Andy Green, right, executive director of United Way Clinton County, talks about child-care issues during a roundtable discussion at the Grow Clinton office on Thursday, April 4. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
CLINTON, Iowa – How can child care services be improved and expanded in this community? That was the main question discussed during a roundtable meeting on the issue held Thursday, April 4, at the Grow Clinton office. About a dozen people from the community – most from child care businesses and agencies that offer child […]
CLINTON, Iowa – How can child care services be improved and expanded in this community?That was the main question discussed during a roundtable meeting on the issue held Thursday, April 4, at the Grow Clinton office.About a dozen people from the community – most from child care businesses and agencies that offer child care and after-school services – gathered to share concerns, challenges and look for possible solutions.The meeting was also held to discuss some of the findings from a recent child care market analysis report presented by the group First Children’s Finance. The FCF is a national nonprofit organization that provides loans and business development assistance to child care businesses serving low- and moderate-income families.)That organization presented a child care market analysis of the Iowa communities of Clinton, Camanche and Andover last December in a meeting at Grow Clinton.Some of its key findings were: Many parents in the region are having problems finding quality child care options; child care centers are having problems finding employees; and many employers are having trouble hiring workers because of the lack of child care. (That 82-page report can be found here.)“Child care is economic development. It’s just as important as infrastructure, housing and schools,” Angie Rae Duncan, a senior business development specialist with FCF, which is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, said at that December meeting.At Thursday’s meeting, many child care operators said they continue to face challenges. Many of them center on finding and keeping employees. Those problems often center on low wages, the job is tougher than many people expect and the jobs require training and background checks.The problem of finding enough child care options in the community is also impacting area businesses.Jenny Holm, director of member and community relations at Grow Clinton, and the host of Thursday’s meeting, gave this example: During a recent visit to a local manufacturer, leaders said the company was looking for a solution to the child care problems because some of its employees cannot work required shifts because of the lack of child care.“They said (their owner) corporation is telling them to get this cleaned up,” said Ms. Holm.Other business leaders in the community are reporting problems getting employees to work second-shift jobs because of the lack of child care, added Stacy Borgeson, director of workforce development and talent attraction at Grow Clinton.One possible solution is to start a program where employers and the state government provide matching funds to help people find child care.Such a program – called the Employee Child Care Assistance Partnership Program – is now law in the State of Kentucky. Under it, if employers pitch in for their employees’ child care costs, the state will match the contributions. For example, if a workers’ child care costs are $1,200 a month, the employer could put in $400 a month and the state of Kentucky another $400, cutting the employee’s child care bill by two-thirds.People at Thursday’s meeting were given information on the Kentucky program and asked to look it over and give their views on the program at future meetings.“This (program) sounds like a 401(k) for child care,” said Ms. Borgeson.Ms. Holm said she has sent information on that program to Iowa state Sen. Chris Cournoyer in hopes Iowa can develop and approve a similar program to help parents get financial help for child care.Another suggestion discussed Thursday was to form a Facebook group, perhaps called the Clinton Child Care Committee, so more people from the child care community can express their views, concerns and possible solutions to child care issues.Several people at the meeting said many of those people may not have attended Thursday’s event because they were busy at work with staffing issues. Also, people who offer child care out of their homes often cannot attend such meetings because they are busy looking after children.Many attendees at Thursday’s meeting, though, said they saw the event as a good first step for the community.“Having everybody in this room, talking about this, is way more than anybody else is doing,” said Andy Green, executive director of United Way Clinton County.The next child care roundtable meeting at Grow Clinton is scheduled for noon July 11.
