Tarrant County investing $2M in federal money to give early childhood educators raise
Early educators have been fleeing the early childhood education industry for decades, with a staffing crisis reaching peak levels as the coronavirus pandemic rocked the industry.
Now, with the help of federal dollars, Tarrant County leaders are investing $2 million to raise early educator wages in the coming months, with plans to make continuing investments in the struggling sector in the hopes of stabilizing the industry.
Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley, Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker and Arlington Mayor Jim Ross made the announcement at the Child Care Associates annual investor’s luncheon, highlighting the need of the investment to get parents back to work.
“So many of our residents rely on childcare so they can work to support their families or pursue education and training for even better job opportunities,” Ross said. “It makes sense for us to come together as a community to invest in quality, accessible child care and early education—to not only help the workers of today, but to ensure a brighter future for our next generation.”
Parker also said the child care crisis is limiting the mobility of families and women in the region.
“You’ve got women right now in Fort Worth that would love to go back to school, they would love to work a full time job, and they simply cannot do it because they don’t have access to quality child care,” she said.
The investment comes as lawmakers in Washington consider legislation that would infuse billions of dollars into the early childhood education workforce to raise wages, provide professional development and more.
Parker said that planning for any future funding now is essential.
“As we talk about the resources that are likely coming down from Washington, I can promise you communities will squander it,” Parker said. “They will not be prepared the way we need to deploy those resources as quickly as possible, because frankly our babies can’t wait.”
The $2 million supplement for child care educator compensation is being funded by American Rescue Plan dollars allocated to Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County for child care quality.
“We’ve listened to the child care providers working hard in our communities,” Kara Waddell, the CEO of Child Care Associates, said. “Without a doubt, the single greatest challenge facing child care programs today is its workforce.”
Only a limited number of early educators will be eligible for the raises under the initial investment, with only programs participating in the states quality and improvement system, Texas Rising Star, qualifying.
Qualifying Texas Rising Star (TRS) quality child care providers, estimated at up to 1,500 child care educators in Tarrant County, are eligible for about $250 in additional monthly income for up to six months.
While recently passed legislation requires all child care providers that receive subsidies to participate in the TRS program, less than 20% of licensed child care providers in Tarrant County were participating in the system as of this summer.
“We believe this initial investment is a critical first step in ensuring young children continue to have access to quality child care,” Waddell said.
According to CCA, beyond the six months, child care programs will be eligible for Texas Workforce Commission sustainability grant opportunities in 2022 that can be used to continue the salary supplements.
The funds are in addition to $7 million that the City of Fort Worth allocated to Child Care infrastructure that will also be handled by Child Care Associates.
Blue Ribbon Action Committee
City leaders are also partnering to come up with a longer term action plan to create sustainable change in the child care sector.
Parker, in partnership with Ross and Whitley, 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.”
Child Care Associates, which currently works with numerous partners in the private and public sector and administers Head Start in the region, will coordinate a multi-year initiative around strategic investments with the goal of improving the lives of young children, working parents and early educators.
According to a press release, the Blue Ribbon Action Committee will help define and guide the initiative “aimed at driving bold public and private investments on behalf of young children and to 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.
North Texas Community Foundation’s Rose Bradshaw & Dallas Federal Reserve’s Alfreda B. Norman were announced as co-chairs for the committee.
“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.”
Parker, Ross and Whitley are naming the members of the Blue Ribbon Action Committee to be finalized in the coming weeks to include business, philanthropic and community leaders.
“Along with Mayor Parker and Mayor Ross, we know it’s time to step up on behalf of young children and the child care educators who serve them,” Whitley said.
This story was originally published November 3, 2021 at 1:05 PM.
