Without NC funding, child care workers in Asheville, Buncombe could see big pay cuts
ASHEVILLE - A room full of children and adults worked together at the Verner Center for Early Learning the morning of June 27 to write letters to members of the N.C. General Assembly asking to extend funding for child care stabilization grants that were issued during the pandemic. Everyone from young children to business professionals painted their hands and sang to music while showing their support for early childhood education.
The Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce and the Verner Center partnered to demonstrate how necessary child care is in keeping businesses thriving and people working.
Marcia Whitney, president and CEO of Verner Center, said that the event is all about getting the word to the elected officials in Raleigh to invest in children and families in the state.
During the pandemic, child care programs got an increase in funding through the American Rescue Plan Act. Starting in October 2021, child care providers received child care stabilization grants, which helped “recoup expenses incurred during the pandemic and helped them retain staff. Most importantly, they have provided funding for child care programs to increase teacher pay and provide other incentives to address severe staffing shortages,” according to Buncombe county’s children first briefing on child care stabilization grants.
The stabilization grants were able to boost the early childhood workforce — but according to a report from the Child Care Services Association recruiting new teachers, still remains a challenge for these programs.
As of now, the program that gives out these grants is set to end Dec. 31.
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"We are literally facing a cliff in the child care industry where we will not be able to compensate our people,” Whitney said. “We’re going to have to cut off compensation levels to pre-COVID levels and these are already people who are seven times more likely to be living in poverty than their counterpart in the K-12 system. If we discontinue those COVID supports, our workforce is going to be decimated and there will be people vacating the field at unprecedented levels.”
What early learning means to the community?
Verner Center for Early Learning served a total of 275 children in 2022-23 in Buncombe County, according to its impact report.
56% were children of color.
39% were from single parent homes.
94% were students receiving subsidized and/or free tuition.
More than half the students they serve are 3 years old or younger.
Verner Center for Early Learning is the only Early Head Start program in Buncombe County — meaning it offers free child care to eligible children 6 weeks to 3 years old.
"Early Head Start is a free, federally funded community-based program for low-income expectant families and eligible families with infants and toddlers under the age of three," according to Verner's website.
A recent North Carolina Chamber Foundation survey found that 60% of parents with children who are ages 5 and younger said they had to miss work because of a problem with child care and 32% didn’t pursue job training or continued education because of a lack of affordable child care, according to the news release on the event.
“If they can't get child care, then they can't come to work and they can't show up,” said Zach Wallace, the vice president of public policy for the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce
Advocates are asking for an investment of continuing stabilization grant funding in the amount of $300 million to the N.C. General Assembly.
N.C. House bill 342 and Senate bill 292 passed the first reading of the House on March 13 to extend child care compensation grants to early education.
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The bill states that it’s an “act to appropriate funds of $300 million to extend the compensation grants portion of the stabilization grants for childcare centers.” One key thing the money could do if the bill is passed is help teachers to maintain better wages.
If child care stabilization grants aren’t extended then many child care workers could face a 12%-20% decrease in their hourly wages, Whitney said. Most make between $13 to $15 an hour, when the living wage in Buncombe County is $20.10 an hour.
Victoria Dunkle, a co-chair of the WomanUP program through the Asheville area Chamber of Commerce and the communications director at AdventHealth in Hendersonville, spoke at the event.
"North Carolina is a top recruiter for businesses, we're seeing that proof all over the place with so many new industries, manufacturing and so on coming here. Child care has now moved from something that was nice to have to something that is absolutely necessary to have in place for our community to continue to thrive on all levels," Dunkle said.
Amy Barry, the executive director of Buncombe Partnership for Children, has been in her role for almost 13 years and told the Citizen Times on June 27 that "early childhood is where we need to focus."
Barry said that without the compensation grants it could ruin the system that they have worked hard to build.
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Legislators are expected to vote on the state budget at the beginning of July.
McKenna Leavens is the Education Reporter for the Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at MLeavens@citizentimes.com.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: NC Child Care Stabilization grant runs out at the end of 2023
