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March-April 2026 PA Child Care Staffing Crisis Survey

Complete Survey by APRIL 15, 2026

The Start Strong PA Campaign is collecting information from child care directors and owners about the on-going staffing crisis and participation in the Child Care Staff Recruitment and Retention (CCSRR) Program.

The information collected will be used to demonstrate the continued need for our 2026-2027 state budget to increase funding for child care so the workforce is paid a livable wage and programs can keep classrooms open for working families.

1.Child Care Program Information (if multisite, please fill out a separate survey for each location)(Required.)
2.Do you have OPEN (unfilled) STAFF POSITIONS?(Required.)
3.How many OPEN (unfilled) STAFF POSITIONS do you have? (if none answer 0)(Required.)
4.Do you have CLOSED classrooms?(Required.)
5.How many classrooms (of each type) are closed in your program? (if none answer 0)(Required.)
6.Do you have UNDERENROLLED classrooms (operating below room capacity due to staffing)?(Required.)
7.How many UNDERENROLLED classrooms do you have? (if none answer 0)(Required.)
8.Are you having challenges RECRUITING (hiring) teachers to work at your program?(Required.)
9.Check ALL that apply. What are your challenges in RECRUITING (hiring) teachers?(Required.)
10.Please comment with any additional challenges you are having RECRUITING teachers.
11.Are you having challenges RETAINING teachers (keeping them from leaving) your program?(Required.)
12.Check ALL that apply. What are your challenges in RETAINING teachers (keeping current staff)?(Required.)
13.Please comment with any additional challenges you are having RETAINING teachers.
14.How many more children could you enroll if fully staffed? (if your site is fully enrolled answer 0)(Required.)
15.Did you apply for the recruitment and retention bonus for any of your staff?(Required.)
16.If yes, how many applications did you submit? (if none answer 0)(Required.)
17.Did you have any challenges in completing the application?(Required.)
18.If yes, please describe the challenges in completing the application. (if you had no challenges, please type N/A)(Required.)
19.Did you have staff eligible for the recruitment and retention bonus but you did NOT apply?(Required.)
20.If you did NOT apply, please share the reason(s). (if you applied for all eligible staff, please type N/A)(Required.)
21.Please share any recommendations to improve the Child Care Staff Recruitment and Retention Program or application process.
22.Are there any topics/issues related to your work that you would like the Start Strong PA Campaign to focus on (research/survey) to better support the child care industry?
23.Can we contact you for clarification or additional information about your survey answers if needed?(Required.)
24.Would you be willing to share your story about the impact of the child care staffing crisis?(Required.)