April 2023 Email Update

PARTNERSHIP LOOKS FORWARD TO 2023 PROVIDER APPRECIATION DAY

Friday, May 12 marks Child Care Provider Appreciation Day, a day to recognize and celebrate child care providers, teachers, and early educators everywhere. Celebrated the Friday before Mother’s Day every year, the day provides an opportunity to share our deep gratitude for the early childhood professionals who support the social, emotional, and physical development of our youngest children.

Be on the lookout for messages from parents and community members through Partnership communications and social media thanking child care providers for their incredible work and role in supporting Virginia’s children and families. Interested in sharing your message of thanks? Email info@vapromisepartnership.com!

More information on Provider Appreciation Day and other ways to get involved can be found through Partnership member organization Child Care Aware on their Provider Appreciation Day website, providerappreciation.org. 

PRESIDENT BIDEN, MEMBERS OF CONGRESS ANNOUCE CHILD CARE INITIATIVES

Earlier this month, President Biden signed a new executive order aimed at both increasing access to quality child care and long-term care as well as improving support for care workers and family caregivers. The executive order includes over 50 directives to federal agencies to make care more affordable and accessible, boost job quality for early educators, and engage affected communities. 

Among a number of provisions, the executive order directs the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to consider actions to reduce or eliminate families’ co-payments for child care; take steps to increase the pay and benefits for Head Start teachers and staff; and streamline the process for tribal communities to construct or improve early childhood facilities. More information on the order can be found through a White House fact sheet here. 

Just over a week after the executive order was signed, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA-03) joined Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) in reintroducing the Child Care for Working Families Act. The bill aims to make child care more affordable for working families, improve the quality and supply of child care, support higher wages for child care workers, and better support Head Start programs. 

“I hear about the child care crisis everywhere I go in Virginia,” said Senator Kaine. “Parents in every community are being locked out of the workforce because they can’t find affordable care for their kids, while critical workers who are passionate about child care are getting squeezed out of their field because of low wages. This issue is holding our families, workers, and economy back and it’s time for Congress to do more to address it."

More information about the legislation can be found through a press release on the bill's reintroduction here. 

DID YOU KNOW?

Virginia voters agree that policymakers must do more to #InvestInChildCare! Read more on the Partnership's December 2022 poll through our website here. 

PERSPECTIVES ON CHILD CARE

Parents, providers, and business leaders from across state shared their stories on the importance of supporting a strong early learning system. Read the full storybook through our website here.

Interested in sharing your story? Contact us as info@vapromisepartnership.com! 

CHILD CARE IN THE NEWS

• NBC29 | Child care costs at an all-time high in Virginia
• Vox | Fixing the child care crisis starts with understanding it
• The New York Times | Biden Signs Executive Order That Aims to Make Child Care Cheaper
• Fox Business | Staffing shortages, low pay, continue to challenge child care industry
• Fortune | Childcare is so expensive that families are spending a quarter of their income on it
• Business Insider | Why America's childcare system is crumbling and its workers are begging for help
• Axios | What we get wrong about the "care economy"Forbes | Why Investing In Child Care Strengthens The Economy

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