By Rachel Ravina
The Delaware County Daily Times

Participants of the “Recovering from the Pandemic: The Role of Child Care” roundtable inside the Willow School, an early childhood education center in Norristown, shared how the COVID-19 pandemic focused a light on the need for services and the struggles that child care centers still face.

HARRISBURG, PA (July 8, 2022) – Today, the principal partners of Early Learning Pennsylvania (ELPA), a statewide coalition of advocates focused on supporting young Pennsylvanians from birth to age five, issued the following statements regarding the final 2022-23 Pennsylvania state budget. ELPA operates four issue-based advocacy campaigns: Pre-K for PA, Start Strong PA, Childhood Begins at Home and Thriving PA.

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By Marci Lesko
The Morning Call

Working parents rely on affordable and accessible child care to stay in the workforce. Unfortunately, there is a national crisis because child care programs are unable to recruit or retain quality teachers. That staff shortage is forcing classrooms and facilities to close, limiting critical child care access.

By Madison Montag
abc27 WHTM

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — On June 21, members of the child care industry made their case at the Pennsylvania capitol for more state funding. A statewide survey showed that nine out of ten child care programs are facing staffing shortages; This is caused approximately 1,600 child care programs to close during the COVID-19 pandemic.

By Marshall Keely
abc16 WNEP

DANVILLE, Pa. — A child's early years are critical when it comes to long-term academic and social success, but a severe shortage of child development professionals is putting kids in jeopardy. It's happening all over the country.

By Kate Giammarise
90.5 WSEA

The people who care for Pennsylvania’s youngest kids are paid so little, advocates say it’s creating an industry crisis – one with reverberations across the economy.

A coalition of Pennsylvania child care and family advocacy organizations is asking state lawmakers to do something about it. They argue that low wages – and public attitudes that undervalue child care work – harm educators, families and the overall economy, which depends on accessible and affordable child care options.

Human Services Press Release

HARRISBURG (May 16, 2022) Governor Tom Wolf today announced a $98 million grant opportunity for certified child care providers to support workforce recruitment and retention. Funded by American Rescue Plan Act funding received specifically for child care providers and their critical workforce, this funding can support providers seeking to recognize staff dedication through retention bonuses and can assist with personnel development and recruitment.

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By Ximena Conde
The Philadelphia Inquirer

As someone who works in the child-care industry herself, Brooks is familiar with what providers are calling a crisis decades in the making. With tight profit margins, workers are making too little and centers are struggling to recruit and keep hires. Meanwhile, families describe spending a significant portion of their income on care for their children.

By Michael Tukeva
Stroudsburg Herald

The COVID-19 Pandemic Report Survey from the Early Learning Investment Commission and the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry that surveyed businesses about their workforce found that 54% of employers lost employees due to a lack of childcare.

By David Mekeel
Reading Eagle

Learning Ladder is serving 111 kids but could be serving many more, manager Steven Goodhart told [Senator] Schwank. The center is licensed for up to 179 kids. But because of staffing shortages, families find themselves faced with waitlists when trying to sign up for care.

By Lisa Scheid
Lancaster Online

The pandemic has exacerbated the lack of staff in a profession made up of mostly women. Low wages (in Lancaster County the median wage is $11 an hour) and lack of benefits are not new in child care, a workforce in the United States that has been trying to be treated and seen as professionals for decades.

By Mark Hiller
PA Live! Luzerne Local News

It’s no secret, early childhood centers are struggling to maintain and hire staff. Eyewitness News said on Wednesday how staffing at some centers has reached the crisis level.

Eyewitness news focuses on an effort to beef up the staff and help more families in need of childcare.

By Fontaine Glenn
WJET/YourErie.com

What is becoming a national problem is happening right here in our area. The cost for child care centers has jumped nearly 50% during the pandemic and it’s having a huge affect on parents and local child care centers.

It’s no secret that finding child care is difficult, especially now in the midst of a pandemic. Not only is it hard for the child care centers, but also for the parents.

By Miles Bryan
WHYY

….as child care providers across Pennsylvania closed their doors in response to Gov. Tom Wolf’s shutdown order last month, Godboldt, 37, had one big question on her mind — what should I do?

By Lillian Mongeau
The Hechinger Report / USA TODAY

Dominated by small businesses, the country’s child care “system” has long been at a breaking point. Child care is expensive to operate and to provide, yet families are largely left to pay for it themselves while providers eke out a living on meager profits.

To make it through coronavirus-era closures and the economic downturn, providers say they need help.

By Ed Mahon
PA Post

Child care providers across Pennsylvania face a choice in response to the state’s efforts to halt the spread of the coronavirus: Close their doors, or seek permission to stay open.

Both options present risks.

By Bill Hangley
WHYY

Centers typically rely on multiple funding streams, including government payments to families and providers in low-income areas, as well as unsubsidized “private pay” customers, most of whom have been told to stay home from work.

With those private-pay dollars draining away, providers could easily be forced to close their doors if the shutdown grows lengthy, Cooper said.

By Linda Kiesling
The New York Times

I am typing this from inside an indoor playground in Portland. We are new to town, it’s the tail end of summer and my 4-year-old daughter can’t start her new preschool until next week. It’s also raining, and our house is full of boxes.

By Kevin Mahnken
the74Million

Access to early-childhood education significantly reduces students’ chances of being placed in special education or held back in school and increases their prospects of graduating high school, according to new research published by the American Educational Research Association. The report synthesizes evidence of the lasting, long-term benefits of high-quality preschool programs, which have often been dismissed as transient.

By WCED News

Senator Jay Costa and other speakers at the kick-off rally spoke about the importance of putting adequate funding behind early childhood education.

According to the speakers, prioritizing spending on early-learning programs will save the commonwealth long-term costs because children are better prepared to graduate school on time and are well positioned to enter the workforce with good paying jobs.