable transportation, and healthcare.
She said one of the biggest issues the childcare industry has is that it can only charge as much as parents can pay, but what parents can pay doesn’t cover the true cost of quality care.
“Childcare providers in Kentucky make an average of $12.39 an hour, 98% of other professions pay more than childcare does. And if we can’t get more money in the childcare system to pay our childcare educators more, then we’re not going to have childcare.”
She said quality childcare is the one profession that supports every other profession.
The impact of childcare can be seen in the long term with high school graduation rates, test scores, and ACTs dropping.
Vanover said right now, Kentucky does a screening before children enter kindergarten and last year it showed only 46% of students were ready to start kindergarten.
“I think this is just an all-encompassing act because it would benefit local communities, it would benefit parents, it would benefit children, it would benefit businesses and so when we look at the big price tag it can also be balanced out with the amount of people that it’s going to benefit in all the areas of the state.”
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