Alameda County advocates hailed the unanimous passage of Measure C, allocating $209.6 million for child care, part of a broader strategy to invest nearly $1 billion in early childhood initiatives over five years. The funding aims to support struggling child care providers impacted by the pandemic and inflation, with emergency relief grants becoming available. Advocacy groups highlight the urgent need, citing poor child readiness for kindergarten amid ongoing access issues, as two-thirds of children assessed were deemed unprepared, thereby emphasizing the critical nature of these investments for both providers and families.
Starting tomorrow, we'll begin accepting applications for emergency relief grants to help providers stay open, pay staff and approve facilities... you have our commitment to get desperately needed money into the community as quickly as possible.
Child care advocates had waited years for the county to disperse funds since Measure C was approved by voters in 2020, an acknowledgment that the pandemic and historic inflation pushed many child care providers to the brink of closure.
Children's advocates argue that lack of access to child care has exacerbated child development disparities in the county, with a 2022 survey finding that two out of three children assessed by educators and parents were not ready to begin kindergarten.
As part of an effort to bring attention to the poor wages within the industry, child care workers in San Jose joined a nationwide Day Without Child Care.
Collection
[
|
...
]