No More Child Care Deserts in New York? $70 Million in Grants Available for NY Child Care Programs

Child Care Deserts child care programs child care Child Care Programs in New York Lori Schakow Bettie Graham

By Joel Brussels , Parent Herald Apr 08, 01:45 pm

Photo: (Photo : TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)

One issue that keeps many families mired in poverty in many areas in the state of New York is the lack of licensed child care. That is about to change with New York now having $70 million in grants to help people in the state start child care programs, especially in places that are considered child care deserts.

According to WSKG, Syracuse and Onondaga County have both been deemed child care deserts because of the lack of child care options for families in those areas. Bettie Graham, who is the Executive Director of the Determination Center, a child care center on Syracuse's southside, wants that problem to be addressed, saying "Parents need to work in order to take care of their families and when they don't have anyone to take care of their kids, the kids are lacking."

Lori Schakow, who is the executive director of Childcare Solutions of CNY, said that even before the COVID-19 pandemic, registered and licensed care was meeting just about a third of the need in the community in Onondaga County. That rate was only 15 percent for infants and toddlers and the COVID pandemic made those figures even worse.

Child care programs look to get more staff with additional funding

Schakow added that even for those that have been able to keep the programs open, many have had to close classrooms. The reason is not because they do not have children on their waiting lists, but because they cannot find staff.

There is good news, though, for these beleaguered programs with the state of New York now having a Child Care Deserts grant program. Joshua Michael King, who is the regional business advisor at Child Care Solutions, said that it is important that as many people as possible try to access this fund. King added that it is a highly competitive grant process which awards points based on census tract data and an algorithm that was created by the state of New York.

Hochul pledges $7 billion in child care funding for NY families

Graham is going to take advantage of this state funding, saying she will apply for the cash to help boost staffing at her daycare. Graham said it is really hard because they can't get staff and pay for staff because of the shortage of the money. According to Graham, this will help her get staff that is qualified and get children the services they need.

The good news according to Schakow is that there has been a burst of applications for licensed child care businesses since the start of the new year. Schakow said the number of applications has tripled thus far this year. She added that about 25 percent of people who request an application follow through all the way and get a license. These new businesses will also be able to apply for the grant, which will help them build their programs.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul also made a huge announcement on Thursday, with Chalkbeat reporting that she is pledging a historic $7 billion in child care funding for New York families.