Page 2 - Perspectives Fall - English

A message from CCRC’s CEO
Dear Child Care Providers,
We had all hoped life would be back to normal by the release of this latest newsletter but, unfortunately, this “new normal” is here to stay for the foreseeable future. Though the pandemic has created an incredible number of challenges for us in the early care and education field, the good news is that we are all in this together and continue supporting children and families in our community!
In April, Child Care Resource Center received $5,988,075 in state funding through the CARES Act to provide vouchers to family child care providers so they could care for the children of essential workers. CCRC worked quickly to develop an extensive outreach plan and by mid-October, we enrolled nearly 6,000 children. Because of dedicated child care providers like you, essential workers in fields like health and medicine, infrastructure, and grocery stores have been able to continue working.
Since the start of the pandemic, we have distributed critical cleaning supplies and personal protective equipment and funding across Los Angeles and San Bernardino Counties. We were humbled when one provider in Montebello told us she was able to continue operating her facility, where she cares for 14 children, because of CCRC. The pandemic hit her hard financially at the onset of this public health dilemma, but thanks to the critical supplies, training, and COVID-19 health and safety updates she receives from CCRC, her facility remains open. Asked how she feels today, this dedicated child care provider said simply “I feel lucky.”
By mid-October, 80.9% of Los Angeles County family child care providers were open with 58% of center based child care open. In San Bernardino County, 81.9% of family child care providers reported being open and 47.5% of center based child care is open. Clearly, there’s a lot of work to do and funding required before we get anywhere close to the number of child care providers who were open pre-pandemic.
The funding made available by Gov. Gavin Newsom in the spring isn’t enough to keep our child care providers equipped with all of the required supplies, food and staffing. In addition to making sure children are safe and well cared for, many child care providers are now faced with helping to facilitate remote learning. We recognize this added hardship and the unfair burden placed on you so, in addition to providing you with training, financial support and material resources, we are also speaking up on your behalf. Our Government Relations team is contacting lawmakers to let them know about the crisis our child care providers face. We stood alongside child care advocates at an October news conference where we shared the gravity of the situation to members of the southern California news media. You can watch the media event here.
You have always been and continue to be the unsung heroes of the community! Without the hard work you do day in and day out, hospitals would be short doctors, shelves at grocery stores would be bare, and our economy would grind to a halt. We appreciate you and will continue standing by your side through these hard times.
Sincerely,
Michael Olenick, Ph.D.
President & CEO, Child Care Resource Center
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