WITPP Policy Agenda Feedback Survey Fall 2019 |
Wisconsin’s Workforce of Today, Workforce of Tomorrow
Draft Policy Agenda Feedback
INTRODUCTION
A collaborative team of early childhood leaders across the state has drafted a bold and comprehensive infant and toddler child care policy agenda. Will this agenda help Wisconsin achieve its vision?
First, please take a few minutes to review the draft policy agenda developed by the statewide team. Then, complete this 15 minute survey to give us your feedback and input. We ask for your response by Friday, November 15, 2019.
A collaborative team of early childhood leaders across the state has drafted a bold and comprehensive infant and toddler child care policy agenda. Will this agenda help Wisconsin achieve its vision?
First, please take a few minutes to review the draft policy agenda developed by the statewide team. Then, complete this 15 minute survey to give us your feedback and input. We ask for your response by Friday, November 15, 2019.
Background
The work of caring for, educating and promoting the healthy development of infants and toddlers is essential to Wisconsin communities. For a strong, growing economy, Wisconsin must have a prepared and productive workforce – that is in part reliant on workers having access to safe, affordable high quality care for their children. Because of its critical role in enabling parents to fully participate in the workforce, the availability of high quality child care has an immediate impact on the economy.
Unfortunately, over 54% of Wisconsin residents live in “child care deserts” where there is either no child care providers or so few options that there are more than three times as many children as licensed slots. The situation is particularly bad for families that need infant and toddler child care. The shortage of care is in part due to difficulties recruiting and retaining early childhood educators; resulting in working families with infants and toddlers facing significant challenges finding quality care and struggling with cost, availability, geographic disparities, and long waiting lists.
With funding from the J.B. and M.K. Pritzker Family Foundation, the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association, and several other organizations across the state have worked together to the group has created a vision:
Every family with an infant and/or toddler will have access to a range of affordable, high quality, culturally and linguistically responsive child care options that meet their employment and family needs. The early childhood workforce will have the skills, training, and support to deliver high quality care with commensurate compensation.
The work of caring for, educating and promoting the healthy development of infants and toddlers is essential to Wisconsin communities. For a strong, growing economy, Wisconsin must have a prepared and productive workforce – that is in part reliant on workers having access to safe, affordable high quality care for their children. Because of its critical role in enabling parents to fully participate in the workforce, the availability of high quality child care has an immediate impact on the economy.
Unfortunately, over 54% of Wisconsin residents live in “child care deserts” where there is either no child care providers or so few options that there are more than three times as many children as licensed slots. The situation is particularly bad for families that need infant and toddler child care. The shortage of care is in part due to difficulties recruiting and retaining early childhood educators; resulting in working families with infants and toddlers facing significant challenges finding quality care and struggling with cost, availability, geographic disparities, and long waiting lists.
With funding from the J.B. and M.K. Pritzker Family Foundation, the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association, and several other organizations across the state have worked together to the group has created a vision:
Every family with an infant and/or toddler will have access to a range of affordable, high quality, culturally and linguistically responsive child care options that meet their employment and family needs. The early childhood workforce will have the skills, training, and support to deliver high quality care with commensurate compensation.