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Local child care educators should expect to see an income boost in the coming months thanks to a $2 million investment spearheaded by Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County, Child Care Associates, and a trio of city and county leaders.
The group — which includes Tarrant County judge Glen Whitley, Fort Worth mayor Mattie Parker, and Arlington mayor Jim Ross — announced Wednesday that Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County's allocation from the American Recovery Plan Act will go toward increasing wages for child care educators. Qualifying Texas Rising Star quality child care providers (estimated at up to 1,500 child care educators) in Tarrant County are eligible for an approximated $250 in additional monthly income for up to six months. After six months, child care programs are eligible for Texas Workforce Commission sustainability grants opportunities in 2022 that can be used to continue these salary supplements.
“We’ve listened to the child care providers working hard in our communities," CCA CEO Kara Waddell said in a statement. "Without a doubt, the single greatest challenge facing child care programs today is its workforce. We believe this initial investment is a critical first step in ensuring young children continue to have access to quality child care."
Parker, Ross, and Whitley also announced the formation of a Blue Ribbon Action Committee on Child Care "to guide critical investment opportunities in child care and early education for children 0 – 5," according to a news release. Child Care Associates will be involved in the effort, tasked with coordinating a multi-year initiative around strategic investments meant to improve the lives of young children, working parents, and early educators. According to the release, the committee plans to make "bold public and private investments" and "coordinate funds, data, and infrastructure improvements at scale."
“There is a crisis facing our child care system that requires immediate response; we need our community’s ‘best and brightest’ to help identify and accelerate solutions to these systemic challenges,” Parker said in a statement.
Parker, Ross, and Whitley plan will spend the coming weeks finalizing committee members, which will include business, philanthropic, and community leaders.
North Texas Community Foundation president Rose Bradshaw has been appointed Blue Ribbon Action Committee co-chair.
“COVID magnified child care and early education challenges — challenges that have been underlying for years,” Bradshaw said in a statement. “It is a historic moment in our community, and we must step up to guide investments that make a multi-generational impact.”