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From the Desk of Neighborhood Villages
Massachusetts Can Be a Beacon for Child Care Reform — But We Must Act Now
While it’s exciting to see early education and child care finally getting the attention it deserves in Washington, the truth is that, no matter what happens in Congress, we can’t afford to wait for D.C. to act. We need to make change happen at the state level – and fast. Educators can’t afford to wait. Parents can’t afford to wait. Children, especially, can’t afford to wait.
The NOICTSU Rundown - Episode 2: “Birth of a Broken System”
In “Birth of a Broken System” host Gloria Riviera begins by speaking with her own mother about her search for child care in the 1960’s. When Gloria’s older sister was born, her mother had to resort to knocking on doors in their neighborhood to find someone to care for her child so she could return to work. Talk about going it alone! Why was it so impossible to get help then, and why is it still this way today?
The “No One is Coming to Save Us” Rundown - Episode 1: “You’re Not Crazy, Child Care is Crazy”
Child care in America has always been broken – it’s never been adequately valued, funded, or even understood. The pandemic made it clear that this can’t continue. It’s time for change and change needs to happen now. That’s why Neighborhood Villages conceived and funded No One is Coming to Save Us, a podcast created and produced with Lemonada Media. No One is Coming to Save Us tells the story of the child care crisis in America and sheds light on the challenges faced not only by parents, but by providers and early educators, too. Most importantly, it spotlights solutions for how, together, we build a child care system that actually works – for everyone.
Investing in Educators is Foundational to Successful Child Care Reform
Currently, the early education and care workforce is paid little more than minimum wage and has limited access to health insurance or other employer benefits. Moreover, we do little to invest in early educators’ professional development – and, where we do, we fail to match advanced credentials and degrees with increases in wages. This must change.
The recently proposed legislation in Washington, D.C. and in Massachusetts are a step in the right direction. But there’s work that can be done now, while policymakers work to turn bills into law. This is where Neighborhood Villages comes in…
Child Care Reform Is All the Rage: Here’s Your Cheat Sheet on the Recent Legislation Coming out of DC and Massachusetts
Our elected leaders have (finally!) gotten to work on expanding access to high-quality, affordable early education and care, proposing a flurry of legislation to reform our child care system and begin to address some of the long-standing inequities that families, providers, and educators alike have been experiencing for too long.
But what’s actually in these plans and pieces of legislation? Here’s what you need to know…