Fredericksburg Parent

www.FredericksburgParent.NET 27 Sponsored Material MORE EXPENSIVE THAN COLLEGE Conway points to the paradox of childcare economics, where care can cost more than in-state tui on at many Virginia col- leges, yet educators get paid an average wage of under $12 per hour, according the Bureau of Labor Sta s cs. Much of this is driven by the fact that student-to-teacher ra os must be extremely low in infant and toddler programs. "We need to fi gure out how to make it more aff ordable and how we pay our infant and toddler teachers more," she said. "If they just rely on the market, they get a wage that is not livable." In 2021, the General Assembly passed legisla on to expand the state's Child Care Subsidy Program. This program is for provid- ers in private se ngs through the Preschool Development Grant Birth-Five (PDG B-5). Under the new rules, a single parent making less than $60,000 a year can qualify for state assistance paying for care for a child under 5, compared to the previous income limit of less than $32,000 a year. The state also relaxed work requirements, so parents can get assistance when they are looking for a job, compared to previously, when they had to be in school or working. On the provider side, Conway said the state has implemented a Teacher Recogni on Program that off ers payments of up to $2,000 per year for educators who work with children ages 0 to 5 in recogni on of the fact that this workforce gets paid signifi cantly less than K-12 teachers. "We have very high turnover in childcare," Conway said. "That is both stressful and not great for kids. Kids learn in the context of loving, trusted rela onships." She added that recognizing early childhood educators is more important than ever coming out of the pandemic, as many of these educators con nued to work in-person with children as public schools closed. "They have truly been lifesavers," she said. "Child care kept its doors open, including nearly 80% of our heroic educators who off er child care in their homes, and that is a big risk. … But that was absolutely necessary for all of the employees who support our health care system or keep the food supply chain func oning." Virginia Quality in the North Central region, a qual- ity ra ng and im- provement system managed by Smart Beginnings Rap- pahannock Area, will play a role in another new state ini a ve that calls for the establish- ment of a uniform measurement and improvement systems for all programs serving children 0 to 5. "We want to get a be er understanding for our leaders, our edu- cators and our families of what our children are experiencing in their classrooms," Conway said. "We plan to use a na onal mea- sure to look at the warmth and responsiveness of interac ons in the classrooms, how the educator supports all the emo ons and behaviors that are natural for these age groups." While the program is being run out of the Department of Educa- on, Conway stressed that the approach will be specifi c to the various needs of infants, toddlers and preschoolers. "This is not about standardized tes ng," she said. "Kids develop at very diff erent rates. We put out this new set of standards to help educators and families understand when something is not typical, but even the range for typical development is quite broad." This assessment tool will be rolled out over a period of years so that providers can get used to it, but the eventual goal is to provide an easily accessible way for Virginia parents to fi nd informa on on quality childcare op ons that fi t their lifestyle and budget needs. "We believe in the power of all of our educators, and we know that we have extraordinary programs that are run out of homes, as well as terrifi c centers and preschools," Conway said. "We cre- ated this uniform measurement and improvement system to have a true north for what we want for all kids." A SYSTEM FOR MEASUREMENT AND IMPROVEMENT To learn more about kindergarten readiness eff orts in the Fredericksburg region, and about Virginia Quality, visit smartbeginningsra.org.

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