A report released by Child Care Aware earlier this year ranked states by childcare affordability, with Arizona coming in 11th in the U.S. for single parents and 24th for married parents in the cost of full-time, center-based care for a 4-year-old. But that doesn’t tell the whole story.
State of Arizona Childcare
Record demand continues post-pandemic.
The average child care cost of $8,719 a year would absorb 28.7% of a single person’s income, and 9.9% of the income of a married couple.
To help alleviate the financial pain, the Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES) Child Care Administration offers financial assistance to low-income working families and other qualifying individuals through a variety of grants. The American Rescue Plan of 2021 expanded the Child Tax Credit, and also funded grants for childcare providers through DES’s Child Care Stabilization Grant Program. At the same time, organizations such as Child Care Resource are strategizing to improve the overall environment for families, childcare professionals, communities and policymakers.
For many working parents who are returning to the office part or full time in the wake of the pandemic, access to childcare is a major issue. Viewed from the perspective of childcare providers, the current situation is a dual challenge.
“There are two simultaneous things going on in childcare and, unfortunately, COVID made them both worse,” says Ivan Pemberton, owner of Arcadia Montessori in Phoenix and Spondeo Montessori in Gilbert. “The first is record demand. We’re celebrating our 50th year at our Arcadia location, and we’ve always been fortunate to have a steady flow of interested parents, but it’s nothing like we’ve seen in the past two years.
“In addition to dozens of people on our waitlists, there are countless people who call in every day who are basically looking for childcare immediately. You really feel for these parents who don’t necessarily have any options.”
To address their capacity issues, Arcadia Montessori will be opening an extension campus that will eventually ramp up to 120 or 130 spaces, and the Gilbert location is adding 32-space classroom in August. In response to parent need, Arcadia is adding infant care, and Pemberton also notes increased usage of the extended-day option at both schools.
The second pressing issue is a staffing crisis within the industry, including an exodus of childcare workers, as well as difficulties getting new entrants into the field.
“In some locations we have a waitlist, and in others we have empty classrooms,” says Clark Peterson, CEO of Northstar Preschools, which has an operations office in Arizona and 11 centers in Utah and Texas that offer traditional daycare and private preschool. “There might be enough demand from parents to bring in another 20 or 30 kids, but the issue is attracting and retaining staff.”
While the overall economy has recovered to within 2% or 3% of pre-pandemic employment levels, the childcare industry remains 11% or 12% below. In a competitive labor environment, new hires may not show up on the first day because they got a better offer—or they never return from lunch.
“Those who’ve been around for 20-plus years have never seen anything like this,” says Peterson. “The labor market has always been difficult in childcare, but it’s reached new levels and beyond.”
Competing with large employers like Walmart, Target, and Amazon has required Northstar to dramatically adjust their benefits and entry-level wages, including a 30% pay hike for teachers. In addition to rolling out additional benefits, Northstar has accommodated teachers with more flexibility in choosing time slots instead of having a set shift.
Despite the challenges, both Pemberton and Peterson are hopeful about the future.
“Many of our core staff have been with us for 10 or 20 years, and that’s huge in early childhood education,” Pemberton says. “We’ve seen an uptick in applications in the past few months, and I’d like to think it’s related to changing our benefit structure, such as adding 401(k) plans and healthcare insurance. We’re continuing to look at different ways to attract and retain qualified staff, which is really the best way to meet the increasing demand from families.”
“We view the current situation as an opportunity,” Peterson says. “We’ve had to stretch to make it make it work, but overall, I think it’s going to lead to a better working environment, better learning outcomes for children, and happier parents.”
Photos: iStock (kids), Mark Lipczynski (Ivan), Clark photos supplied