Too Few Children Have Access to High Quality Early Childhood Education Programs
PHILADELPHIA (February, 12th, 2013) – PCCY’s latest report “The Bottom Line is Children: Early Care and Education in Chester County” finds that because of a lack of state investment, less than a quarter of low-and-moderate income children have access to high quality early learning programs. More than 6,000 additional seats are needed to fill the gap.
The report also points out:
- Of all licensed programs, only 15% are rated as high quality.
- The number of high quality child care seats has doubled since 2008.
- These high quality programs can only serve 6% of all young children under five.
- More than two-thirds of all families with children have both parents in the labor force, while a third of hard working families are getting assistance to help pay for child care.
Research shows that low-income and middle class children who participate in high quality early childhood education programs are more likely to graduate from high school and obtain high paying jobs.
“High quality early learning programs are essential to making sure all children start school ready to learn. Fortunately in Chester County the number of high quality seats in in private child care programs have doubled,” said Shawn Towey Child Care Policy Coordinator for PCCY. “But even with that improvement, only six percent of children under five would be able to enroll in a high quality private program.
State budget cuts have made it difficult for a majority of low-and-moderate income families to enroll their children in high quality programs. PCCY’s report finds that due to state budget cuts since 2010, 152 fewer children from working families can be enrolled in subsidized child care. That’s a ten percent reduction in access. Today, only about a quarter of eligible families are receiving any financial assistance in meeting the high cost child care.
“As affluent as Chester County is, many families are struggling to cover the costs to keep their child in a high quality program,” said Jackie Maas, Director of Tick Tock Early Learning Center in Avondale. “Pennsylvania needs stronger investments in early education to take the burden off of families.”
For Chester County families who are not eligible for child care subsidy, the costs associated with child care can make up a considerable amount of the family budget. The median cost of child care for a typical family of four with two young children is $24,700, higher than any of the other counties in southeastern Pennsylvania. A high quality center can cost significantly more. The median cost of care is similar across southeastern Pennsylvania.
“Early education programs are critical to ensure children begin school ready to learn,” said Terry Stewart, Supervisor for the Chester County Intermediate Unit. “We thank PCCY for this report. Its findings should serve as a guide to improve early education opportunities for all children across the County.”
To improve early care and education for Chester County children, PCCY recommends County leaders:
- Support the Pre-K for PA campaign with the end goal of providing high quality preschool for every 3-and-4 year old in Pennsylvania.
- Create a county-wide campaign to boost program quality that helps providers meet the one-time and long-term costs of quality improvements.
- Provide incentives to community colleges and other programs to boost offerings for adults working in child-serving fields to improve quality.
- Create a grant/loan pool from county economic development resources to assist child care facilities with capital expenses to help them improve the quality of services to children.
- Forge a partnership with other counties to advocate for the state to boost the child care subsidy for all eligible working families and reduce wait times to 30 days or less.
PCCY’s report, “The Bottom Line is Children: Early Care and Education in Chester County,” is the final report in a four-part series looking at issues affecting children in each of Philadelphia’s suburban counties. PCCY’s previous reports on education, family economic security, and child health can be viewed at www.childrenfirstpa.org/bottomlinecountyreports.