HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/07/2020 Public Comment, Roudebush1
From:Kris Roudebush <
Sent:Thursday, April 2, 2020 12:07 PM
To:E-mail Council Website
Subject:We Are the Care Public Comment - April 2020
Attachments:image001.jpg; April 2020 WATC_Public Comment.pdf
Dear City Council Members,
For the last several months representatives from the We Are the Care Initiative have come to numerous city council
meetings to give public comment to the council on the work being done in SLO County to address the Child Care Crisis.
As we will not be attending meetings this month, we would like to share our April comment with you. Now more than
ever the importance and challenge of providing accessible and affordable child care is before us. Please consider taking 3
minutes to read our statement, listed below and attached.
Sincerely,
Kris Roudebush
First 5 San Luis Obispo County
‐‐‐
Hello from the We Are the Care Initiative,
We are a group of early childhood professionals, people from the business community, government employees
and officials, and families who are partnering to address our local childcare crisis. Now more than ever, we are reminded
that access to quality and affordable care is vital for our community to function and support our economy. We can
clearly see that child care professionals are now, and always have been, a crucial part of our workforce.
We are currently living in trying times as the COVID‐19 pandemic impacts nearly every aspect of our daily lives.
Our essential workers now find themselves in a situation that many in our community experience on a regular basis:
needing to work, but also needing quality care for their children. There has been a call from our local Public Health
Director for child care centers and providers to stay open, to continue to offer care, and to be there for our essential
workers during this time of need. This places child care professionals at a much greater risk, while also asking them to
adhere to strict health and safety requirements, all while still continuing to provide quality care for children.
A majority of family child care homes and child care centers are small businesses, and they are suffering. A small,
but immense need for care by the essential workers is not outweighed by the fractional attendance many child care sites
are seeing day‐to‐day. This reduction in numbers is due to a large group of families that now find themselves out of
work, or working from home, due to the outbreak, and they are keeping their children home, as well. This means a
2
minute amount of income, less hours for the already underpaid staff to work, and less chance that these centers will
financially survive. The ultimate irony of this situation is that the entire system of private child care could be decimated,
all while being called to be on the front‐lines in combating this outbreak. We must find a way to value child care, to
value our child care workforce, and to support these small businesses through this time of monumental hardship.
The San Luis Obispo Child Care Planning Council is working to connect child care providers with essential
workers in need of child care. When you visit http://www.sanluischildcare.org, you will find two links: one for families
who are seeking care, and one for providers who are offering care. Our hope is that these efforts will help support child
care and the families who are in desperate need. Please help us to share this information!
April is Month of the Child and Child Abuse Prevention Month, and no time is more appropriate to celebrate and
recognize the children in our world. These children are growing and developing in a time of vast uncertainty and unease
among the adults around them. We must ensure that their experiences now will help them become resilient and strong
adults, and that the wonder and magic of childhood is not lost. It is our job to support the children and families of SLO
County in a time of need, and now more than ever, they need our help.
Be on the lookout for more information about our Child Care Awareness Day on Thursday, April 30th, as well!
While we desperately need more quality care options in our community, we also celebrate the amazing providers that
already support children and families here in San Luis Obispo County! If you want to learn more about the We Are the
Care Initiative or would like to get involved, please contact First 5 San Luis Obispo County or find more information on
their website, www.first5slo.org/we‐are‐the‐care.php
‐‐
Kris Roudebush, Special Projects Administrator
First 5 San Luis Obispo County
3220 S. Higuera Street #232
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
805-781-4058 http://www.first5slo.org/
Greetings from the We Are the Care Initiative,
We are a group of early childhood professionals, people from the business community,
government employees and officials, and families who are partnering to address our local childcare
crisis. Now more than ever, we are reminded that access to quality and affordable care is vital for our
community to function and support our economy. We can clearly see that child care professionals are
now, and always have been, a crucial part of our workforce.
We are currently living in trying times as the COVID-19 pandemic impacts nearly every aspect of
our daily lives. Our essential workers now find themselves in a situation that many in our community
experience on a regular basis: needing to work, but also needing quality care for their children. There
has been a call from our local Public Health Director for child care centers and providers to stay open, to
continue to offer care, and to be there for our essential workers during this time of need. This places
child care professionals at a much greater risk, while also asking them to adhere to strict health and
safety requirements, all while still continuing to provide quality care for children.
A majority of family child care homes and child care centers are small businesses, and they are
suffering. A small, but immense need for care by the essential workers is not outweighed by the
fractional attendance many child care sites are seeing day-to-day. This reduction in numbers is due to a
large group of families that now find themselves out of work, or working from home, due to the
outbreak, and they are keeping their children home, as well. This means a minute amount of income,
less hours for the already underpaid staff to work, and less chance that these centers will financially
survive. The ultimate irony of this situation is that the entire system of private child care could be
decimated, all while being called to be on the frontlines in combating this outbreak. We must find a way
to value child care, to value our child care workforce, and to support these small businesses through this
time of monumental hardship.
The San Luis Obispo Child Care Planning Council is working to connect child care providers with
essential workers in need of child care. When you visit http://www.sanluischildcare.org, you will find
two links: one for families who are seeking care, and one for providers who are offering care. Our hope
is that these efforts will help support child care and the families who are in desperate need. Please help
us to share this information!
April is Month of the Child and Child Abuse Prevention Month, and no time is more appropriate
to celebrate and recognize the children in our world. These children are growing and developing in a
time of vast uncertainty and unease among the adults around them. We must ensure that their
experiences now will help them become resilient and strong adults, and that the wonder and magic of
childhood is not lost. It is our job to support the children and families of SLO County in a time of need,
and now more than ever, they need our help.
Be on the lookout for more information about our Child Care Awareness Day on Thursday, April
30th, as well! While we desperately need more quality care options in our community, we also celebrate
the amazing providers that already support children and families here in San Luis Obispo County! If you
want to learn more about the We Are the Care Initiative or would like to get involved, please contact
First 5 San Luis Obispo County or find more information on their website, www.first5slo.org/we-are-the-
care.php