0:08

Welcome to the childcare business podcast

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brought to you by ProCare solutions.

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This podcast is all about giving childcare

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, preschool daycare after

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school and other early education professionals,

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a fun and upbeat way to learn about strategies

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and inspiration you can use to thrive.

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You'll hear from a variety of childcare

0:29

thought leaders, including educators,

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owners, and industry experts on

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ways to innovate, to meet the needs of the children you

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serve from practical tips for

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managing operations, to uplifting

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stories of transformation and triumph.

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This podcast will be chalk full

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of insights. You can use to fully realize

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the potential of your childcare business.

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Let's jump in.

0:52

Good morning, everyone. Welcome again to the childcare

0:55

business podcast , uh , as is

0:57

my custom , um , joined today with a

1:00

guest that I think is gonna be a lot of fun to talk

1:02

to. In fact, it's our first like

1:04

sequel on the podcast, you know, Jacob

1:07

Stewart with , um, early

1:09

care and education consortium also known

1:11

as E C C was with

1:13

us. I think it was back in January , uh

1:16

, Jake, and we talked a little bit about, you

1:18

know, some of the initiatives that your organization's

1:21

working on and , and the build back better, you

1:23

know, funding and some of the other things that are

1:25

flowing into the industry. Um,

1:27

but as you guys have continued to work

1:30

, uh , and we've continued to see some of the content

1:32

you've pushed out, we just thought it would be a

1:34

great time to reconnect and talk , um,

1:36

in particular about some of the staffing topics

1:39

in our industry. So , um, welcome back

1:41

to the show.

1:42

Thanks for having me back. I had such

1:45

a good time the first time that I

1:47

was excited to come back and I'm excited to

1:49

be the first sequel guest. So

1:51

thank you for that.

1:53

Yeah. That's big time, man, to be the first

1:55

to come back a second time , it's kind of like I

1:57

was telling somebody this has nothing to do with the podcast, but

1:59

, uh , I recently saw top

2:02

gun too . Like, so, you know, maybe

2:04

I'm dating myself here, but the original

2:06

top gun was from my generation. I

2:08

think it's only the second movie I've seen

2:10

in a theater, like in the last three years is

2:13

really hard for a sequel to

2:16

top the original, but everybody

2:18

who had seen it was telling me like, man, it's a good

2:20

movie. It's actually better than the first one. And I , and

2:22

I concur, I saw it. It was better than

2:25

the first one. So I was pleasantly surprised.

2:27

So super high expectations,

2:29

no pressure that the sequel here is gonna be

2:31

better than the first show even. So , um,

2:34

maybe as a start

2:35

Pressure at

2:35

All. <laugh> yeah, no pressure at all. We'll have some fun

2:37

with it, Jake, just for maybe those

2:39

who didn't hear the first podcast,

2:42

just to give a little context around E

2:45

C , C and your role with the organization.

2:48

Can you just talk a little bit about what you guys do

2:50

as an org and then specifically what your

2:52

focus is?

2:54

Yeah. So E CUC is a national

2:56

nonprofit advocacy organization that functions

2:59

similarly to an association

3:01

in that our members are childcare

3:04

providers. Um, they are

3:06

typically multi , uh , state childcare

3:08

providers and altogether our

3:10

members operate over 6,000 centers

3:14

across 48 states. These

3:16

are centers that serve a variety

3:19

of families. Um, many are

3:21

who pay out of pocket for childcare, which

3:23

we know is becoming increasingly more expensive,

3:26

but we also have many centers that utilize

3:29

financial assistance. So they serve families utilizing

3:31

subsidies or vouchers. They have head

3:33

start partnerships. They have military partnerships,

3:36

business partnerships to provide onsite childcare.

3:39

So , uh , a diverse array

3:41

of childcare services that they provide. And

3:43

really our goal is to try to

3:46

advocate, to help expand access

3:49

to high quality affordable childcare for,

3:51

for all families. And , um, of

3:53

course that includes a

3:56

lot of federal advocacy

3:58

and, and that federal funding is incredibly important,

4:00

but states are the ones that really implement

4:02

that policy. So my role specifically

4:05

is to oversee state policy and

4:07

government affairs and really

4:09

help educate state policy

4:12

makers on the decisions they can

4:14

make that will help providers serve

4:16

more families.

4:18

Nice. And so your participants

4:20

or your members, even though it does it doesn't

4:23

represent every childcare provider nationwide.

4:26

I think it is a sampling of what

4:28

every childcare provider has interests

4:30

in. And so I think your members, the

4:33

feedback loop, if I understand it correctly, Jake

4:35

is you've got member organizations

4:38

nationwide that represent up to 6,000

4:40

centers. They come to you

4:42

and you guys meet and you talk about like, Hey, these are the

4:44

challenges that we're seeing. This is, this is

4:46

what we're seeing impact the families in our communities.

4:48

This is what we're seeing impact our

4:50

operations. And here's how we

4:53

think the government could assist or

4:55

at least be aware of what's happening.

4:57

And as you guys meet, then you

5:00

kind of take that information and you're , and

5:02

you say, Hey, we're gonna go talk to the government

5:04

entities and organizations that can actually help

5:06

impact these things. It fair description.

5:10

Yeah. That , that's a great description. And

5:12

I would just add to that, that

5:14

what we advocate for is what's

5:16

good for all providers at the end of the day, because

5:18

what our members are struggling with is what everyone

5:20

else is struggling with in the field. And so

5:23

, um, we really do try

5:25

to be the voice for providers

5:27

, um, with, with the goal of

5:29

trying to serve more families. Um, and

5:31

we know that there is a big interest

5:34

and a big push in trying to get childcare

5:37

more , um, accessible and

5:39

more affordable. And we

5:41

are here to try to help hopefully

5:44

bring some solutions to the table .

5:46

Yeah, it's amazing. I , one of the things that I took away

5:48

from our last conversation, which just shed

5:51

some light on this whole conversation

5:53

for me was, you know, if you , if you take the

5:55

work that you guys are doing all the way down to

5:57

an individual family in an individual

6:00

community, somewhere in the United States, like

6:02

the subsidy reimbursement that a

6:04

center receives for that family and the amount

6:07

they receive and how it's delivered, doesn't

6:10

just magically happen without

6:12

any conversation or

6:15

discussion from groups like yours,

6:17

both, you know, at the state level, but then at the national

6:19

level. And so you , you know, even for

6:21

an individual provider who

6:23

isn't involved with your organization

6:26

or familiar with it, the role that you guys

6:28

play is really significant, cuz it , you can see it

6:30

in any individual community, any individual center

6:33

and parents that receive subsidy or

6:35

even families that are paying private pay and

6:37

the , the , the factors of cost and

6:39

so forth to them. Um, there's

6:42

organizations at the state level and nationally,

6:44

obviously that are a big part of that. And so that

6:46

was a big takeaway for me.

6:48

Yeah. And one issue that has plagued

6:50

this field , well, there's many issues that have plagued this

6:52

field for a while , but one is that this

6:55

field really lacked voices that

6:57

were really chiming into policymakers

7:00

on , on the right steps to take, to help

7:02

support providers. Why is that? Well

7:05

it's because providers are busy and

7:07

they are operating a business and being

7:09

a childcare provider is hard work. And

7:13

so really there really isn't a lot of

7:15

time then to go and,

7:17

and meet and connect with policy makers and their staff

7:19

and educate them on everything that needs to go

7:21

on. Um, you know, a lot of industries

7:24

have a lot of lobbying support

7:26

that helps do exactly that, but

7:29

this is an industry that really hasn't

7:31

had that for a long time. And therefore

7:34

I think over time, it's just become

7:36

more difficult for providers. And I

7:38

think over the last few years and,

7:40

and hopefully moving forward, we , we finally, we're

7:43

finally starting to see that come forward. Um

7:46

, E C C is just one of now, you

7:48

know, several voices that are trying to come

7:50

to federal and state policy makers . Um,

7:53

I think we're in a big moment with childcare

7:55

right now. People are finally recognizing why

7:58

it's so important. It, you know, unfortunately took

8:00

a pandemic to finally highlight the,

8:02

the need for childcare, but this

8:05

has been something that has been important for families

8:07

for well before the pandemic as well. Um,

8:09

but we want to take advantage of this time. And

8:12

now that we have policy makers finally recognizing

8:15

that this is important, it's

8:17

time to take it to the next level

8:19

and talk about what policy actions

8:21

need to be done to truly support

8:25

families, of course, but then providers who

8:27

are the ones that are working with families and taking care

8:29

of the children , um, in order to

8:32

ma maximize the number of children

8:34

that can be served.

8:36

Yeah, you're right. And it , and I , it's, it's two

8:38

things I think, you know, it's supporting providers,

8:40

like you said, in families, but also sustaining

8:43

these businesses and finding, you

8:46

know , um , processes and legislation,

8:48

part of that, and just a process that's

8:51

going to allow providers to run sustainable

8:53

businesses and you're right. Like I think one

8:55

of the other things that from our last conversation

8:57

that really stuck out to me was you , you know, you're

9:00

not just a voice for the large national chains

9:02

or for just, you know, private paid

9:04

childcare programs. And it's, it's the

9:06

entire industry home. You know, sometimes we,

9:08

we see the conversations about how home

9:11

providers are treated or how center based

9:13

programs or group programs or publicly

9:16

funded programs. But it it's really

9:19

in a lot of ways, all of those different types

9:21

of childcare programs are aligned

9:23

and you guys are a voice for all of them

9:26

in terms of, it's not just one

9:28

or the other, it's the industry as a whole, which I

9:30

think is really important.

9:32

Yeah. We run , uh , we run

9:34

an advocacy call every two weeks.

9:36

It's called champions of mixed delivery. And

9:38

it's, it's all about trying to push for a

9:41

mixed delivery preschool system, which, you

9:43

know, as a reminder is a system in which parents

9:45

can navigate, you know, a choice of

9:48

providers. So that could be a choice of center based

9:50

providers , uh, public schools, if

9:53

they wanna , you know, send their child to school for pre , uh

9:55

, for preschool , um , family

9:57

home, you know, home based childcare providers,

10:00

all of it matters. We're looking for a system

10:02

where , um , we think the healthiest systems

10:04

are really where parents can navigate all of these options.

10:08

Um, unfortunately, you know, there are

10:10

many parts of the country where the system

10:12

is no options, right. And there , there

10:14

really is nothing theirs, but we

10:16

do want to make sure that , um, everybody

10:20

is having their voice represented when it

10:22

comes to childcare providers. And we know that that's

10:24

more than just centers .

10:25

Yeah. And you guys get a

10:28

collective set of information that

10:30

allows you to have a really, I

10:32

think, unique perspective on the industry

10:34

that you can then take and champion, you

10:36

know, kind of the overall , um , causes

10:38

that are going to impact all of us positively.

10:41

I , I do wanna talk specifically around

10:44

staffing cuz you know, you guys published

10:46

recently a , a really interesting article or, or

10:48

study that I think shed some light

10:51

on, you know, states that are navigating

10:53

some of these challenges , uh , well,

10:55

and what we can learn from those and maybe apply

10:57

in other states. But I was hoping just to get an

11:00

update from you before jumping into that, on some

11:02

of the build back better and just national

11:04

funding, I think last time we spoke, some

11:07

of that legislation was still like

11:09

in Congress and being voted on and

11:11

the outcomes, are we still in that spot

11:13

or is there a little bit more clarity on what some

11:16

of the funding to the industry looks like right now?

11:18

Yeah . So when we spoke last time and

11:21

I believe the episode came out in January,

11:23

but we recorded it , um, you

11:25

know, in mid-December and

11:28

it was about a week or maybe even just

11:30

a few days before there was a very

11:32

crucial announcement from a crucial Senator. So

11:34

Senator mansion had announced

11:36

that he was not going to support bill

11:39

back better as it was written , um,

11:42

as a review. So the way bill

11:44

Beck better was written and how it affects , um, childcare

11:47

and early learning is that there were, there

11:49

were two sections of the bill. Um,

11:51

one was a , a section devoted to childcare

11:54

, um, that was really trying to , um,

11:56

increase , um, the number of families that would

11:58

be eligible by increasing the income

12:01

eligibility , um, up to 250%

12:03

state median income. And then

12:06

there was a preschool section that

12:08

was really trying to provide funding for

12:10

mixed delivery preschool and

12:14

Senator mansion ultimately decided he did

12:16

not want to support this. Um,

12:18

and of course, because this is the budget reconciliation

12:21

process and we're in a , we're in a 50, 50 split

12:23

in the Senate , um, that all but

12:26

killed , um , the bill in that moment.

12:29

Um, at the end of December there, following

12:32

that , um , you know, there were a lot of questions

12:34

on if bill Beck better was , was going to

12:37

make you come back. And if so, what it

12:39

would look like a lot of

12:41

behind the scenes conversations were

12:43

, were happening and have been happening

12:46

for the last six months. And

12:49

I , we didn't see necessarily a lot of

12:52

movement legislatively , um, until

12:54

the last few months last

12:57

month , uh , Senator Patty

12:59

Murray, who is the chair of

13:02

the health education, labor , um,

13:05

and pensions committee. So that's the Senate

13:07

committee that would handle the

13:09

, the childcare and early learning issues. Um,

13:12

she, and , and Senator Tim Kane , uh

13:14

, released a proposal , um,

13:16

basically it's a , it was a rewrite of

13:19

the childcare and preschool sections

13:21

, um , compared to what we saw back

13:24

in December and their

13:27

hopes by, by rewriting, it was

13:29

having it be something that was

13:31

more tenable, especially for Senator mansion

13:34

and Senator cinema , a lot of the moderate Democrats

13:37

and , um , by doing so that

13:40

childcare and preschool would be included in

13:42

any sort of budget reconciliation

13:45

package with 50 votes that

13:47

might, you know, come up over the

13:49

summer. The,

13:51

the new bill , uh , changes were

13:54

overall really great. Uh , so I'll

13:56

it , a lot of it was dedicated funding for

13:59

the childcare and development block grant or

14:01

CCD B G . That is the primary source

14:04

of federal funding. Uh , 72

14:06

billion, I believe over five years

14:09

, um, is what it was trying to look

14:11

at, which is a huge increase when we look at

14:13

, um, you know, what it is currently in

14:16

addition to that though , um, there's also funding for

14:18

head start . Um , some other purposes,

14:20

one of the innovative items

14:22

that I saw in , in the rewrite

14:25

had to do with , um, wage supplement

14:28

grants. So essentially , um,

14:30

they decided to take great

14:32

things that we're seeing with the American rescue plan

14:35

and the stabilization grants that a lot of states

14:37

are , are dispersing now. And they're

14:39

trying to capitalize on the success of

14:41

that. Um, I think fortunately

14:44

through , um, not only our advocacy,

14:46

but the advocacy of a lot of providers

14:48

, um, the concern about

14:50

wages has been, I think definitely

14:53

heard by , uh , a lot of members

14:55

of Congress. And , uh

14:57

, the concern of course, is that, you know,

14:59

if there's gonna be an increase in wages , um

15:02

, for childcare staff, there needs to

15:04

be federal funding and support to make that

15:06

happen because a lot of providers just don't have the

15:09

profit margins to make this

15:11

happen. This is already a very , um,

15:13

heavy labor intensive industry.

15:16

And , uh, there's just not a lot

15:18

of room in the budgets of childcare providers

15:21

to get those substantial increases,

15:24

to compensation that people wanna see. Um,

15:26

so what these , uh, uh

15:29

, compensation grants would do is essentially

15:31

do very function very similarly to

15:33

the stabilization grants, give

15:36

the money to the providers first, so

15:38

that they have that money and are able to spend

15:40

it on compensation, which we think is

15:43

a much more sustainable approach to raising

15:45

compensation in wages. So

15:48

, um, all this to say that

15:50

, uh, the bill has been

15:53

rewritten for the childcare and preschool sections,

15:56

but we don't know . Um , well , we don't know a

15:58

lot of things . We don't know if budget reconciliation

16:00

is gonna happen at all . And

16:02

if it does happen, we don't know

16:05

if childcare is going to be included.

16:08

We have heard a lot, we've been monitoring

16:10

the conversations and , and speeches from

16:13

Senator mansion. Um,

16:15

and there seems to be some back and forth on

16:17

whether or not items related to what

16:19

they call the care economy. Um,

16:22

that includes childcare that also includes

16:24

other types of care as well , um,

16:26

would be included Senator

16:29

mansion. And some others think that

16:31

those types of items might be

16:33

better suited for something by person . Um,

16:37

however, I think the other side of that

16:39

is, you know, could we get more funding, more

16:42

childcare funding through the 50 vote , uh

16:44

, budget reconciliation process , um,

16:47

you know, the , the answers to these are

16:50

well above us. <laugh> and , and I think , uh

16:52

, more negotiations need to happen on

16:54

Capitol hill. Um , but all this to

16:56

say, there is a small

16:58

chance that childcare would be included

17:01

in budget reconciliation if it were to happen. Um,

17:03

but it's not necessarily a great chance.

17:06

Well, and I think that, I mean that, I appreciate

17:08

that update. Actually. That's a nice overview

17:10

of kind of where things stand still in the

17:12

conversation still being worked through, you

17:15

know, at a federal level. But I think one

17:18

of the things that you guys have

17:20

clearly stated in all of your studies

17:22

and findings is look in

17:24

order for us to keep childcare

17:26

moving forward and sustained.

17:29

There has to be long term commitment

17:31

from the government to, to fund and

17:34

to , um, you know, stabilize it cause

17:36

a lot of the C you know, resources that

17:38

you've mentioned earlier are temporary,

17:40

right? Like there's money there. It's still

17:42

being deployed, but it's, it's

17:45

on a clock and it's gonna run out. I

17:47

think some of those , um, those

17:49

streams run into 2023,

17:52

maybe early 2024. But

17:54

as of right now, that's

17:56

kind of the runway we see with, you

17:59

know, federal funding for

18:01

the childcare industry. Yeah,

18:03

Yeah. And that stabilization funding, which we

18:05

know is incredibly important for providers

18:07

across the country , um , and has

18:09

, is really helping to prop up a lot

18:11

of businesses around the country. It

18:13

does have to be completely liquidated by

18:16

September of 2023 . And

18:18

so we have been articulating that

18:21

as the, the timeline

18:24

that Congress has to get

18:26

something across the finish line. And

18:30

yeah, we we've been educating lawmakers

18:32

that once that funding gets sort of pulled out

18:34

from under the rug from providers , um,

18:37

there's a , there's a big risk to

18:39

the industry. And so we're hoping for

18:41

some sort of solution, whether it's

18:43

through budget reconciliation or something

18:46

by partisan, which, you know, that's the

18:48

other thing is that if budget reconciliation doesn't

18:50

work out for childcare, it doesn't mean

18:52

that there can't be a solution. We have

18:54

seen Republicans actually voice

18:57

their support or increased

18:59

investments for childcare and recognize that

19:01

that needs to happen. Um, actually

19:03

there was , um, recently a letter from

19:06

five Republican senators and it

19:08

was led by Senator Burr , who is the ranking

19:10

member on the help committee. And

19:13

, uh, they came out for their support of

19:15

doubling CC D B G within five

19:17

years. Um, not necessarily the

19:19

funding, we were hoping to get out of a budget reconciliation

19:22

bill , but at least they are coming to the table to

19:24

, um , recognize that there needs

19:26

to be a solution. And so we

19:29

are hopeful that at the very least

19:31

budget reconciliation doesn't work out, that

19:34

something can be done before the end of

19:36

this year , um , to ensure

19:38

that , um , the industry gets the funding

19:40

that it needs.

19:41

Yeah. And that's a positive sign , at least, at least

19:43

from talking with you last time and hearing you talk again

19:45

today, even though it's still a work in progress, seeing

19:47

some bipartisan support and people reaching

19:50

across the aisle to both identify Hey

19:52

childcare. And that in this industry

19:54

is extremely important to our country

19:57

and our economy, let's go

19:59

figure it out. And I , and I think Jake,

20:01

as part of like the work that you guys are

20:03

doing, you know, on the , on the national funding,

20:06

one of the things that has come out of that, and you made reference

20:08

to it a little bit ago, talking about, you know, staffing

20:11

comp compensation in the industry that

20:14

you guys have also been working, you

20:16

know , in parallel with this, of doing some

20:18

studies around staffing,

20:21

the challenges that we're seeing in the industry

20:23

with staffing right now, and you , you

20:26

guys just recently released a report

20:28

, uh , or a study on this. And, and

20:30

it , you know, I wanna talk specifically about that

20:32

because it , it really caught our attention around

20:35

some of the findings that you guys had where

20:37

, you know , I think 52% of providers

20:39

, um , over the last couple of years were

20:41

forced to serve fewer children because

20:43

of staffing shortages and , and 37%

20:46

of providers that you guys work work

20:48

with or surveyed had a longer

20:51

than normal waiting list because it just couldn't enroll

20:54

families. Can you just talk a

20:56

little bit about this study and

20:58

what the Genesis of the study was,

21:00

how you guys approached the study

21:03

and then maybe we'll get into some of the findings.

21:05

I , there was, I think about four or five

21:08

takeaways that I made note of about

21:10

things you guys are seeing certain states

21:12

do that are proving successful, but

21:14

let's start with the study itself. How did you guys start

21:16

the study? What did the mechanics look like to

21:18

kind of pull this information together?

21:21

Yeah. So one thing that I was hearing

21:23

in a lot from our members was

21:26

about the , the staffing crisis in childcare

21:29

. And, you know, there's a , there's a staffing shortage

21:31

in a number of industries and we're hearing about it

21:33

on the news. Um, but childcare

21:35

is experiencing it , um, probably

21:39

worse than most. Um, a lot of

21:41

this is because it , it was, there was already

21:43

high turnover even before the pandemic.

21:45

This is a , a field where , um , compensation

21:48

is, is low and , um,

21:50

that, and it's a very demanding job. And

21:52

, you know, between a mix of those things, it

21:55

was leading to high turnover and

21:57

then the pandemic happens. And , um,

21:59

there have been a number of , um,

22:01

early childhood professionals that may

22:03

have retired or have chosen to go

22:06

work elsewhere to make more money , um,

22:09

which, you know, you can make a lot more money

22:11

doing a lot of other jobs than being in

22:13

childcare. And so , uh, but

22:15

I think what , what was really concerning of course

22:18

is that now , um , this was actually

22:20

inhibiting the function of

22:23

programs and there are entire classrooms

22:26

that are being not utilized

22:28

and are essentially closed because

22:30

there is not a teacher

22:32

or a , a staff person for them

22:34

to hire. And so , um, I

22:37

think with this report, our, our

22:39

approach was really two things that we wanted to

22:41

do. One is we know that

22:44

states , uh, there are many states

22:46

around the country who are at least attempting

22:48

to , um , alleviate the staffing

22:50

shortage with a number of innovative policy

22:53

solutions. And, and we know that one

22:55

thing that states need right now are

22:57

ideas. Uh, what , what are other states

22:59

are doing? What , uh , what's working well,

23:01

what's not working well. And so part

23:04

of this was just wanting to compile

23:06

some of those ideas into one

23:09

resource to share with state policy

23:11

makers about these ideas that are happening around the

23:13

country. I think the other

23:15

piece of this report, though, that is really,

23:18

really crucial , uh , for policymakers,

23:20

especially to understand is

23:22

that the workforce issue is

23:24

not necessarily caused by just one

23:26

thing. Um, but it is actually

23:28

a multi-pronged issue that's gonna require

23:31

a multi-pronged solution compensation

23:34

absolutely is, is probably one

23:37

of the biggest drivers of the shortage, but

23:39

we also know that there are a number of other

23:42

topics and categories that need to be addressed.

23:44

And that compensation alone is not necessarily

23:46

going to get us , um, to, to where

23:48

we wanna be in terms of hiring. So

23:51

we tried to weave together the

23:54

, the narrative of this , uh

23:56

, workforce shortage, which of course includes

23:58

compensation, but it also includes

24:01

educational support and career development.

24:04

Um, it includes hiring processes.

24:07

I think , uh , for me, one of the things that,

24:09

that really <laugh> bother

24:12

me the most when it comes to , uh

24:14

, the , the staffing crisis is that when they,

24:16

when providers do find someone that they can

24:18

hire , um, that person sometimes

24:21

, uh , is unable to

24:23

work for one month, two

24:25

month , two months, sometimes even longer,

24:28

all because they can't get their background check

24:30

back in time from the state , something that's

24:33

completely outta their control. I

24:35

mean, if, if that were me, if I were applying

24:37

for a job that, that wasn't paying that much. And

24:40

then on top of that, I couldn't even start the

24:42

job for another two

24:44

to three months or, you know, and sometimes the

24:46

backlogs on those background checks can be even

24:48

longer. I'm I am going

24:50

to find another job. I need to support myself somehow

24:53

during that time. And if I'm unable to

24:55

work, that's a huge barrier right

24:57

there. Um, subsidy

24:59

policy as well. We know that subsidy reimbursal

25:02

rates are incredibly low. So we really

25:04

tried to tie all of this into a

25:06

single narrative to really , um

25:08

, educate states that there are

25:11

a number of , uh , solutions

25:13

that they need to be thinking about in

25:15

order to help alleviate this problem.

25:18

Yeah. And those, and you hit the, kind

25:20

of the, the points that I pulled out of the

25:23

study. When I read through it, there was, you

25:25

know, about five different points. And I wanted

25:27

to see if you could share, like,

25:29

just from your findings, some of the

25:31

states or things that you're seeing in terms of

25:34

ideas that, that have

25:36

some traction and have some momentum to

25:38

actually help in those areas. So the , the first one you've mentioned it

25:40

a few times, which is, I , I think probably

25:43

the most obvious one is the compensation

25:45

component. You know, we're

25:47

losing quality, you know , uh

25:50

, professionals in our industry, and we're not recruiting

25:53

new professionals in some

25:55

ways, because of the compensation is just not

25:57

competitive across, you know, other industries.

26:00

Can you talk about like, are there some states that

26:02

have found some ways to overcome that hurdle and

26:04

any examples you can give that you guys are finding

26:07

like, Hey, that's a nice model. That's on the right track.

26:11

Yeah . So through, and , and I'll

26:13

start off by saying a lot of this was done through

26:16

the , um , APA funding, the American

26:18

rescue plan act funding and , and the other stabilization

26:20

funding that has been given to states since

26:23

the pandemic. So we always say that

26:25

because as we discussed earlier, you

26:27

know, this is temporary funding. And if, if we're

26:29

really looking for long-term solutions, then

26:32

the federal government is gonna need to step up

26:34

to make sure that funding continues. Um,

26:36

but a lot of states have been looking

26:39

into ways to , uh , compensate

26:41

the workforce without necessarily making it

26:43

a mandate , um, from providers.

26:45

And by doing that , um, or many of

26:47

these solutions have involved some

26:50

sort of bonus pay or compensation

26:53

grants that states are offering.

26:55

So a number of states have done this. Um,

26:58

I think, you know, one of the earlier states we've we

27:00

saw do this was Georgia. Um,

27:02

I think was one of the first ones and they offered , uh

27:04

, what they called these power payments for the

27:06

workforce. Um, it was basically a

27:09

$1,000 bonus. Um, and actually since

27:11

then, Georgia has now offered multiple

27:14

of these bonuses. Um, that has

27:16

been really helpful to just again

27:18

, um, having that additional

27:20

, um, salary add

27:23

on which not only will help recruit

27:25

more staff, but at least retain

27:27

staff. If they know that there's a bonus, that's

27:29

gonna be coming down the pipe that that's

27:31

, that's an incentive perhaps for, for

27:33

staff to say , um , since

27:36

then we've seen a number of other states also step

27:38

up , um, a lot of like $1,000

27:40

bonuses, similar to Georgia. Some states have provided

27:43

even more than that. So , um , Alabama

27:45

, um , made a commitment to do eight quarterly

27:48

payments of $1,500

27:50

for full time staff . So, you

27:52

know, added together that something like $12,000,

27:55

you know, increase to their salary over

27:58

a period of two years. And I think by

28:00

making it quarterly, again, it really helps with

28:02

that retention because then the worker

28:04

knows that, you know, at the, at some

28:06

point in the quarter, and then the next quarter in the next quarter,

28:08

they'll get that bonus for , for sticking around

28:11

longer, which is really helpful for programs.

28:14

Um, I think probably the biggest announcement we've

28:16

heard recently came outta Washington DC

28:18

. Um , and they are gonna be sending

28:21

10 to $14,000

28:23

bonus checks to full-time

28:25

staff. Um , they're also doing bonus

28:27

checks , uh , for part-time staff for

28:29

, uh , five to $7,000. Um,

28:32

so it's really great that they're recognizing part-time

28:34

staff as well. Um, but a number

28:36

of states have done bonus pay initiatives,

28:38

and we hope that more states do that or really

28:40

think about how they can , um , offer

28:42

that. And, and kind of one recommendation

28:45

I would add to that is anything the state can do

28:47

to help again with their retention component

28:49

, um, because these workers definitely

28:51

deserve bonus pay and then, and then

28:53

leave a couple months later and , and

28:55

that's never necessarily helpful. So any , any

28:58

way that the state could set it up to , um,

29:01

really help incentivize the

29:03

worker to stick around and

29:05

still access those benefits, that would be really

29:07

helpful. Um, and

29:09

then some states actually have launched specifically

29:12

, uh , recruiting grants. So

29:14

, um, states like , uh , Iowa

29:17

and New Jersey have a recruitment and retention

29:19

bonus. So that means , um,

29:21

if this is a new hire, they can , they

29:23

get an extra thousand dollars , um

29:25

, for being a new hire. So we think that's a really

29:28

good idea of helping to attract new

29:30

talent as well.

29:31

Have the states to your, to your knowledge,

29:34

Jake have, have the states made it easy

29:36

for those grants and those bonus payments

29:39

and those , um, you know, subsidies

29:41

to be easily accessible. Like, do they

29:43

get paid directly to the staff at the

29:45

centers or do they flow through the

29:48

provider and then get handed? And,

29:50

and I guess in your experience, is there a

29:52

best practice or a preference, or as

29:54

long as the money's there, it's good either way.

29:57

So the answer is both, we've seen states

30:00

have it directly paid to the

30:02

provider from the state or to the

30:05

employee, I should say, from the state. Um,

30:07

and , uh , the provider may need to give some

30:10

information or, you know, might need to,

30:12

you know , still do things on their end. Um , but

30:14

then there's also been weight , uh, bonuses

30:17

that have gone through the provider . And

30:19

then the provider will, you know, has

30:21

to maybe sign an atta station or , or

30:24

some sort of agreement. And then , um

30:26

, they have some leeway on, on how, and

30:28

when that money gets spent , um, you

30:30

know, we would definitely be more supportive

30:33

of that approach simply because each

30:36

business is sort of trying

30:38

out their own solution

30:41

to help recruit and retain staff.

30:43

And I think sort of whatever you can do

30:46

to give businesses that flexibility, or

30:48

make sure that there's no duplication of

30:50

efforts or, you know, would

30:52

, would always be helpful, but that said any,

30:56

any of this is helpful if it goes directly to

30:58

the employee, that is, that is fine too,

31:00

because at the end of the day, just making

31:03

sure that something is happening to help

31:05

, um , incentivize people to

31:07

stay or, or come into the field

31:09

is really the ultimate goal. But , um, I

31:11

think I just, I'm always the type of person that

31:13

you wanna avoid duplication and,

31:16

and wanna make things as efficient as possible.

31:18

And I think , um, you know, there's

31:21

ways to have it run through the provider and then

31:23

the provider can show on the back ends

31:25

that , um, they have, you know, done

31:28

the right steps that the state wants them

31:30

to take . Um , but they at least have flexibility

31:32

in, in getting there

31:34

In how they do that. And you guys have also found like

31:36

one of the other, you know, kind of findings

31:39

from your study was around states

31:41

that are doing a good job around educational

31:43

support and career development, because

31:46

we do hear that a lot as well. And you've mentioned

31:48

this a few times and I think rightly so

31:50

compensation is extremely important. Like

31:52

we need to pay our professionals

31:55

and quality workers , uh , the right

31:57

wage, but that's not always everything

31:59

culture inside of a , the four walls of

32:01

a childcare program are really important. And , and

32:03

what the mission that they're on the

32:06

team that they're a part of, we've heard a lot of providers

32:08

talk about that, but also just

32:10

the career tracking and the career pathing.

32:12

You've seen some states do some

32:15

interesting things around that. Can you speak to any examples

32:17

that you guys have found on that area?

32:19

Yeah, so we, and it's a collective,

32:21

we , uh , need to have a conversation about

32:24

the fact that this is not only a low pay

32:26

job, but it's very demanding, not

32:28

in term , not only in terms of beyond the

32:30

day, but in the requirements

32:32

that these , uh , workers have to go

32:35

through. And , um , in order to,

32:37

you know, there's pathways

32:40

that they have to achieve and there's course

32:42

there's extra coursework there's , um

32:44

, in some cases they might need to attain

32:47

a bachelor's degree to get

32:49

to the next level and, and , and

32:51

try to, you know, become a lead teacher or,

32:53

you know, whatever it is they're trying to do. Um,

32:55

and these are burdens and, and sometimes

32:58

not only time burdens, but financial

33:00

burdens, there's an expectation that the

33:03

childcare worker , um , pays for these in

33:05

an already low paying job. It, we

33:07

need to have an honest conversation about that, but

33:09

at the same time, quality is important.

33:12

And we do wanna make sure that those

33:14

that are working with their children and are educating

33:16

them , um, do have the experience

33:19

and the knowledge necessary to make sure that this

33:21

is a , a high quality environment. So

33:23

what we've, what a number of states have been doing have

33:26

they've been trying to offer , um,

33:29

flexibility or alternative

33:31

pathways to make it more

33:33

accessible for childcare workers

33:36

to move up a career ladder. Um,

33:38

one example , um, is coming

33:40

out of Massachusetts, or at least they

33:42

announced it and, and we're looking forward to it.

33:45

Um, they are hoping to have a

33:48

, a career pathway that's rooted in experience

33:51

rather than just in , um , degrees

33:54

and credentialing, because we know that experience

33:56

is a , a , a huge factor when

33:58

it comes to , uh , serving children. And

34:01

in some cases , um , it , it probably

34:03

matters even more having that experience. And

34:05

so, you know, essentially Massachusetts

34:07

is asking the question, how can we translate

34:10

that experience , um, into,

34:13

you know, hours or into coursework

34:15

, um, in a way that makes

34:17

sense , uh , that is still good for children,

34:20

but enables , uh , providers that

34:22

do have that experience to move up later

34:25

. Um, we've seen states like

34:27

, um , Colorado Del Delaware, Oregon, and

34:29

North Carolina, they're experimenting with

34:31

internships. So , um, this

34:33

is sort of a , a way for , uh

34:35

, workers to start they're

34:38

on the job . Um, you know, training

34:40

and experience, and having this being incorporated

34:43

into an internship that might then

34:45

lead to a , uh , a

34:47

child development associate , uh

34:49

, or CDA as we like to call it in

34:52

the field. Um, those sorts

34:54

of , um, uh , initiatives,

34:56

in addition to scholarships, we've seen some

34:58

states offer scholarships for

35:00

associates, bachelors and master's degree because

35:03

I'm of the opinion that that burden should not

35:05

be on the worker. And it would be great if,

35:07

if states could really pick up the tab on that. Um,

35:10

but, but those sorts of initiatives are incredibly

35:12

helpful and that really boosts the morale,

35:15

right? When it it's a big difference

35:17

when , uh , you, when we're

35:20

talking about a low paying job, and

35:22

then you suddenly have to do extra work,

35:24

so you get low pay , but when

35:26

the state comes out and says, well, we're gonna pay

35:28

for this, or, or we're going to offer these

35:30

flexibilities , um, that, that

35:32

is a big boost to morale. The , the

35:34

last thing I'm gonna say on this , um, and something

35:37

that I hope gets talked about more loan

35:39

forgiveness. I mean, there's been a number of

35:41

childcare workers that have already taken out loans to

35:43

get , um, you know, the , an associates

35:46

or bachelors or masters . Um,

35:48

and I think we need to talk about loan forgiveness

35:51

with our, our childcare workers. I know

35:53

that , um, that is something that

35:55

is being explored by a few states

35:57

right now, this idea for , uh , loan forgiveness.

36:00

That was , um , it was actually introduced , um

36:02

, in a , in a Massachusetts bill recently.

36:05

Uh , we'll see if that gets signed into law and actually implemented,

36:08

but , um , yeah, I really don't

36:10

think that childcare workers should be paying out of

36:12

pocket for , um , doing

36:14

something that we know is a

36:16

, uh , public service that is desperately needed.

36:19

Yeah. That's needed for the economy. I , I totally

36:21

agree with that. And I love what you were saying about what

36:24

Massachusetts is doing around. Like, I , I

36:26

don't, it's almost like an apprenticeship program or

36:28

at least giving you credit for being

36:30

in the classroom, doing the work and

36:33

learning, you know, under somebody who's, you

36:35

know, got the right certifications and can pull you

36:37

along as opposed to the extra time

36:39

and financial resource to go to

36:42

school. And maybe that's always gonna be a

36:44

part of it, but I, I like the direction

36:46

that is heading that that resonates to

36:48

me, like as something that's common sense

36:51

makes sense. Let's make it easier, great

36:53

recruiting tool for providers to be able

36:55

to say, Hey, coming into the industry, you've

36:58

got a path to progress your career

37:00

without a huge outlay

37:02

of additional financial resource on your side or

37:05

time outside of your already super,

37:07

you know, intensive job. Uh,

37:10

so I , I like that you guys also

37:12

found, I know the subsidy piece is another

37:14

one of these buckets that you guys have found

37:17

around the system hasn't

37:19

been perfect for a long time, but

37:22

the ability or the need to

37:24

streamline how subsidy programs

37:26

work, how it compensates

37:29

providers, how it properly subsidizes

37:31

families in need . Can you , can you just talk about that piece and

37:33

how you see the subsidy component

37:35

playing into the , the staffing challenges?

37:39

Yeah, so we know that , um,

37:42

subsidy reimbursement in most

37:44

states right now is just too

37:47

low. Um, and, and there's no , there's

37:49

no other way to say it, it , it , there are

37:51

states that are reimbursing subsidy

37:53

, um, at extremely low

37:55

levels that I, that do one of two things.

37:58

Um, they're either so low that providers have

38:00

no incentive to accept families

38:03

utilizing financial assistance, or

38:06

, um, for those that do,

38:08

they're essentially doing so at a loss,

38:10

or they're unable to , uh , recuperate,

38:13

you know, the, the money that they need

38:15

, um, in order to make

38:17

these larger structural changes such

38:19

as, you know, better compensation. Um,

38:21

you know, one example in addition to

38:24

the low rates, I should say , um, it's

38:27

also very unstable funding. So

38:30

a lot of states, I would say the , the vast majority

38:32

of states are still reimbursing based off

38:34

of a child's attendance. Um, well

38:36

, that is really hard because, you

38:39

know, children don't necessarily come every

38:41

day . And , uh , that means that it's an unstable

38:43

source of funding, whereas the

38:46

provider could, you know, easily just save

38:48

that slot for a private pay family and

38:51

still be able to get the money there

38:53

. Um, but when , you know, tying it back to

38:55

the workforce, and I think this is an important part for

38:57

, uh , policy makers to understand, even

39:00

if the child is not there, the worker still

39:02

is, and if we

39:04

want this funding at all, to

39:06

really help support that worker's

39:09

, um, you know, salary, then

39:11

it , then it needs to follow the worker, not

39:13

necessarily the child's attendance. So

39:16

one thing we've been pushing for is to , um,

39:18

start paying on enrollments rather

39:20

than attendance, make it a more stable funding

39:23

stream. Not only will you help

39:25

those providers that accept subsidy to

39:27

recuperate some of that funding that can go

39:29

towards investments in their program and staffing.

39:33

Um, but you also are going to incentivize more providers

39:35

to potentially accept families on subsidy.

39:37

You might be giving subsidy families

39:40

more options as a result of, of

39:42

doing that. We have seen a lot of

39:44

states do this , um , temporarily, at

39:46

least. So California, Colorado, Kentucky,

39:49

Nevada , um , have all

39:51

temporarily, at least paid on enrollment.

39:54

We have seen some states , um,

39:56

look into doing this permanently. Um,

39:59

and there is some legislation in those states. So

40:01

New Jersey and Massachusetts has legislation

40:03

to make that , um , a permanent change. I

40:06

will say this was an issue in New

40:08

Jersey at the end of last year's session.

40:11

Um, and actually the governor , uh , veto

40:13

did the bill, even though it passed , um,

40:16

uh , pretty much unanimously out

40:18

of both chambers, but the reason

40:21

for the veto was the concern about consistent

40:23

funding . And so this is where we go back to why

40:26

the federal funding is important,

40:29

because if states don't have the confidence

40:31

that there is going to be enough money to

40:33

make these changes, it's a lot more

40:36

difficult, but what states can at

40:38

least do for now is , uh, you

40:41

know, at least it's fine to make these temporary,

40:43

you know, we would say temporary changes

40:45

are better than no changes at all. Some

40:48

states have thought through this well, so

40:50

, um, Georgia, I'm gonna mention Georgia again. Um,

40:53

they made an announcement last year

40:55

that they are going to increase reimbursement

40:57

rates by 15% across the

40:59

board for all categories through

41:02

, uh , September, 2020 , which

41:05

is the , uh , last date that they can use

41:07

that funding. We really

41:09

encourage states to try to maximize

41:12

, even if it's gonna be temporary to maximize

41:14

, um, the, the amount of time

41:16

, um, that they can, you know, promote

41:18

a policy for, because that helps on

41:21

the provider side for providers to

41:23

plan and then adapt to

41:25

that policy. So now at the

41:27

very least in Georgia providers know that they

41:29

can rely on that for at least two

41:32

years, which is helpful , um

41:34

, because that's two years worth of enrollment.

41:36

That's two years worth of a policy changes

41:38

at the business level , um, that can at

41:40

least help align with the state's

41:42

goals of, of getting more low income families serve

41:45

Well. And then to your point about tying that to

41:48

that staffing component, if a , if a

41:50

provider feels comfortable with that consistent

41:53

influx of subsidy and an

41:55

increase in subsidy, or at least the consistency

41:57

of it, then they're going to be more

41:59

confident in their hiring practices about

42:01

being able to go and, you know, increase pay

42:04

to their existing staff or retention, and

42:06

also, you know, to up what they're able to

42:08

offer new staff as well.

42:11

Um, so I like that. And I, and I think,

42:13

you know, it's interesting, I don't know, in , in all of the work

42:16

that you guys have done around that particular topic subsidy,

42:19

if the conversation between how subsidies

42:21

work in, in early childhood

42:24

differ from the public school system, because

42:26

if I'm not mistaken, I mean, in the public school

42:28

system that that funding that comes to

42:30

the school district is not based on a

42:32

student's attendance, it's based on

42:35

enrollment, right? And so there's a distinction between

42:37

how that money flows and how it's monitored.

42:40

Yeah. And in fact, it , I , if a

42:42

public school's funding was , uh,

42:44

based on children's attendance, then

42:46

that public school would absolutely struggle and

42:49

, and might even close because

42:51

it's just so inconsistent. Um,

42:53

and especially when we talk about programs

42:56

that are serving low income families, you

42:58

know, there's a lot of data out there to suggest

43:00

that, you know, for various reasons, low income

43:03

families are, are likely to have more absences,

43:05

you know, maybe due to inconsistencies

43:07

or, or even you think of a parent's

43:09

work schedule. Right. Yeah. And, you

43:12

know , low income families often have to juggle

43:14

work schedules that are , are not nine to five.

43:16

They're actually very inconsistent and

43:18

their childcare needs are already very,

43:21

very different than the typical nine

43:23

to five schedule. And

43:26

yet you, you , you have a reimbursement

43:28

method that is, is acting

43:30

as if they would be on a regular nine to

43:32

five day to day . And so , um,

43:35

that's something that we've been trying to make, you

43:37

know, educate policy makers on. I

43:40

will say that , um, I, I don't

43:43

think a lot of lawmakers understand just how

43:45

crucial these reimbursement rates are. Um,

43:48

I don't think people , um, realize childcare

43:52

functions a lot more similarly

43:54

to healthcare in some ways, you

43:56

know, when we talk about reimbursements

43:59

and copays and, you know,

44:01

and it's a very regulated industry, much

44:03

like healthcare is in many ways childcare

44:06

providers and , and the way that the state works

44:08

with them is it's very similar to

44:11

healthcare providers. And , um , you

44:13

know, the state really needs to think about

44:15

how they're supporting those childcare

44:18

providers to carry out these duties, as opposed

44:20

to just piling more on top

44:22

of them without offering the support,

44:25

or at the very least the financial support needed

44:27

for providers to reach these goals.

44:30

Yeah. And I think, you know, the

44:33

topic that you, that we're

44:35

talking about and the conversation we

44:37

talked about this on last time we had a chance to, to

44:39

talk, Jake is as hard as

44:41

the last few years have been. I

44:43

do think, you know, I was talking about this earlier today

44:45

with someone around, like, when we go through times

44:48

of like challenge or pain or adversity,

44:50

there's there's growth that happens out of that . And I

44:52

think one of the things that, that

44:55

I'm hopeful of the silver lining of

44:57

the last couple of years is the spotlight that's

44:59

shining on the industry. That's going to allow

45:02

us to really upgrade the

45:04

entire framework and foundation

45:06

of the industry. Because even though there

45:08

, it was a known challenge, pre

45:10

2020, I just don't think it

45:13

was getting the attention it needed. And there was little

45:15

cracks like death by a thousand cuts happening,

45:18

but this just really amplified

45:21

the impact of the industry and the challenges

45:23

that you know, are are present right

45:25

now. And so it's, it's amazing to

45:27

hear organizations like E C , C out

45:30

advocating, you know , for providers two

45:32

last questions. Cause I know we're , um , almost

45:35

out of time, but for , for your organization,

45:37

like number one, what's next for

45:40

you guys? Where is your focus right now? Is there

45:42

something specifically that you're focused on

45:44

and number two, like for

45:46

our audience , um, where,

45:49

what can they do like as an individual provider,

45:52

is there any recommendations you can make about

45:55

tapping into these resources or making

45:57

their voice heard any, you know, final takeaways

45:59

for, for providers listening?

46:02

Yeah. So I'll , I'll start off with your first question

46:04

about what we're focused on. Um,

46:08

the , the sustainability of all of this is

46:10

what matters. So federal funding is incredibly

46:12

important. We want to try to get

46:15

some sort of federal solution on the table and

46:17

pass by the end of the year. Because as I

46:19

mentioned before , um , the sustainability

46:21

of all of this really is contingent

46:23

upon dependent funding, but

46:26

we also want to remind states that

46:29

they can go ahead and create the

46:31

, these systems themselves, if they

46:33

care about it enough. And one state that I think

46:35

everybody should be watching right now is

46:37

New Mexico. Um, the

46:40

, the amount of policy development that

46:42

we've seen on early childhood alone in

46:44

the last three or four years from New

46:46

Mexico has been incredible. I think it's gone from

46:48

a state that's been very behind on early childhood

46:51

to potentially a leader , um,

46:53

in , in the nation for many reasons.

46:55

You know, they , it , it , the New Mexico started

46:58

off creating a new department of early childhood

47:00

that has , um , cabinet level representation

47:04

in the state. That's already a big game

47:06

changer . Suddenly you have a singular department

47:09

that is now focused on early childhood issues

47:11

and can help tie these completing

47:14

issues together. And right

47:16

now there are 14 states

47:19

that have consolidated , um,

47:21

the authority of like preschool and childcare into

47:23

one office or department. We

47:25

think that needs to happen more throughout the country

47:28

to really give that, that brain

47:30

power and attention at the department level

47:33

to solving a lot of these issues. But

47:36

then New Mexico has also , um, they

47:38

just updated their reimbursement rate setting

47:40

practice. So now they use a cost estimation

47:43

model for subsidy rates. So

47:45

instead of just looking at the price that

47:48

, um, providers are charging and,

47:50

and coming up with an average like states currently

47:52

do New Mexico looks at

47:55

how much it costs to provide

47:57

high quality care and services.

48:00

And that includes staffing. And

48:02

then they reimburse based off of

48:04

that number. And that has

48:07

led to a drastic increase, especially

48:09

for infant and toddler reimbursement rates.

48:12

On top of that, they, they lifted , um

48:14

, eligibility for financial assistance to

48:18

400% of the federal poverty line . So that's one of

48:20

the highest in the country now. Um,

48:22

so a lot of great things coming out of that state. That's

48:25

not only good for families, but great for

48:27

providers. This is on top of paying for

48:29

scholarships for the workforce and the number

48:32

of other initiatives , um , out there as well. So

48:34

I just really think everybody should be paying attention to

48:36

New Mexico providers included and

48:39

hopefully advocate for that . Oh , one last thing

48:41

on New Mexico, they are looking into

48:43

a , um, land grant tax

48:45

. They're not waiting for the federal government

48:48

to finally grant them the funding. They

48:50

are , they are finding an alternative

48:52

funding source that is from

48:54

the state that will continue to fund these

48:56

initiatives for a long time. That's

48:59

the , that's the type of state leadership that

49:01

we need in order to fix a lot of

49:04

the issues that we see in the childcare system.

49:07

Yeah, that's amazing, but it's nice to

49:09

have a case study. So I'm , I'm glad you

49:11

brought that forward, that other states

49:13

can go look at and say, what is working?

49:16

What is sustainable? And

49:18

we can go actually pull some

49:20

best practices from what they're doing. So New

49:22

Mexico is a place to go look if you're , uh

49:25

, at a state level, looking for ways to

49:27

implement some of these things Jake's talking about. Um,

49:30

and then, yeah, so for providers, Jake

49:32

with kind of like a , a parting shot, so to speak,

49:35

what can our audience do, or, or what

49:37

should they do more than being aware of

49:40

these things? Is there actual action

49:42

that they could take to have their voice heard or

49:44

be a part of the conversation?

49:46

Yes . So , um, I would say,

49:49

and I think I said this before, but I would say it again,

49:52

cause I also wanna recognize, I know that childcare providers

49:54

and business owners, they are incredibly busy at

49:56

the same time. So I know that they don't necessarily

49:58

have the , the time to dedicate to all

50:00

of these things, but there is

50:02

likely an organization in their

50:05

state or , um, you know, some

50:07

type of a consortium in their

50:09

own state that is paying attention to

50:11

these issues. So I would say get

50:13

connected. It is absolutely worth

50:15

your , uh , time and,

50:17

you know, even a fee to pay into

50:20

a childcare association because , um,

50:23

they are the ones that are advocating

50:25

for childcare providers at the

50:27

state level. And, you know, the more

50:30

providers that join those associations, the

50:32

more resources the associations have

50:34

to be able to effectively advocate

50:37

and, and make sure that they can get those issues

50:39

, um, clear to policy makers

50:41

, um, same thing nationally.

50:43

And, and most of the time you actually may

50:46

not even have to pay into a national organization.

50:48

There's a lot of ways to , uh,

50:51

to get involved. E C C

50:53

for example, I mentioned the champions

50:55

and mixed delivery calls. We are giving , um

50:57

, consistent updates about what's happening at the

50:59

federal level. We give updates about what different

51:01

states are doing. We share these resources,

51:04

we share this information , um, and it's,

51:06

it's free to join it's for anyone that's

51:09

interested. They , you know, just reach out to

51:11

us. You can email us and , and we'll find a way to get

51:13

you connected. There's a number of other national

51:15

organizations that are also doing this work that

51:17

are free to join. Um, but all

51:20

of this, you know , just paying attention

51:22

matters, learning what's happening matters because

51:25

they will also tell you when to

51:27

share your voice. Um, and

51:30

by having that sort of guidance and , and by,

51:32

you know, saying, Hey, we just need

51:34

you to, you know, pick

51:36

up the phone and , and call your legislator and, and

51:39

do this. Um, and, and really

51:41

spelling out those actions that you can take

51:44

that is incredibly helpful because

51:46

, um, you know, there's a time and a place for

51:48

, um, voices that we need

51:51

and learning about when those times and places are

51:54

goes a long way

51:55

Is really important. And we'll put, you know, for what is

51:57

worth Jake, we're gonna put your study on

51:59

staffing in the show notes, we'll

52:02

make sure and provide contact information for

52:04

E C C , but just in terms of like

52:07

somebody who wants to jump on those mixed

52:10

delivery calls or find out more, can you

52:12

just really quick give an idea of how, you

52:14

know, providers could find your organization and,

52:16

and participate in those?

52:18

Yeah. So , um, and I'll give, also feel

52:20

free to share my email address in the notes as

52:22

well. Um , because I , I help run those calls.

52:24

So you can just , uh, uh , link us directly

52:27

if you're involved at all with the national childcare

52:29

association, that's actually who we co-host

52:31

with. You could probably just follow them on

52:34

LinkedIn or, or Twitter or some other source, cuz

52:36

they do promote a link to sign up

52:38

for those calls. Um, or you can

52:40

go to our website, ECE consortium.org

52:43

. And um, we have

52:45

a contact , um, uh

52:47

, in information there as well. And

52:49

you can just reach out and say , you wanna be involved? The

52:52

calls are , um, uh , every

52:54

other Wednesday at 3:00 PM Eastern.

52:57

Um, but you don't have to attend. Uh , we

52:59

send out the , um , the

53:01

slides and the notes and we know that a lot

53:04

of people review those. Um , you know, when they get

53:06

a chance, since providers are so busy , um,

53:08

but we do try to , um , make sure

53:11

to make them accessible. We have a toolkit

53:13

that, that gives you resources on

53:15

just what's happening. So, you

53:17

know, when I was talking about , um, the rewritten

53:21

childcare and preschool components of

53:23

build back better, we, we have a summary, you

53:25

know, that's a part of those calls and it's part of our toolkit.

53:28

And so , um, yeah, feel free

53:30

to get involved and , uh , we would love

53:32

to, to have you as a part of the calls.

53:35

Yeah, that's amazing. I appreciate so

53:37

ECE consortium, if you're interested

53:40

any of this content and listening to this episode,

53:42

like reach out, go

53:44

check out their website. There's gonna

53:47

be links to the, the studies that

53:49

Jake referenced in this, in this , um , episode

53:52

in our show notes and, and get involved

53:54

because there's a lot of content, a lot of resource out

53:56

there and , and um, you know, Jake really

53:58

appreciate you taking time. Again, I just wanna remind

54:01

everybody, this is Jake Stewart with the early

54:03

care and education consortium , um,

54:06

did not disappoint Jake this content. I

54:08

think , um, you know,

54:10

so many of us in the industry who

54:12

are kind of involved in the day to day operations of

54:14

the businesses that, you know, we run or

54:17

a part of , um, maybe aren't

54:19

aware of all the work that's happening at the federal level

54:21

that you guys are doing. So really appreciate

54:24

the time, really appreciate the

54:26

content and who knows, maybe we

54:28

will have , um, like episode three

54:30

at some point in the future. So thanks so much.

54:32

Yeah. I'm looking forward to the trilogy <laugh>

54:35

and thank you as always. Um , it's always

54:37

a great conversation.

54:39

Thank you for listening to this episode

54:41

of the childcare business podcast, to

54:44

get more insights on ways to succeed in

54:46

your childcare business, make sure to hit

54:48

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54:50

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54:52

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54:54

strategies, head over to our resource

54:57

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54:59

until next time.