Forum tackles issue of child care

Feb. 7--The Hillsdale County Great Start Collaborative and Childcare Network hosted a child care forum to discuss the child care crisis in Hillsdale County Thursday morning.

The forum occurred during a breakfast at the Perennial Park Senior Center, with members of the community strategizing about possible solutions.

Great Start Collaborative Director Stefanie Rathburn said the lack of child care in Hillsdale County has been an area of discussion for the Hillsdale County Great Start Collaborative for the last couple of years, however, this is the first attempt to pull key stakeholders together.

Rathburn said the purpose of the meeting was to educate and to begin a conversation about how to address the issue.

The forum included presenters Kristy Wood of the Child Care Network; Linda Wise, co-chair of the Early Care Learning and Literacy subcommittee of the Great Start Collaborative; and Rathburn as director.

Those invited to attend included local government offices, local manufacturers, schools, county businesses, staffing agencies, churches, along with any community member with an interest in learning more about the topic.

Rathburn welcomed a group of more than a dozen before stating that the mission of the Hillsdale County Great Start Collaborative is to assure a coordinated effort to meet the needs of the early childhood system.

Efforts have included a presentation to the Hillsdale Area Ministerial Association, news releases, a panel discussion on before and after-school child care and a Healthy Senior and Healthy Youth Grant to support licensing expenses for start-up child care providers.

A parent perspective was shared by Sara Clark, who said she stepped in to help find child care when her daughter became pregnant and was busy taking college classes.

"I went through a list and found it exhausting," Clark said. "None were able to take a newborn. I couldn't believe it, because when my daughter was born, I had options."

Clark's daughter quit college and began working in the evenings. Three of her friends said it was easier to stay home and live on assistance. She was desperate to keep her job.

"The truth is, there's no one to watch children and keep a job," she said. "We need to spread the word."

In a PowerPoint presentation, Wood next covered the types of child care available for both licensed centers and group homes, noting that three centers have availability for the school year only.

Additionally, factors impacting capacity in homes include square footage, concurrent licenses, assistant caregiver availability and personal preference.

In Hillsdale County, there are three programs licensed to provide second shift care. Two of the three programs are also licensed to provide third-shift child care.

A map on the PowerPoint showed groupings of actual homes providing child care in the county with groupings in Jonesville and Hillsdale, but not much available in outlying areas.

Rathburn noted that one of the problems on the topic is lack of data that has been collected, so the collaborative pulled together "an unscientific poll" done on Facebook and through Michigan Works!, which "validated what we're hearing." Out of 143 votes, 85 percent responded yes, and 15 percent responded no to the need for child care.

It was reported that total child population from age 0-5 is 3,163 and there is a child care shortage of 2,280 placements if all parents wanted to work.

A discussion followed on possible next steps, with concern shown for employers to offer more second and third shifts, adjusting start and end times at places of employment, and part-time shifts with more flexible hours.

Also shared were advantages of workplace child care including improved productivity, employee retention, convenience, good morale and emotional security.

Adult Education Program Supervisor Heather Robidoux with Michigan Works! suggested adult education programs that provide workshops on skills in a central location that provides child care and education at the same time.

Attending the event, Kathleen Ellis, a human resources manager at Fairway Products, said it's important to know what options are available. She was glad to have attended the forum, agreeing that more conversations are needed to address the issue.

"It was an opportunity for people to come together to explore ideas," Rathburn said, noting more conversations will be forthcoming. "We will be open to hearing more on the topic, because if we're all sharing, we can better understand the problem."

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