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2/21/2023 Item 3d, Wendt (First 5 SLO)
1 Wilbanks, Megan Subject:RE: Feb 21 2023 City Council Meeting -- Materials for Agenda Item 3d (Child Care Study Update) From: Wendy Wendt <wwendt@first5slo.org> Sent: Thursday, February 16, 2023 1:14 PM To: Purrington, Teresa <TPurring@slocity.org> Cc: Burger, Meghan <mburger@slocity.org> Subject: Feb 21 2023 City Council Meeting ‐‐ Materials for Agenda Item 3d (Child Care Study Update) This message is from an External Source. Use caution when deciding to open attachments, click links, or respond. Hi, Teresa: Thanks for your assistance in posting these materials to the appropriate people/places! Best Regards, Wendy Wendy L Wendt, Executive Director (she/her) First 5 San Luis Obispo County 3220 S. Higuera Street #232 San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 805‐781‐ 4058 (office); 805‐550‐6904 (cell) Begin with the Children ‐Mahatma Gandhi This e-mail, and any files transmitted with it, are intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain confidential, protected, and/or privileged material. Any review, re-transmission, dissemination or other use of, or taking of any action in reliance upon this information by persons or entities other than the intended recipient, is prohibited. If you received this in error, please contact the sender and delete the material from any computer. Helping Give Children the Best Possible Start in Life 3220 South Higuera Street ● Suite 232 ● San Luis Obispo ● CA ● 93401-6985 Phone 805-781-4058 ● www.first5slo.org , February 16, 2023 Dear Members of San Luis Obispo City Council: First 5 looks forward to being with you at the upcoming City Council meeting on February 21st, 2023 to present a Child Care Study Update (Agenda Item 3d). This letter provides a summary preview of the history of this study. Also included is a set of attachments with several Study deliverables that will be referenced during the presentation. In November 2019, First 5 San Luis Obispo County and the Local Early Care and Education Planning Council came together with the City of San Luis Obispo and three other public agencies – County of San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly, and San Luis Coastal Unified School District -- to collectively identify and pursue shared solutions within the realm of local public sector organizations’ roles to help address a shared child care challenge faced by thousands of local families and the professionals who serve them. This challenge can be defined as the “Trilemma”: How to provide HIGH QUALITY early care and education, that is AFFORDABLE and ACCESSIBLE to all families, and provides fair COMPENSATION for a diverse, competent, high-quality workforce. The four partner organizations combine to represent approximately 10% of the total local workforce in the county. They also carry enormous potential, both individually and collectively, to offer up resources, expertise, and bold innovation that can dramatically improve the child care landscape in San Luis Obispo County. Doing so accomplishes two fundamental goals: 1) strengthening the local economy, and 2) enhancing the lives of children and families. The four public agencies teaming up on this Study have invested a total of $80,000 in funds and multiple hours of staff resources over the past two-plus years to examine opportunities that can unlock child capacity for their own employees as well as for the broader community. Despite – and in fact also inspired by – the COVID-19 crisis, the team has made significant progress toward determining and pursing avenues that fall within the purview of local public sector organizations to address the child care Trilemma. Two commissioned reports have helped inform the work to date: • A consultant team through the Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) prepared a report examining a broad suite of options available to local public agencies in three component areas related to child care capacity-building: A) Child-care needs within the local public sector workforce; B) Land-use, permitting, zoning, housing, etc. that facilitate expansion of local child care capacity; C) Child-care workforce development, including career pathways/recruitment/retention, livable wages, etc. • Pendulum Dependent Care Solutions (Fran McIntyre, Principal) worked with study team partners and HR teams from each collaborating agency to examine more deeply Component A (public sector workforce child care needs) via analysis of an employee survey conducted across all four partnering agencies. Following the completion of these reports, First 5 developed a graphic tool that distills a core set of recommendations which are aligned with established areas of local government responsibility and influence. $30,000 of the initial four-agency investment in the Collaborative Study project is still in place and available as a source of funding to support concrete next steps that the partners opt to pursue. Commissioners: James Brescia, EdD Chairperson Designated Representative, San Luis Obispo County Office of Education Penny Borenstein, MD Vice-Chairperson Designated Representative, San Luis Obispo County Health Agency Linda Belch Designated Representative, San Luis Obispo County Department of Social Services Dawn Ortiz-Legg Designated Representative, San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors Erica Ruvalcaba-Heredia, EdD Representative at Large, Center for Family Strengthening Melinda Sokolowski Designated Representative, Child Care Planning Council James Tedford, MD Medical Representative Alison Ventura, PhD Representative at Large, Cal Poly Kinesiology, Public Health Robert Watt Representative at Large, Coast Unified School District (Retired) Executive Director Wendy L. Wendt 2 It is important to acknowledge that throughout this time period and in parallel with the Study activities listed above, partner agencies -- as well as other local governments, child care operators, education institutions and employers -- have activated a variety of strategies to address child care needs. Following is a partial list of examples: • Significant local ARPA funds have been dedicated to child care investments – County of SLO ($3 million), City of Arroyo Grande ($100,000), City of Grover Beach ($50,000), City of Pismo Beach ($50,000). • The City of San Luis Obispo has collaborated with CAPSLO Child Care Resource Connection to launch a Family Child Care Start-up Incentive Pilot Project. • The SLO Chamber of Commerce Family Friendly Workplaces Program is in full swing, along with multiple employer projects to update family-friendly policies and practices. • The County of San Luis Obispo Human Resources Department has conducted a deep assessment of the data that was generated through the Pendulum report referenced above, and is beginning to make changes to policy and labor contracts. For example, the County has increased its investment in a union-administered child care scholarship program. In another example, the County is now beginning to roll out a child care reimbursement option as part of its Employee Wellness program. • Cal Poly has recently created a new campus-wide leadership position – Director of Early Care and Education Strategic Initiatives – that is being inaugurated by Dr. Patty Clarkson, who is also long-time Director of the Cal Poly Learning Lab and Cal Poly’s representative on the Child Care Study Team. • Child Care businesses and programs countywide weathered pandemic life and worked tirelessly to keep sites open. Key among these were school-aged programs like SLO City Parks and Rec, the YMCA and Boys and Girls Clubs. • In 2021, Cuesta College commissioned a study completed by BW Research on the Economic Impact of Child Care in San Luis Obispo County. First 5 stands ready along with our colleagues at the Early Care and Education Planning Council and the CAPSLO Child Care Resource Connection to continue supporting the City of San Luis Obispo’s important work to showcase innovative ways that local government can – and does – play a key role in helping unlock child care capacity, to the benefit of children, families, economies, and communities. Sincerely Yours, Wendy Wendt Executive Director Attachments: • Low-Income Investment Fund (LIIF) Report • Pendulum Dependent Care Solutions Survey Analysis • First 5 Graphic on Building Child Care: Roles for San Luis Obispo County’s Local Governments • BW Research Report on the Economic Impact of Child Care in SLO County PREPARED FOR CUESTA COLLEGE Economic Impact of Child Care in San Luis Obispo County 2 Table of Contents Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 3 Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 3 Key Findings .............................................................................................................................................. 3 Conclusions ............................................................................................................................................... 4 Demographic and Economic Data ................................................................................................................. 5 Impacts of COVID-19 ................................................................................................................................. 5 Child Care Workers in SLO County ............................................................................................................ 6 Child Care in SLO County ........................................................................................................................... 7 Potential Child Care Population .............................................................................................................. 10 Initial Economic Impact Model ................................................................................................................... 11 Economic Impact Model Outputs ............................................................................................................... 12 Introduction to Economic Impacts ...................................................................................................... 12 Economic Activity of the Current Child Care Workforce .................................................................... 13 Impacts of Meeting Demand for Child Care ........................................................................................... 14 Referral Estimated Demand ................................................................................................................ 14 Potential Universe Estimates of Demand ........................................................................................... 16 Return on Investment ............................................................................................................................. 17 Subsidizing Child Care in SLO County ...................................................................................................... 19 Appendix A: Regional Definitions................................................................................................................ 20 Appendix B: Research Methodology ........................................................................................................... 21 Economic Impact Modeling ................................................................................................................ 21 3 Executive Summary Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented volatility across different industries and types of workers. Through the closures of schools and child care programs and the rise of remote work, few industries have faced as much disruption as child care. The turmoil of the pandemic has only exacerbated the underlying “trilemma” of challenges that existed before COVID-19. This “trilemma” can be described through challenges related to the accessibility to child care, the affordability of child care, and the quality of child care. This research, commissioned by Cuesta College and its partners in the region, discusses some of these challenges and factors that play a role in the child care industry. The research ultimately provides an economic impact assessment of child care in San Luis Obispo (SLO) County to describe the economic role that the industry plays in the county. This assessment includes a current estimate of the economic impact of child care on the economy, as well as the economic potential that may be possible through the expansion of child care. The data used in this report only reflect the available data on licensed child care programs. While unlicensed and informal child care programs certainly play a role in the child care sector, data on these programs are sparse. Key Findings Most child care workers can work full-time and still not earn a living wage. The living wage for a single adult with no dependents in San Luis Obispo County is roughly $38,4001 per year. The average earnings for a child care worker in the county are $27,200, meaning that the average full-time worker will make only 71% of the living wage. A single-parent child care worker with one child of their own will make only a third (33%) of the living wage for the county, on average. This creates a terrible paradox, where child care workers spend much of their time supporting others’ families but are financially unable to support themselves or families of their own. Child care is expensive, and child care workers likely cannot afford full-cost child care for their own child. The average cost of child care in SLO County is roughly $10,000 per year. This means that the cost of child care for one child is about 18% of the pre-tax earnings of the average worker in SLO County. For child care workers, this represents roughly 37% of their pre-tax income. There is a large need for additional child care capacity in SLO County. The conservative estimate suggests that 2,300 children in the county may have working parents but are not enrolled in a program. The high-end estimate suggests there may be as many as 16,000 of these children ages 12 and under. Meeting 100% of the low-end estimates for the potential need for child care in SLO County would increase Gross Regional Product (GRP) by more than $108 million annually and support and create 425 jobs from this new economic activity. This activity would also generate more than five million dollars in local and county taxes and nearly seven million in state revenues. 1 MIT Living Wage Calculator. https://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/06079 4 Meeting the entirety of the high-end estimate of potential child care demand would have even greater economic impacts, contributing $734 million to GRP, roughly equivalent to the GRP contributions of Full-Service Restaurants, Residential Property Managers, and Hotels, combined. Adding 8,300 new workers to the SLO County Workforce would create and support close to 2,900 additional jobs in the economy through indirect and induced effects. In the 2019-2020 school year, state and federal subsidies for child care in SLO County were just under $24 million. These subsidies created and supported more than 2,400 jobs in the county and added $161 million in GRP, but these subsidies only reduced the conservative gap between child care needs and what was provided by approximately half. The added economic activity from existing subsidies also bolsters tax collections, adding nearly $42 million to federal, state, and local coffers. This subsidy spending would have to roughly double to meet the remaining gap of the conservative estimate of child care needs. Conclusions BW Research offers the following conclusions based on the findings of this research: There is a considerable need to expand the delivery of child care services in SLO County. The conservative estimate suggests that 2,300 children ages 12 and younger would participate in child care if it were more accessible. This presents a substantial opportunity for the county to support student learning and development while simultaneously allowing more parents to enter the local labor force, generating additional economic activity. The additional economic activity would be substantial, enabling up to 1,400 additional workers to enter the local labor force, resulting in $108 million in Gross Regional Product annually and $28 million in local, state, and federal taxes annually. The Biden Administration’s plans for universal pre-K education and subsidized child care for low and middle-income families could have benefits for SLO County, though the county will likely still face child care shortages. The initiatives proposed through the American Families Plan would address some of the existing child care needs in SLO County, but the county’s high cost of living would likely mean some barriers still persist, particularly for those families just above low-income thresholds. Furthermore, the scale of the proposed efforts would require more resources and coordination on the ground through Community-Based Organizations and other regional institutions. Meeting the needs of child care demand in SLO County will require a larger workforce. Developing career pathways into, through, and from child care may help attract and retain more workers. A clear designation of career pathways within and out of child care can signal to potential workers that there is upward mobility and opportunity for advancement. This upward mobility may not only help retain employees for longer, but it may also help reward longer-term and more experienced workers with higher pay. Additionally, profiling the skills and abilities developed throughout a child care job can help workers—and future employers—understand the value of a background in child care and connect it to additional employment opportunities. Tying these strengthened skills and abilities to other jobs outside of child care may help increase the pipeline of interested talent. Low pay perpetuates challenges in the child care industry. The data in this report highlights the crucial economic role that child care workers play within the community. Along with the short-term economic impacts, quality child care offers long-term societal benefits; numerous studies have shown that quality 5 child care can influence the future outcomes of participating children.2 This report also highlights that these workers are underpaid relative to the societal benefits they provide, with wages that are often below the living wage for the county. Policies that support these workers and the opportunity for higher pay will help ensure that they can continue to provide quality child care that generates outsized impacts on the local economy. Regional investments in a healthier and more sustainable child care workforce would generate both short-term and long-term benefits. Demographic and Economic Data This section of the report provides data on the underlying state of child care in San Luis Obispo (SLO) County. These data provide detail on the impacts of COVID-19 on the child care sector, the child care workforce, and the estimated supply and demand for child care in the region. Impacts of COVID-19 Data from the California Child Care Resource & Referral Network suggests that the number of licensed home programs in SLO County fell by 10% between January 2020 - January 2021. This decline is not unique to family programs; the number of total licensed programs declined by a similar 13% in SLO County (Figure 1). This suggests there are roughly 900 children whose child care program has not re- opened. At the height of the pandemic, 62% of licensed programs were closed, equating to 4,500 children and their families without child care options. Ensuring the full return of child care will be a crucial step to helping workers return to their jobs as public health orders subside. Figure 1. COVID-19 Changes to Number of Licensed Child Care Programs in San Luis Obispo County3 2 See as the latest example from MIT: https://seii.mit.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/SEII-Discussion- Paper-2021.4-Gray-Lobe-Pathak-and-Walters.pdf 3 “How the pandemic has impacted California child care supply.” California Child Care Resource & Referral Network. https://rrnetwork.org/assets/general-files/COVID-Graphs-San-Luis-Obispo.pdf -13.1% -70.0% -60.0% -50.0% -40.0% -30.0% -20.0% -10.0% 0.0% Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20 Jan-21 6 Child Care Workers in SLO County There are roughly 600 Child Care Workers in SLO County, representing 0.5% of the overall workforce. The child care workforce has declined by approximately 7% between 2015 and 2020. On average, Child Care Workers in SLO county earn $27,200 in annual wages. This is about $3,000 lower than the statewide average, and $2,300 higher than the national average. Child Care Workers also make roughly 50% of the average wages of workers overall in SLO County (Figure 2). Figure 2. Average Earnings Most child care workers can work full-time and still not earn a living wage. It is important to factor in San Luis Obispo County’s cost of living, which is notably higher than the national average. According to the M.I.T. Living Wage Calculator,4 the living wage for a single adult with no dependents is $18.44 per hour, or just under $38,400 per year. This means child care workers with no dependents can work full- time and still earn only 71% of the living wage for the county. The financial situation is even more strained for child care workers with children; the living wage for a single adult with one child is roughly $83,000 per year, and the average child care worker would only earn about 33% of that living wage (Table 1). Thus, a terrible paradox is formed; the average child care worker can work full-time supporting others’ families, and is unable to financially support themselves, let alone their own family. Table 1. Living Wages and Child Care Worker Wages Annual Living Wage Share of Living Wage Met by Full- Time Child Care Worker Wages Single adult, no dependents $38,355 71% Single adult, one child $82,846 33% Two working adults, two children $55,286 49% 4 MIT Living Wage Calculator. https://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/06079 $ $10,000 $20,000 $30,000 $40,000 $50,000 $60,000 $70,000 SLO County Average California USA Childcare Workers All Occupations 7 Child Care Workers in SLO County are relatively well-educated. Nearly half (48%) of all Child Care Workers in the county have some college or an associate degree, and another 22% have a four-year degree or higher (Figure 3). Figure 3. Educational Attainment in SLO County Child Care in SLO County Of the 7,210 spaces available at licensed child care programs, half are at preschool programs for children ages 2-5. Licensed family home care programs offer the second-most spaces, with roughly 2,400 spaces for children across a range of ages (Figure 4). Figure 4. Share of Child Care Spaces Available5 5 California Child Care Resource & Referral Network. (2019). 2019 Child Care Portfolio, San Luis Obispo County 0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0% Less than HS Diploma HS Diploma or Equivalent Some College or Associate Degree Four Year-Degree or More Childcare Workers All Occupations Licensed Child Care Supply Center spaces Infant (0-23 months) 3% Licensed Child Care Supply Center spaces Preschool (2-5 years) 50%Licensed Child Care Supply Center spaces Schoolage (6+ years) 13% Licensed Child Care Supply Family child care home spaces 34% 7,210 Spaces 8 Annual costs of child care in SLO County are high. Even though costs in SLO County are slightly lower than the statewide average, child care costs are exceptionally burdensome. For example, the average cost of annual full-time child care in SLO County is approximately $10,000 per child (Figure 5). Put another way, the average cost of full-time child care would cost a Child Care Worker an average of 37% of their annual wages (Table 2). This means that after the cost of child care, an average Child Care Worker would make approximately $8.27 per hour. Figure 5. Average Annual Costs of Child Care6 Table 2. Share of Average Annual Income Spent on Annual Child Care7 Average Child Care Worker Average Worker One Child 37% 18% Two Children 74% 27% 6 California Child Care Resource & Referral Network. (2019). 2019 Child Care Portfolio, San Luis Obispo County 7 Percentages based on average cost of $10,000 annually for full-time care. $27,200 average wages for Child Care Workers, $54,300 average wages for all SLO workers, and $77,265 for median household incomes. $- $2,500 $5,000 $7,500 $10,000 $12,500 $15,000 $17,500 $20,000 Cost of Care Infant Care (0-23 months) Cost of Care Infant Care (0-23 months) Family Program Cost of Care Preschool care (2-5 years) Cost of Care Preschool Care (2-5 years) Family Program California SLO County 9 Family child care programs play a large role in the SLO child care economy, both in scale and flexibility. Eighty-five percent of family child care programs in SLO County offer both part- and full-time services. Furthermore, a third (33%) offer evening, weekend, or overnight care. This type of care is important for families with non-traditional work schedules and fills in a gap in services in the region, as no licensed non-family child care programs offer such services (Figure 6). Figure 6. Child Care Offerings by Program Type 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Offering Full- Time and Part-Time Spaces Offering Full- Time and Part-Time Spaces - Family Program Offering only Full-Time Spaces Offering only Full-Time Spaces Family Program Offering only Part-Time Spaces Offering only Part-Time Spaces - Family Program Offering Evening, Weekend, or Overnight Care Offering Evening, Weekend, or Overnight Care - Family Program California SLO County The Long-Term Benefits of Quality Child Care Along with the economic benefits of additional workers able to enter the workforce, access to child care can have long-term benefits to child outcomes. A recent NBER working paper (Guthrie Gray-Lobe, Parag A. Pathak, and Christopher R. Walters, May 2021) found that, when families in Boston were randomly provided with universal child care, the participating children were subsequently more likely to graduate high school and attend college, and less likely to enter juvenile incarceration. Another study (Arthur J. Reynolds, et Al., 2011), after finding similar findings as mentioned above, conducted a cost-benefit analysis, finding that every dollar spent on a preschool program produced $10.83 in benefits to society through additional earnings and tax revenues, reduced expenditures on crime and decreased future education costs through fewer remedial courses. These benefits often go unaccounted for. 10 Potential Child Care Population San Luis Obispo County has nearly 15,000 children under the age of six. Of those children, approximately 9,700 (65%) have parents in the labor force.8 The SLO sub-region has the greatest percentage of children with parents in the labor force (Table 3). Among children between 6 and 12 years of age, roughly 71% have either both parents working, or live in single-parent households where that parent is working (Table 4). Table 3. Children in SLO County Under the Age of Six9 Total Children Children with parents in the labor force10 % of children with parents in labor force Coastal 1,677 1,038 61.9% North County 6,506 4,003 61.5% SLO Sub-Region 2,054 1,584 77.1% South County 4,610 3,080 66.8% Grand Total 14,847 9,705 65.4% Table 4. Children in SLO County Between 6 and 1211 Total Children Children with parents in the labor force 12 % of children with parents in labor force Coastal 2,266 1,544 68.1% North County 7,958 5,743 72.2% SLO Sub-Region 2,807 2,023 72.1% South County 6,253 4,287 68.6% Grand Total 19,284 13,597 70.5% 8 This category includes children in households with either a) both parents working or b) single-parent households with one working parent. 9 American Community Survey. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2014-2019. 2019 Data. 10 This category includes children in households with either a) both parents working or b) single-parent households with one working parent. 11 American Community Survey. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2014-2019. 2019 Data. 12 This category includes children in households with either a) both parents working or b) single-parent households with one working parent. 11 Initial Economic Impact Model The research team developed a preliminary model of the current offerings, requested demand, and potential universe of demand for child care. The research team estimates that there are potentially 23,300 children 12 and younger that have working parents. This figure is considerably higher than the estimated 7,210 available child care spaces in the county (Table 5). Roughly 88% of the referral-based estimated demand for child care is currently met by SLO child care programs for children under the age of 6.13 Conversely, only 51% of the county’s referral-based demand for children ages 6-12 is met (Figure 7). Table 5. Potential Universe, Referral-Demand, and Current Seats by Number of Children Under 6 6 to 12 12 and Under Requested Demand14 6,467 3,032 9,499 Potential Universe15 9,705 13,597 23,302 Current Seats16 5,658 1,552 7,210 Requested Demand Gap (809) (1,480) (2,289) Potential Universe Gap (4,047) (12,045) (16,092) 13 This estimate is provided by the California Child Care Resource and Referral Network and based on child referral request data. 14 Data from California Child Care Resource and Referral Network and based on child care referral request data. 15 This includes children in households with either a) both parents working or b) single-parent households with one working parent. 16 Data from California Child Care Resource and Referral Network and based on state-licensed programs. The “Requested Demand” can be viewed as the lower-bound estimate for demand, while the “Potential Universe” represents the absolute upper-bound estimate for demand for child care. 12 Figure 7. Share of Child Care Demand Met by Child Age Adjusting the number of children in need of child care by the average number of children per household, the research team estimates that nearly 9,300 parents could enter the workforce if 100% of the demand for child care of the potential universe was met. If 100% of the referral-estimated demand was met, nearly 1,400 parents would be able to join the workforce. This next section applies economic impacts to these estimates, presenting a counterfactual “what-if” scenario where child care was no longer a barrier to employment.17 Economic Impact Model Outputs INTRODUCTION TO ECONOMIC IMPACTS This section of the report provides an overview of the types of economic impacts. To capture the complete range of economic activity that occurs as a result of child care related activity, the economic impacts are broken down into direct, indirect, and induced effects. - Direct effects show the change in the economy associated with the initial job creation and or initial economic activity. In this case, direct jobs represent Child Care Workers and any managerial or administrative staff involved in child care. - Indirect effects include all the backward linkages or the supply chain responses as a result of the initial (direct) effects. An example of an indirect job would be a new delivery driver who is hired to deliver the additional cleaning supplies that a child care program orders. - Induced effects refer to household spending and are the result of direct and indirect workers spending their wages. An example of an induced job would be a local restaurant hiring more 17 These estimates also assume that child care is the sole barrier to employment, and that 100% of parents would seek to enter the workforce. 0.0% 20.0% 40.0% 60.0% 80.0% 100.0% Children Under 6 Children 6 to 12 Children 12 and Under % of referral estimated demand met % of potential universe met 13 staff because child care workers and delivery drivers are going out to eat more now because of their income. Other terms used in the economic impact analysis are: Labor Income The total value of monetary paychecks and benefits received by relevant parties. Value Added Gross output less intermediate inputs. This is equivalent to Gross Regional Product (GRP). Output The total economic impact, which includes value added and intermediate expenses (money spent on materials or goods from other industries). ECONOMIC ACTIVITY OF THE CURRENT CHILD CARE WORKFORCE The current child care industry in SLO County employs nearly 670 people that allow an estimated 3,85018 parents to enter the workforce. The additional entrants to the workforce have a multiplier effect, generating and sustaining nearly 700 jobs through indirect effects and nearly 900 additional jobs through induced effects (Table 6). This economic activity also results in substantial tax revenue, equating to $19 million annually in local and county taxes (Table 7). Table 6. Annual Economic Impact of Current Child Care Industry Employment Labor Income Value Added (GRP) Output Direct 4,516 $198,651,339 $264,226,328 $461,215,358 Indirect 687 $33,129,363 $51,520,874 $107,287,804 Induced 876 $42,038,150 $83,347,094 $136,618,520 Total 6,079 $273,818,852 $399,094,295 $705,121,682 Table 7. Annual Fiscal Impact of Current Child Care Industry Local and County State Federal Total Direct $11,227,327 $16,119,341 $41,832,384 $69,179,052 Indirect $2,510,349 $3,270,892 $6,979,869 $12,761,110 Induced $5,347,788 $5,924,723 $9,723,464 $20,995,975 Total $19,085,464 $25,314,956 $58,535,717 $102,936,137 18 This estimate is based on average children per household and labor force participation rate of women between the ages of 25 and 54. 14 Impacts of Meeting Demand for Child Care This section outlines the economic impact outcomes of meeting the total demand for child care in SLO County. There are two methods used in this section to estimate the demand for child care that is currently not being met; one method uses estimates produced by the California Child Care Resource and Referral Network using referral rate data. The second method captures the broader “potential universe” by including all households with parents who are working. These two methods provide low- and high- end estimates for the share of demand not currently met. It is also important to note that these estimates are based on the economic potential of meeting the entirety of child care needs. There are a few assumptions built into this model; first, this model assumes all parents that are subsequently without child care will enter the workforce at rates similar to a comparison demographic.19 Second, the model assumes that these parents could enter the labor force with minimal barriers. In practice, the sudden introduction of thousands of new entrants to the workforce would have substantial effects on the labor market. Data are segmented by two age categories (5 & under and those ages 6-12) because of limitations in data granularity. REFERRAL ESTIMATED DEMAND Under the estimations provided by the California Child Care Resource and Referral Network, approximately 76% of all child care demand for children ages 12 and younger is met. However, this would still leave nearly 1,400 households without child care. This economic impact model assumes that child care needs for all 1,400 households can be met, resulting in 1,400 additional workers able to consider joining the workforce. We then use the labor force participation rate of women between the ages of 25 and 54 to approximate how many of these potential workers would seek to enter the workforce. Meeting 100% of referral estimated demand for child care would increase Gross Regional Product (GRP) in SLO County by more than $108 million annually, roughly the equivalent of New Car Dealers and Petroleum Refineries in the county. The new entrants to the workforce would also result in the creation and support of 425 new indirect and induced jobs through the increased purchasing power of the new direct and indirect workers. This new economic activity would also generate $28 million in local, state, and federal taxes annually. Municipalities and the county would see nearly $5.2 million in additional tax revenues (Table 9 and Table 11). The additional care to meet the referral estimated demand for children under the age of six would create and support more than 700 jobs (Table 8), while care for children between the ages of 6 and 12 would create and support more than 900 jobs annually (Table 10). 19 The rate used is the national labor force participation rate (76%) of women between the ages of 25 and 54. https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables/civilian-labor-force-participation-rate.htm 15 Children Under Six Table 8. Annual Economic Impact of Meeting 100% of Referral Estimated Demand (Children Under Six) Employment Labor Income Value Added (GRP) Output Direct 541 $23,780,941 $31,629,076 $55,178,499 Indirect 82 $3,966,183 $6,167,249 $12,841,329 Induced 105 $5,032,399 $9,977,504 $16,354,642 Total 728 $32,779,523 $47,773,829 $84,374,470 Table 9. Annual Fiscal Impact of Meeting 100% of Referral Estimated Demand (Children Under Six) Local and County State Federal Total Direct $1,341,646 $1,927,894 $5,007,451 $8,276,990 Indirect $300,335 $391,433 $835,560 $1,527,328 Induced $640,185 $709,250 $1,163,999 $2,513,434 Total $2,282,166 $3,028,577 $7,007,010 $12,317,752 Children Six to Twelve Table 10. Annual Economic Impact of Meeting 100% of Referral Estimated Demand (Children Ages Six to Twelve) Employment Labor Income Value Added (GRP) Output Direct 689 $30,267,284 $40,297,090 $70,280,127 Indirect 105 $5,039,790 $7,840,976 $16,335,878 Induced 133 $6,403,332 $12,695,596 $20,809,999 Total 927 $41,710,406 $60,833,662 $107,426,005 Table 11. Annual Fiscal Impact of Meeting 100% of Referral Estimated Demand (Children Ages Six to Twelve) Local and County State Federal Total Direct $1,707,461 $2,454,118 $6,374,388 $10,535,967 Indirect $382,049 $497,749 $1,061,869 $1,941,667 Induced $814,587 $902,466 $1,481,097 $3,198,150 Total $2,904,097 $3,854,333 $8,917,355 $15,675,784 16 POTENTIAL UNIVERSE ESTIMATES OF DEMAND The potential universe of households requiring child care is much larger than the referral-based estimate provided by the California Child Care Resource and Referral Network. The potential universe includes all households with children under the age of twelve and either a) both parents working or b) single-parent households with one working parent. Under this definition, there are 14,366 households in SLO County in need of child care, 5,072 of which are currently having their demand met. This estimate suggests there are nearly 9,300 households in the county without child care. Meeting this demand would require 950 more workers involved in child care. The economic impacts of these additional child care workers are included in the below figures. Meeting 100% of the needs of these 9,300 households would spur the creation and support of roughly 11,200 jobs in SLO County, adding $734 million to GRP. This is a GRP contribution roughly equivalent to the GRP contributions of Full-Service Restaurants, Residential Property Managers, and Hotels, combined. Under these assumptions, the addition of 8,300 new workers to the SLO County workforce would generate close to 2,900 indirect and induced jobs (Table 12 and Table 14). Meeting 100% of the potential demand for child care in SLO County would also generate an additional $189 million in fiscal impacts, including $35 million of which would go to local and county coffers (Table 13 and Table 15). Children Under Six Table 12. Annual Economic Impact of Meeting 100% of Referral Estimated Demand (Children Under Six) Employment Labor Income Value Added (GRP) Output Direct 2,718 $119,575,137 $159,031,123 $277,846,287 Indirect 414 $19,963,658 $31,043,681 $64,640,213 Induced 528 $25,309,082 $50,179,103 $82,251,210 Total 3,659 $164,847,876 $240,253,907 $424,737,709 Table 13. Annual Fiscal Impact of Meeting 100% of Referral Estimated Demand (Children Under Six) Local and County State Federal Total Direct $6,771,654 $9,712,564 $25,180,228 $41,664,445 Indirect $1,513,258 $1,971,369 $4,206,122 $7,690,749 Induced $3,219,627 $3,566,973 $5,854,013 $12,640,614 Total $11,504,539 $15,250,907 $35,240,363 $61,995,809 17 Children Six to Twelve Table 14. Annual Economic Impact of Meeting 100% of Referral Estimated Demand (Children Ages Six to Twelve) Employment Labor Income Value Added (GRP) Output Direct 5,596 $245,875,173 $327,390,689 $570,712,690 Indirect 849 $40,949,484 $63,701,839 $132,710,944 Induced 1,084 $52,018,809 $103,135,230 $169,054,345 Total 7,530 $338,843,467 $494,227,758 $872,477,979 Table 15. Annual Fiscal Impact of Meeting 100% of Referral Estimated Demand (Children Ages Six to Twelve) Local and County State Federal Total Direct $13,849,029 $19,920,859 $51,777,086 $85,546,974 Indirect $3,101,567 $4,042,315 $8,627,223 $15,771,105 Induced $6,617,442 $7,331,355 $12,031,998 $25,980,795 Total $23,568,038 $31,294,528 $72,436,307 $127,298,874 Return on Investment As the previous sections of this report have shown, there are substantial societal benefits to a bolstered child care industry. These benefits flow throughout the economy as parents can re-enter the workforce, resulting in additional tax revenue and discretionary income spent in the local economy. This section outlines some approximations on the societal benefits that are generated from adding one additional worker in the child care industry. This exercise provides a rough idea of the return on investment each additional worker in the child care industry. Given state requirements20 and practical limitations, child care workers for younger ages must have fewer students. This is particularly true for infant and toddler (students under 3 years of age) teachers, who have an average student-to-teacher ratio of less than five (Table 17). As a result, child care workers for younger ages open fewer new seats for students and subsequently fewer workers can matriculate into the labor market per additional child care worker. It should also be noted that, because programs have to scale their administrative and managerial staff as the number of teachers grow, these ratios include all adult staff, including administrators and management. 20 https://rrnetwork.org/assets/general-files/Title-5-Title-22-Comparison-Chart.pdf 18 Table 16. Student Openings Per Additional Child Care Worker Added (by student age) Student Openings Added21 Workers Available to Enter Labor Market Per Infant & Toddler Care (under 3 years) Professional Added 4.7 3.6 Per Preschool Care (3-5 years) to Professional Added 11.2 5.8 Per School Age (6+) Care Professional Added 13.0 6.7 Each additional child care professional that enters a program adds between $320,200 and $540,300 in Gross Regional Product (GRP, or Value Added) annually, depending on the age of the children (Table 17). Furthermore, each additional child care professional would generate, on average, between $14,000 and $25,600 in local taxes and another $19,300 to $34,100 in state taxes annually (Table 18). Table 17. Annual Economic Activity Generated per Child Care Professional Added to a Program Value Added Output Per Infant & Toddler Care (under 3 years) Professional Added $320,164 $552,083 Per Preschool Care (3-5 years) to Professional Added $475,117 $833,536 Per School Age (6+) Care Professional Added $540,250 $951,842 Table 18. Annual Fiscal Benefit per Child Care Professional Added to a Program Local and County State Federal Total Per Infant & Toddler Care (under 3 years) Professional Added $14,136 $19,349 $46,138 $79,623 Per Preschool Care (3-5 years) to Professional Added $22,206 $29,715 $69,319 $121,240 Per School Age (6+) Care Professional Added $25,597 $34,073 $79,063 $138,733 21 State requirements vary by teaching credential and licensing. The figures used for these estimates are determined through licensing requirements as well as average staff counts, so an additional worker includes the added need for administrative and managerial staff as well. 19 Subsidizing Child Care in SLO County During the 2019-2020 school year, roughly 2,400 children in 2,100 families received financial support for child care.22 These subsidies—from federal and state providers—amounted to nearly $23.7 million over the academic year. Table 19 and Table 20 highlight the economic impacts of these subsidies by allowing an estimated 1,600 workers to join the labor market and supporting the 220 child care workers needed to meet the additional child care demand. The economic activity from these 1,800 additional workers generates $161 million annually in GRP and creates and supports an additional 630 jobs through indirect and induced effects. The fiscal benefits are substantial as well, as these new workers generate $41.8 million in federal, state, and local tax revenues. Given these findings, an additional $22.5 million in subsidies would be needed to meet the lower-bound estimate gap in child care need. Table 19. Annual Economic Impact of Subsidized Child Care in SLO County Employment Labor Income Value Added (GRP) Output Direct 1,815 $80,380,554 $106,319,199 $187,134,258 Indirect 279 $13,539,334 $21,010,680 $43,649,460 Induced 355 $17,041,789 $33,787,857 $55,383,559 Total 2,449 $110,961,677 $161,117,736 $286,167,277 Table 20. Annual Fiscal Impact of Subsidized Child Care in SLO County Local and County State Federal Total Direct $4,637,628 $6,585,075 $16,921,957 $28,144,661 Indirect $1,026,405 $1,336,424 $2,852,434 $5,215,263 Induced $2,167,907 $2,401,795 $3,941,778 $8,511,479 Total $7,831,940 $10,323,294 $23,716,170 $41,871,403 22 These figures do not include data from two smaller programs that either have few subsidized seats or are largely licensed exempt. Thus, these figures account for a strong majority of the subsidized child care activity in the county. 20 Appendix A: Regional Definitions Table 21. City of SLO Sub-Region Zip Code 93401 93403 93405 93406 93407 93408 93409 93410 Table 22. North County Sub-Region Zip Code 93422 93423 93432 93446 93447 93451 93453 93461 93465 Table 23. South County Sub-Region Zip Code 93422 93423 93432 93446 93447 93451 93453 93461 93465 Table 24. Coastal Sub-Region Zip Code 93402 93412 93424 93428 93430 93435 93442 93443 93452 21 Appendix B: Research Methodology Population and demographic figures at the zip code and county level were obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau, 2014-2019 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. BW Research utilized JobsEQ for baseline employment figures. The 2020 Q3 dataset was used for this report. ECONOMIC IMPACT MODELING The research team utilized IMPLAN input-output economic impact modelling service to generate the estimated effects of child care in SLO County. This system utilizes complex models of industry spending patterns, commodity demands, and relationships between industries. Two separate methods were employed for approximating the overall demand for child care in SLO County. One method uses estimates produced by the California Child Care Resource and Referral Network using referral rate data. Another estimate captures the broader “potential universe” by including all households where either a) both parents are in the workforce or b) parents in single-adult households are in the workforce. Existing child care capacity was then subtracted from these values to determine the current “gap” in child care services. Since women remain the parents that primarily forgo the labor market to provide child care, worker inputs were proportional across the 22 largest IMPLAN sectors that employ the greatest number of women workers. The economic impact models used show the potential of meeting the entirety of child care needs. This model assumes all parents that are subsequently without child care needs at home would be willing and able to join the labor force. The research team used the labor force participation rate of a comparable category (women between the ages of 25-54)23 to approximate the entry-rate into the workforce. It is possible that this estimate produces a lower-bound, as the opportunity to earn extra income would make entering the workforce an attractive prospect, particularly in a region with a high cost of living. The ability of all of these parents to join the labor force is also unclear. While thousands of new entrants to the world of work would disrupt the SLO County labor market, the additional demand brought on through indirect and induced effects could create a feedback loop that spurs market demand for workers. 23 https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables/civilian-labor-force-participation-rate.htm First 5 SLO County and the Local Child Care Planning Council, together with local partners, recommend local governments pursue the following strategies to build local child care capacity. In the past two years, a pair of local reports were funded by a collective of four local public agencies and author ed by the Low Income Investment Fund and Pendulum De- pendent Care Solutions. The studies identify a suite of options for addressing this key “pain point” within our county for working families and their employers. The strategies below de- rive from these reports and from other locally funded research on the child care crisis. (*City of SLO, County of SLO, Cal Poly, San Luis Coastal Unified School District) Building CHILD CARE Capacity: Roles for San Luis Obispo County’s Local Governments (LG) LG as School-Age Child Care Provider LG as Partner in Regional Investments LG as Employer LG as Planner A. Expand suite of employee benefits related to child care. B. Activate HR and manage- ment to achieve “platinum” status** to further enhance Family-Friendly Workplace (FFW) policies/practices. C. Develop a joint-use child care center project with other municipal partners. **distinction awarded through SLO Chamber FFW Accelerator Program A. Meet demand for current year-round school-age child care needs. A. Incentivize child care start- ups & expansions. B. Prioritize child care as a core economic and equity development strategy. A. Contribute $ to child care planning infrastructure. B. Secure stable funding mechanisms toward sustain- able wages for child care professionals, and tuition support for families LG as Economic Stimulator A. Prioritize proactive assistance for child care building applications. B. Reduce barriers for child care projects (e.g. discount per- mitting, expand zoning, coor- dinate across public sector departments). C. Incentivize co-location of child care with housing. LG as Property Owner A. Assign LG-owned property for use by child care programs (City and/or other operators) February 21, 2023 —SLO City Council Child Care: Alignment with Major Goals • Investing in City Infrastructure and Facilities • Investing in the Future • Investing in People • Economic & Community Vibrancy • Fiscal Infrastructure Efficiency & Sustainability • Ensuring Public Safety and Providing Exceptional City Services • Quality of Life • Economic Development • Building and Facility Improvements • Recreational and Community Programs • Housing and Homelessness • Fiscal Sustainability and Economic Vitality • Community Health • Public Infrastructure • Housing • Economic Development and Vitality • Infrastructure & Facilities • Housing and Homelessness • Public Safety • Quality of Life Amenities • Governance • Community Character • Quality of Life for Resident • Economic Recovery, Resiliency & Fiscal Sustainability • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion • Housing and Homelessness Child Care Provider & Property Owner Employer Economic Stimulator Planner Partner in Regional Investments August 12, 2022—City Managers Meeting Child Care Study Partners Child Care & Dependent Care Needs Assessment Report Prepared By: Fran McIntyre Pendulum Dependent Care Solutions January 2022 With Coordination Support by: First 5 San Luis Obispo County (First 5) SLO County Child Care Planning Council Outline •Report Outline •Background •Methodology •Needs Assessment Timeline •Project Team •Executive Summary •Survey Data •All Agencies •Survey Highlights by Agency •Recommendations •Next Steps for the CCSP •Appendix The combination of thesefactors forces parents toleave, never enter, orstruggle in the workforce.This is bad for the localeconomy, families, andchildren too.1. Childcare options are scarce … A childcare desert is defined as a geographic area where fewer than 3 childcare spots are available for every 10 children under age 6. These areas are highlighted in orange on the map. Source: San Diego Regional EDC Explore an interactive map 13 2. Childcare options are inconvenient … Hospitality, retail, first responder and healthcare workers with unpredictable or non-standard work schedules have very few options for licensed childcare. 3. Childcare options are una!ordable … Clay’s Story 4. Childcare options are of varying quality … Quality is critical for children but parents often settle for mediocre (or worse) care they can find and a!ord Childcare options in the San Diegoregion are:scarce inconvenient una!ordable of varyingquality“Finding childcare is di!cultin every sense of the word.— Suley, San Diego ParentGET IN LINEChildcare is hard for many parents to find because supply isinsu!cient to keep up with demandNearly 190,000 children in San Diego County under 12 have no stay-at-home parent and noavailable childcare spot.Source: YMCA Childcare Resource Service , ACS 1-Year Estimates Employment Characteristics of Families (2015-2018), ACS 1-Year Estimates Children Characteristics (2015-2018)12 34 Infant and toddler care is particularly hard to find Brent’s Story Father of three children under the age of ten, Brent and his wife juggle multiple childcare schedules and locations while meeting the demands of their full-time jobs. Famo’s Story Mother of two, Famo, moved to the US in 2011 as a refugee from Kenya. After having her daughter, Famo enrolled in school full time to study photography and now works part time at a community based nonprofit. Like many of her peers, she found the childcare system confusing, especially as a non-English speaker. While she was able to secure care, she worries about the long-term impact on refugees, refugee women in particular, who cannot access childcare. GET OUT YOUR WALLET The price of childcare is high in the San Diego region … Sources: YMCA San Diego , Economic Policy Institute , Rent Jungle171819 With the high price of childcare and high costs of housing, food and transportation, San Diego has a childcare a!ordability chasm Many families that earn too much to qualify for subsidies still cannot a!ord to pay out of pocket for childcare. Head Start, a federally funded program, follows the federal poverty level for eligibility ($25,750 for a family of 4)20 State funded voucher programs such as the Alternative Payment Program base income eligibility on a % of the state median income (maximum gross income of $80,628 for a family of 4)21 A family of 4 in San Diego needs to earn more than $107,358 to a!ord paying for childcare out of pocket.18 Sources: Child Care and Development Planning Council , U.S. Federal Poverty Guidelines , Child Development Associates , California Budget & Policy Center 15 20 21 22 While the price of childcare is high, the sector relies on an underpaid workforce Lisa’s Story Introduction The Struggle to Find Good Childcare What Can We Do?References Download PDF Background •In 2020, the child care Study Partners (CCSP) -City of San Luis Obispo, County of San Luis Obispo, San Luis Coastal Unified School District and Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo partnered to pursue local solutions to the child care crisis in San Luis Obispo County •In February 2021 the San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Phase 1 Feasibility Report was completed •According to the San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study, tensions around the child care “trilemma” of accessibility, affordability, and quality exist in most communities nationwide, with no universal system or guaranteed access to services •The Study also highlights that until there is a comprehensive state or federal system, high-quality, affordable child care is only achievable with significant investments beyond parent tuitions and the current limited state and federal subsidies. •To address the “trilemma”, the CCSP determined that a next step would be a focused assessment of working family’s child care needs among employees across their respective agencies to determine options for collectively and/or individually addressing identified needs •In September 2021, First5 SLO and the CCSP engaged the services of Fran McIntyre, Pendulum Dependent Care Solutions to administer the Needs Assessment Survey and Report 7 CSU Channel Islands Early Childhood Education Center Feasibility Study Methodology •Survey Development •The instrument was created in collaboration with the CCSP. Each agency provided feedback to each draft and specific questions for their workforce (not to exceed 4 questions) •The Needs Assessment was designed to collect relevant information that would allow the CCSP to determine collectively as a group and as an individual agency: •measure the unmet early child care needs of their employees •establish their preferences concerning child care needs, including desired location of care, the type of care, hours and how lack of options Effect their daily lives. •evaluate the level of importance parents place on various aspects of child care, and dependent care needs such as support with their school age children (before and after school care, tutoring) •Survey Tool •The data collection design was single mode in nature, consisting of a web based survey only •On the recommendation of PDCS the CCSP agreed that Survey Monkey was an acceptable tool for the survey •Survey Launch and Administration •Each agency determined which employees would receive the survey •Each agency sent an email invitation to all eligible employees •SLCUSD and City of San Luis Obispo launched their survey on November 8th •Due to needed internal approvals both, the County and Cal Poly launched on, November 15th •Survey for SLCUSD closed on November 17th •Survey for Cal Poly, City of San Luis Obispo and the County closed on December 1st •Project Report •Data compilation, analysis and next steps recommendations •Presentation of results for CCSP and individual agencies Project Timeline Needs Assessment Survey, Results Analysis & Recommendations Survey Provide agreed upon needs assessment timeline and deliverables prior to project launch with Child Care Study Partners (CCSP) in collaboration with First5 1-Oct 4-Oct First5/CCSP/PDCS Identify each CCSP representative for survey launch oversite 6-Oct 13-Oct CCSP Microsoft Forms survey onboarding 6-Oct TBD PDCS Develop survey questions in collaboration with CCSP (Not to exceed 14 questions)11-Oct 25-Oct PDCS Each CCSP to provide unique questions (Not to exceed 4 questions)18-Oct 25-Oct CCSP/PDCS Provide survey draft (google doc) for review and approval for each CCSP 25-Oct 27-Oct First5/CCSP/PDCS Develop survey invite language for CCSP for review and approval 25-Oct 27-Oct PDCS Load 4 surveys into Survey Monkey & provide unique agency survey link for invite communication 2-Nov 5-Nov PDCS Pre-launch survey process review (during weekly CCSP meeting and prior to survey launch)3-Nov 3-Nov First5/CCSP/PDCS Facilitate survey launch for SLCUSD & City of SLO 8-Nov 8-Nov CCSP/PDCS Facilitate survey launch for Cal Poly & SLO County 15-Nov 15-Nov CCSP/PDCS Monitor participation and recommend extension of survey completion deadline if needed (SLCUSD & City of SLO)8-Nov 1-Dec PDCS Monitor participation and recommend extension of survey completion deadline if needed (Cal Poly & SLO County)15-Nov 1-Dec PDCS Close survey (SLCUSD) 17-Nov 17-Nov PDCS Close survey (Cal Poly, City of SLO & SLO County) 1-Dec 1-Dec PDCS Results Review survey results 1-Dec 13-Dec PDCS Conduct results analysis 1-Dec 13-Dec PDCS Summarize raw results 1-Dec 13-Dec First5/CCSP/PDCS Project Report w/ broader group 15-Dec 15-Dec First5/CCSP/PDCS Project Report Executive summary 15-Dec 12-Jan PDCS Provide high level summary of key findings 15-Dec 12-Jan PDCS Measure demand for child care needs; other dependent care such as school age needs 15-Dec 12-Jan PDCS Identify common themes amongst the CCSP 15-Dec 12-Jan PDCS Next step recommendations 15-Dec 12-Jan PDCS Identify potential solutions to address respondent needs 15-Dec 12-Jan PDCS Meet with CCSP to present Draft report findings 12-Dec 12-Jan First5/CCSP/PDCS Child Care Study Partners Needs Assessment Project Team City of San Luis Obispo Meghan Burger -Recreation Supervisor, Youth Services HR Partner, Kate Auslen County of San Luis Obispo Ashleigh Szkubiel -Human Resources Employee & Retiree Benefits Manager San Luis Coastal Unified School District Greg Kraemer & Leslie O’Connor- Adult School HR Partner-Dan Block Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo Patty Clarkson -Director, Cal Poly Preschool Learning Lab HR Partners-Samson Blackwell, Carol Brizendine & Jennifer Wharton First 5 San Luis Obispo County Wendy Wendt -Executive Director SLO County Child Care Planning Council Raechelle Bowlay –Coordinator Pendulum Dependent Care Solutions Fran McIntyre, Project Consultant Executive Summary Introduction •This multi-agency assessment of child and dependent care needs is the first of its kind in San Luis Obispo county and is part of a collaborative examination of the role that the public sector does and can play to support working families’ care needs •COVID-19 has significantly impacted the child care industry, working families and the County significantly. Without a supportive family care solutions, families will need to make the difficult decision to either- •Leave their job and stay home so they can care for their children •Move to another City that has more options for their family •According to the Economic Impact of child care in San Luis Obispo County family child care programs play a large role in the SLO child care economy, both in scale and flexibility Results •The CCSP Needs Assessment highlights the unmet child care need in San Luis Obispo County. Substantial gaps exist in the percent of children participating in child care programs and services for all youth, but especially for infants and toddlers and for children in preschool. •314 of the respondents have infant and toddler age children •537 of the respondents will need child care within the next year •661 of the respondents have children under the age of 5 •737 of the respondents have school-age children (ages 6-14) Next Steps •The results from the needs assessment presents substantial data which shows a clear need for quality child care and resources for families across all four agencies. This report outlines potential next steps and recommendations for the CCSP to consider •Once the CCSP determines the appropriate next steps, both as an individual agency and together, they can potentially leverage funding support for resource development as part of The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) and the Child Care Infrastructure Grant Survey Highlights All Agencies •8212 employees invited to participate •1315 participants •16% participation •382 comments •Invitation parameters •Employee did not need to have dependents •Full time employee •Average number of questions per survey-18 •Each survey included an average of 13 consistent questions amongst the four agencies •Each agency included four unique questions specific to their workforce needs •Slides 9, 10, 13, 14 and 16 represents the combined results from all four agencies •Slides 11 represents the combined results from Cal Poly and SLCUSD. Both the County and City opted out of this question. •Slide 12 represents combined results from Cal Poly, the City and County. The SLCUSD opted out of this question. •Slide 15 represents the combined results from Cal Poly, the City and SLCUSD. The County opted out of this question. What are the ages of your children? 12.40%11.48%10.42% 15.97% 8.52% 26.24% 21.29% 13.31% 5.25%0-1 YEAR (INFANT)1-2 YEARS (TODDLER)2-3 YEARS (TWOS/PRESCHOOL)3-5 YEARS (PRESCHOOL/PRE-K)5-6 (TK)6-9 YEARS (SCHOOL-AGE)10-13 (SCHOOL-AGE)14-18 YEARS18+Percentage Number of Responses 0-1 year (Infant)12.40%163 1-2 years (Toddler)11.48%151 2-3 years (Twos/Preschool)10.42%137 3-5 years (Preschool/Pre-K)15.97%210 5-6 (TK)8.52%112 6-9 years (School-Age)26.24%345 10-13 (School-Age)21.29%280 14-18 years 13.31%175 18+5.25%69 Note 1: Data response totals exceed the total number of respondents due to aggregating answers when a respondent could select more than a single response. I have dependents (ages infant-18 years) 78% 22% Yes [skip to question #13] No [skip to survey close]Percentage Number of Responses Yes [skip to question #13]78.16%966 No [skip to survey close]21.84%270 Note 1: Data represents 1236 responses out of 1315 participants In the past year, have you considered leaving your job because of difficulties in accessing child care (either/both 0-5yr. old and school- aged)? Yes 51% No 49% Answer Choices Yes No Note 1: Question was not included in the City and County’s survey Note 2: Includes responses from Cal Poly and SLCUSD surveys Note 3: Data represents 697 responses out of 700 participants Percentage Number of Responses Yes 51.00%350 No 49.00%347 How important do you feel it is for your employer to offer child care or dependent care benefit? 79.65 16.18 2.08 1.05 1.04 EXTREMELY IMPORTANT SOMEWHAT IMPORTANT NOT SO IMPORTANT NOT AT ALL IMPORTANT NO OPINION Note 1: Question was not included in the SLCUSD survey Note 2: Includes responses from the County, City and Cal Poly surveys Note 3: Data represents 865 responses out of 1085 participants Percentage Number of Responses Extremely important 79.65%689 Somewhat important 16.18%140 Not so important 2.08%18 Not at all important 1.04%9 No opinion 1.04%9 Do you anticipate needing child care or support for your school-age or high school-age child in the future? 53.80% 10.80% 8.60% 11.80% 15.00% YES, IN THE NEXT YEAR YES, IN THE NEXT 1-2 YEARS YES, IN THE NEXT 2-3 YEARS YES, IN THE NEXT 3-4 YEARS IF NO, PLEASE SKIP TO SURVEY CLOSE Percentage Number of Responses Yes, in the next year 53.80%537 Yes, in the next 1-2 years 10.80%115 Yes, in the next 2-3 years 8.60%74 Yes, in the next 3-4 years 11.80%107 If no, please skip to survey close 15.00%192 Note 1: Data represents 1025 responses out of 1315 participants How satisfied are you overall with your current child care arrangements? 10.17% 49.25% 32.37% 8.21% Very satisfied Satisfied Dissatisfied Very Dissatisfied Percentage Number of Responses Very satisfied 10.17%88 Satisfied 49.25%426 Dissatisfied 32.37%280 Very Dissatisfied 8.21%71 Note 1: Data represents 865 responses out of 1315 participants What type of dependent care benefit would best benefit the needs of your family? (Infant-6 years) 29.66%28.67% 12.32% 20.53%21.60%19.85% 25.40% 11.33%10.87%PRIORITY ACCESS TO QUALITY CHILD CAREDEDICATED CHILD CARE CENTER ON OR …RESOURCES AND REFERRAL (PROGRAM …EMPLOYEE PAID BACK UP CARE …FREE OR REDUCED COST BACK UP CARE …COST OF CARE ASSISTANCE (SCHOLARSHIP)FLEXIBLE WORK SCHEDULES (FLEXIBILITY …PART TIME OR JOB SHARING …TRANSPORTATION ASSISTANCE (PICK UP …Percentage Number of Responses Priority Access to Quality Child Care 29.66%390 Dedicated Child Care Center on or Near my Place of Work 28.67%377 Resources and Referral (program to assist in identifying quality child care)12.32%162 Employee Paid Back Up Care (emergency program for child care when regular care is not available)20.53%270 Free or Reduced cost Back Up Care for Emergency Care with Your Choice of Provider 21.60%284 Cost of care assistance (scholarship)19.85%261 Flexible Work Schedules (flexibility to work from home, hours, days)25.40%334 Part Time or Job Sharing Opportunities 11.33%149 Transportation Assistance (pick up / drop off)10.87%143 Note 1: Question was not not included in the County’s survey Note 2: Includes responses from the SLCUSD, City and Cal Poly surveys Note 3: Data response totals exceed the total number of respondents due to aggregating answers when a respondent could select more than a single response Note 4: Data represents partial results. Full results can be found in CCSP Survey Results Report In which City do you need child care, please check your top 3 preferences. 10.57%8.59% 36.35% 0.00% 5.00% 10.00% 15.00% 20.00% 25.00% 30.00% 35.00% 40.00% ARROYO GRANDE ATASCADERO SAN LUIS OBISPO Arroyo Grande Atascadero San Luis Obispo Percentage Number of Responses Arroyo Grande 10.57%139 Atascadero 8.59%113 San Luis Obispo 36.35%478 Note: Graph represents partial response results and highlights all respondents top 3 city preferences Survey Highlights by Agency •Survey Participation •Total employees invited-3311 •Total Participants -470 •Response percentage-14.1% •Response Highlights •Respondents chose Atascadero, Arroyo Grande and San Luis Obispo as their top three Cities for child care •58% of respondents need transportation support for their school-age child •48% of respondents considered leaving their job due to difficulties in accessing child care •74% of respondents said they would utilize an on-site or near campus child carecenter (0-5 years of age) •277 respondents have children under the age of 5 •86% of respondents feel that offering a child care benefit is extremely important •Comments •“Having gone through this twice, infant child care is impossible to get” •“We currently have our 3.5 year old enrolled in a center and we love it but we don’t know if our almost 4 month old will have a spot when I’m due back at work and we don’t have any other child care at this point.” •“Availability of and the cost of child care are the two biggest obstacles to parents in the area” •“I am resigning Cal Poly at the end of this quarter primarily because of child care costs and concerns. I might have stayed if I would have been given this as an option.” Full survey results can be found at Needs Assessment Results Survey Highlights by Agency •Survey Participation •Total employees invited-3000 •Total respondents -499 •Response percentage-16.6% •Response Highlights •Employees chose Atascadero, Arroyo Grande and San Luis Obispo as their top three Cities for child care •63% of respondents said that receiving caregiving support would make the County a top employer •43% of respondents would like tutoring and homework support for their school age child(ren) •25% of respondents pay more than $1000 p/month on child care related costs •220 respondents have children 5 and under •76% of respondents feel that offering a child care benefit is extremely important •Comments •“My spouse has had to stay home to provide child care instead of working because we cannot afford child care”. •“When the pandemic hit, a lot of parents and single home families struggled tremendously to find care for small school aged children”. •“child care in this county is abysmal and we’ve considered leaving to be near family as rates are prohibitively expensive, hours are too short (till 3 or 4 when I work till 5, then still have to get there), and there is little to no infant care”. •“If the County offered child care, this would definitely make the organization one of top choices for individuals in the region.” Full survey results can be found at Needs Assessment Results Survey Highlights by Agency •Survey Participation •Total employees invited-1321 •Total respondents -230 •Response percentage-17.4% •Response Highlights •Employees chose Atascadero, Los Osos and San Luis Obispo as their top three Cities for child care •60% of respondents considered leaving their job due to difficulties in accessing child care •58% of respondents said they would utilize a near campus child care center (0-5 years of age) •111 respondents have children 5 and under •123 respondents have children 5-13 years of age •49% of respondents anticipate needing child care or support for their school-age child(ren) •Comments •“I am a teacher for the district but have been on leave to care for my two young daughters due to the costs of child care. I felt it necessary to fill out this survey since my reason for staying home was due to lack of affordable child care." •“On site child care would be absolutely game-changing. I am thinking about leaving the classroom because of child care.” •“I would love to have the option of after school child care for my school age children, but cannot afford to pay for the YMCA for either of my children, let alone for two children.” •”I'm currently pregnant and due in December. I'm considering leaving my current job due to the cost of child care in comparison to my current salary. “ Full survey results can be found at Needs Assessment Results Survey Highlights by Agency •Survey Participation •Total employees invited-580 •Total respondents -115 •Response percentage-19.8% •Response Highlights •Employees chose Atascadero, Arroyo Grande and San Luis Obispo as their top three Cities for child care •64% of respondents said that balancing their work and family is their top work/life challenge •53 respondents have children under the age of 5 •66% of respondents feel that offering a child care benefit is extremely important •65% of respondents would benefit greatly from employer supported emergency back up child care (emergency care when you regular care falls through) •49% of participants anticipate needed support for their school-age or high school child(ren) in the future. •Comments •“It would be nice to have child care while at work when I do have children in the near future.” •“Having child care options through the city. It would allow my family the flexibility to be more adaptable for work.” •“What would help me most is having more money for daycare. My wife is a stay-at-home mother and would like to go back to work.” •“Please try to offer some type of child care for City staff or contract with a provider where we can be assured we will not be waitlisted. This causes a lot of additional stress.” •“Having a program that our child is not waitlisted would be great. Close by my place of employment or near downtown SLO is ideal.” Full survey results can be found at Needs Assessment Results Recommendations Resource Development & Expansion of Existing Programs •Survey local center based child care community to identify •Identify roadblocks which hinder interested individuals or companies from adding additional child care capacity, such as zoning constraint and permitting fees •Availability, interest/ability to expand current capacity for infant and toddler care •Ability to expand hours to match the needs of working parents •Survey local Family Child Care operators to identify •Availability, interest/ability to expand current capacity (small to large family child care) •Identify interested community members to help expand availability of family child care •Public Sector Policies •Work with the City of San Luis Obispo City and County Planning & Building Department to identify incentives for operators to expand and potential financial incentives for local employers to invest in increasing child care capacity in the county •Identify back up child care service providers who can support * •In home care/sick care •School Age Care & support •Work with School-Age Operators to identify- •Availability, ability to expand current capacity and services •Support for gap care (when elementary schools are closed for staff development or school vacation) •Increase access to transportation •Identify local solutions •Implement low cost solutions for families* •Tutoring/ Virtual learning support •Ability to provide other support services for families during virtual learning and holiday breaks *Refer to slides 28-29 for virtual and in home resources Recommendations (continued) CCSP Child Care Center Feasibility Study •This report has demonstrated that there is a substantial need for child care across all four agencies •To understand the feasibility of the joint development of a child care center, the following steps are recommended to determine the feasibility of a child care center: •Determination of the number of children the identified site can accommodate •By classroom •Establish geographic search parameters •Identify available real estate/ land options •Once location(s) has been agreed upon •Recommend per child square footage for both interior and playground •Overview of space requirements (adult space, storage, number of bathrooms, sinks, access to playground space) •Specifications for the proposed child care center including, indoor space, outdoor play space, and parking •Cost analysis once location and scope is agreed upon •Identify high-level summary of build-out costs (tenant improvement vs. ground up) •Anticipated capital requirements for start-up, including estimated costs for furniture, fixtures, and equipment •Develop a five year financial model to determine ongoing operational subsidy needs Note: Refer to Appendix for an Example of a Multi-Party Child Development Center Next Steps for the CCSP Based on the feedback from the CCSP the following is the agreed upon recommendations that the partners will further review and consider: •CCSP to distribute agency survey results to their individual employee populations •Each agency will review and share both the CCSP and individual agency report with their leadership •Outcome from meeting with leadership: •Determine priorities for agency and for the CCSP Access to Funding for New and Expanded Services •The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) •Once the District determines the appropriate next steps leadership can potentially leverage funding support for resource development as part of ARPA. Funds may be available to help with the additional family care resources for families in San Luis Obispo County •Funding available through 2024 •Application process begins in February 2022 •Funding available through 2024 •Child Care Infrastructure Grant •If the CCSP determines that the development of a Child Care Center is feasible, funds may be available through the Child Care Infrastructure Grant Program •Application process begins in February 2022 •Funding available through 2024 Appendix •Example of a Multi-Party Child Development Center •ROI of Offering a Child Care Benefit •Effects of COVID -19 on the Child Care Industry and Working Parents •Virtual and In-Person Resources Example of a Multi-Party Child Development Center UC Davis Health, Sacramento State & SMUD •Agreement to partner established-April 2019 •Feasibility Study Completed-July 2019 •Needs Assessment for overall need •Based on results of survey partners agreed on a child care center for 207 children •Financial Investment •Each Party contributed an equal share to the total cost of construction and ongoing operational subsidies •Location •Multi-Party identified 4 viable locations based on size, location (two mile radius) and outdoor space. •Community Support •The Multi-Party had tremendous support from the Mayor, City Council and Local Officials •Final location identified-November 2019 •Construction commenced -August 2021* •Child Development Center scheduled to open-September 2022 *commencement of construction was delayed by 6 months due to covid Effects of COVID-19 on the Child Care Industry and Working Parents COVID-19 pandemic is profoundly impacting the already struggling child caresystem, with many centers forced to close, perhaps for good. Laid-off early childhood education teachers are finding jobs in other sectors, possibly never to return. •In 2020, 60% of families had two working parents •16% of licensed child care providers in California have closed due to inability to maintain •The U.S. economy is still short more than 2 million women workers compared with February 2020 •In 2021, 7 out of 10 US employees are working from home •1 in 5 employers has implemented hybrid work models •According to a survey from the National Association for the Education of Young Children reported on July 13, 2020 Washington Post opinion piece by Catherine Rampell, “some 40 percent of the child-care providers that existed pre-pandemic expect to close permanently, unless they get additional public assistance soon.” •According to the Economic Impact of child care in San Luis Obispo County •Roughly 900 children are without care due to their child carecenter not re-opening •The number of total licensed programs declined by 13% in SLO County since March 2020 •Data from the California child care Resource & Referral Network suggests that the number of licensed home programs in SLO County fell by 10% between January 2020 -January 2021. Sources: BLS.Gov, CBSNews, Nextgov, AmericanProgress,GreatWorkLife, HRDive ROI of Offering a Child Care Benefit •Employee absences down 30% •Employee turnover down 60% •85 percent of employers report that providing child care services improves employee recruitment. •63% of parents say child care costs play a central role in their career decisions. •Even before the pandemic, inadequate child care was costing working parents $37 billion a year in lost income and employers $13 billion a year in lost productivity •Care.com study found that 67% of working parents would be more loyal to their current job if they were offered employer- subsidized child care, and the percentage rose to 74% for those with kids under 4 years old. And,60% of parents believe their job performance would also improve if child care benefits were available. •For every $1 invested in high-quality early care and education, our communities save between $4 and $17 in future costs of remedial and special education, the juvenile crime system and welfare support. Sources: BizJournal, HBR, Dallas News, Exclusive Type (in person or virtual)Age Group Description Supplier Link Virtual Toddlers (12 months-36 months) Big Little Feelings is a practical, online course for parents of toddlers so parents can get a practical action plan to navigate all the tough moments.Big Little Feelings https://biglittlefeelings.com In person Infant-School Age Nanny placement service for short or long term needs. They can also help support school age needs for virtual learning.Helpr https://www.helpr-app.com/parents In person Infant-School Age Nanny placement service for short or long term needs. They can also help support school age needs for virtual learning.Urban Sitter https://www.urbansitter.com/how-it-works In person Infant-School Age Nanny placement service for short or long term needs. They can also help support school age needs for virtual learning.Care.com https://www.care.com Virtual 3-18 years Live Online Classes and Camps, They offer fun, social, and safe learning experiences for kids ages 3-18 led by teachers. Individual, small and large group classes offered.Out School https://outschool.com/#abkdynymdz Virtual Preschool-12th grade Focus on assessment for learning, they use high-quality data to provide feedback about student achievement, inform and adjust teaching strategies, improve performance and celebrate learning.ACS Academy https://www.acs-schools.com Virtual Kindergarten- 12th Grade Virtual, on-line camps, tutoring etc Camp Kinda (Ed Navigator product)https://campkinda.org Virtual Kindergarten- 12th Grade Free one-on-one tutoring to K-12 students in nearly all academic subjects and some extracurriculars. Offered by high school and college students through Zoom.Quarantutors https://quarantutors.com Virtual Kindergarten- 12th Grade Virtual, on-line or in person camps, tutoring etc 6Crickets www.6crickets.com Virtual Kindergarten- 12th Grade Education support for families (employer benefit)Ed Navigator https://www.ednavigator.com Virtual Kindergarten- 12th Grade Virtual, on-line camps, tutoring etc Camp Kinda (Ed Navigator product)https://campkinda.org Virtual Kindergarten- 12th Grade Khan Academy offers practice exercises, instructional videos, and a personalized learning dashboard that empower learners to study at their own pace in and outside of the classroom. We tackle math, science, computing, history, art history, economics, and more, including K-14 and test preparation (SAT, Praxis, LSAT) content. Kahn Academy https://www.khanacademy.org Virtual 7-9 Summer Camp Coding Classes for Kids and Teens Idtech https://www.idtech.com/ Virtual 10-12 Summer Camp Coding Classes for Kids and Teens Idtech https://www.idtech.com/ Virtual 13-19 Summer Camp Coding Classes for Kids and Teens Idtech https://www.idtech.com/ Virtual All ages including Adults Curated list of Camps, select by age, location, camp type (includes special needs, robotics, religion, art, etc)Summer Camp Hub https://summercamphub.com/free-online-summer-camps/ Virtual Kids-Adults BurnAlong helps employers create healthier workforces and helps employees achieve fitness and wellness goals. For children and adults, includes virtual summer camps as well.BurnAlong https://www.burnalong.com Virtual Parent Support & Resources Network of Family Resource Centers help parents of children with special needs access and navigate services.Help Me Grow National https://helpmegrownational.org/ Virtual and In-Person Resources SLO County Virtual and In-Person Resources Type (in person or virtual)Age Group Description Supplier Link Virtual Parent Support & Resources SLO County Help Me Grow is a county-wide system aimed at reducing barriers for early intervention services and ensuring that all children have the opportunity to access regular developmental screenings and linkage to services. SLO Help Me Grow https://slohelpmegrow.org Virtual & In Person Parent Support & Resources Parent Connection has been providing services to families in San Luis Obispo County for ten years. Through the decade we have learned the most effective way to work with families. We use evidence-based curriculums that are proven to allow families to work on their strengths and receive concrete Parent Connection of San Luis Obispo County https://sloparents.org In Person Parent Support & Resources Parents Helping Parents serves families of children with special needs throughout San Luis Obispo County. Two lending libraries, which cover a wide variety of special needs topics, are equipped with toys, games and a place for children to play while their parents browse.Parent Helping Parents http://ucp-slo.org/affiliates/parents-helping-parents/ Virtual Parent Support & Resources Child Care Resource Connection (CCRC) assists in coordinating and helping generate accessible quality, affordable child care services in San Luis Obispo County and neighboring counties through the following initiatives for families: Finding Child Care, Assistance with Child Care Payments, Toy Lending Library & Covid-19 resources.Child Care Resource Connection https://capslo.org/child-care-resource-connection/ San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study February 2021 San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 1 ABOUT THE SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY COLLABORATIVE CHILD CARE STUDY This San Luis Obispo County Collaboratfve Child Care Study Report ©2021 is a publicatfon of the Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF), This study was undertaken to inform the San Luis Obispo County Study Partners of optfons to consider to address the goal of expanding high quality, affordable child care. LIIF is a nonprofit community development financial instftutfon with a more than 35-year history of providing child care funding and technical assistance throughout California and natfonwide. LIIF’s early care and educatfon philosophy includes the following tenets: ● High-quality child care assures the strong start necessary for a child’s success in school and life. ● Children in stfmulatfng child care programs are more likely to be academically successful. ● Quality, affordable child care is an investment that enables the whole family to succeed. This Child Care Study Phase 1 Report was commissioned and funded by a partnership of four Child Care Study Partners (Study Partners) in response to the "Where's the Care? Town Hall" event in May 2019: ● The City of San Luis Obispo (City of SLO) is home to 47,300 people with a daytfme populatfon of 72,770 (in 2017) accountfng for the City’s workforce and students at California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly). The City recognizes child care as an essentfal part of the economic recovery from COVID-19. Through the Parks and Recreatfon program and utflizing a supplemental staff team, the City provides direct state licensed child care to over 1,000 school age children each year, with before and after-school programming, as well as camps during normal school year closures. In additfon, the City provides child care enrichment and recreatfonal opportunitfes through Contract Class community partners and Sports and Aquatfcs offerings. City child care is enhanced through partnerships with San Luis Coastal Unified School District and CAPSLO, as well as staff workforce development through Cal Poly and Cuesta College. ● The County of San Luis Obispo (County of SLO) is a local government agency made up of dedicated elected officials, skilled employees, and devoted volunteers who are committed to public service. Together, they provide a variety of essentfal public services that contribute to a safe, healthy, livable, prosperous, and well-governed community. The County, which employs 2,643 permanent and 204 temporary employees, has the ability to influence child care through policies and services provided by the Social Services, Planning and Building and the Health Agency Departments most notably. ● California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly), San Luis Obispo is one of 23 public California State University (CSU) campuses located in the state. Founded in 1901, “Learn by Doing” is at the core of Cal Poly’s philosophy. This is a deliberate process in which students acquire knowledge and skills through actfve engagement and self-reflectfon inside the classroom and beyond. The Child Development Department within Cal Poly supports this type of student engagement in the child care field and Cal Poly also maintains two high quality early educatfon/child care programs located on campus; the Preschool Learning Lab (PLL) and the Associated Students Incorporated (ASI) Children’s Center which are available to student-parents, faculty/staff, and the community. ● San Luis Coastal Unified School District (San Luis Coastal) represents the communitfes of Avila, Edna Valley, Los Osos, Morro Bay, and San Luis Obispo and currently has an enrollment of approximately 7,500 students. The district serves students in preschool through twelfth grades and Adult Educatfon. The district maintains two preschools and five Transitfonal Kindergartens classes. The Adult School offers three Cooperatfve Preschools for families. Career Technical Educatfon programs in the Educatfon, Child Development, and Family Services workforce sector are offered at both our comprehensive high schools. The district partners with local agencies to provide child care before and after school on our elementary campuses. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 2 Support and coordinatfon for the project were provided by: ● First 5 San Luis Obispo County (First 5) ● San Luis Obispo County Child Care Planning Council (LPC) Together, these public agencies invested in identffying collaboratfve solutfons to address the child care crisis for their employees, and in San Luis Obispo County. A Study Team worked with the LIIF Team to ensure that the vision and urgency of the effort was addressed. This report provides the Study Partners with the Findings and overarching Optfons that the LIIF Team suggest all Study Partners consider, select from, and work collaboratfvely to accomplish. It also provides Optfons for each individual partner organizatfon. Woven through the report are many examples, links to online resources, and documents available in a shared drive. Acknowledgements: This publicatfon was written by the Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) Team: Elizabeth Winograd, Senior Program Officer for the Early Care and Educatfon Division; Kristen Anderson, Child Care Planning and Policy Consultant; and Eileen Monahan, Early Care and Educatfon Consultant. The LIIF Team is indebted to the following Study Team members, whose input and guidance was invaluable in the development and creatfon of this report: ● City of San Luis Obispo, Meghan Burger - Recreatfon Supervisor, Youth Services ● County of San Luis Obispo, Ashleigh Szkubiel - Human Resources Employee & Retfree Benefits Manager ● San Luis Coastal Unified School District, Sally Ames - Coordinator of Adult Educatfon Programs ● California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Patty Clarkson - Director, Cal Poly Preschool Learning Lab ● First 5 San Luis Obispo County, Wendy Wendt - Executfve Director, and Kris Roudebush - Special Projects Administrator ● County Child Care Planning Council, San Luis Obispo County, Raechelle Bowlay - Quality Early Learning Manager ● Shannon Messerly, We Are The Care Initfatfve Leadership Team A special thanks to all those who shared their tfme and wisdom for interviews. Their candid responses helped frame this report. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABOUT THE SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY COLLABORATIVE CHILD CARE STUDY ...........................1 INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................................................4 OVERARCHING FINDINGS AND OPTIONS .................................................................................7 COMPONENT A .................................................................................................................... 11 FAMILY-FRIENDLY WORKPLACE POLICY ...................................................................................... 14 All Study Partner Findings and Options .................................................................................... 14 PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYER-SPONSORED FACILITIES OR ARRANGEMENTS ............................... 15 All Study Partners Findings and Options .................................................................................. 15 INDIVIDUAL STUDY PARTNER FINDINGS AND OPTIONS ............................................................. 16 City of SLO ................................................................................................................................ 16 County of SLO ........................................................................................................................... 17 Cal Poly University .................................................................................................................... 18 San Luis Coastal ........................................................................................................................ 18 County-wide ............................................................................................................................. 19 COMPONENT B .................................................................................................................... 20 INDIVIDUAL STUDY PARTNER FINDINGS AND OPTIONS ............................................................. 21 City of SLO ................................................................................................................................ 21 County of SLO ........................................................................................................................... 24 Cal Poly University .................................................................................................................... 26 San Luis Coastal School District ................................................................................................ 27 County-wide ............................................................................................................................. 28 COMPONENT C .................................................................................................................... 30 All Study Partners Findings and Options ..................................................................................... 31 Compensatfon Supports ............................................................................................................. 32 All Study Partners Findings and Options .................................................................................. 32 Career Pathways ......................................................................................................................... 35 All Study Partners Findings and Options .................................................................................. 35 Individual Study Partners Findings and Options ......................................................................... 38 City of San Luis Obispo ............................................................................................................. 38 County of San Luis Obispo ........................................................................................................ 38 Cal Poly University .................................................................................................................... 38 SLO Coastal School District ....................................................................................................... 39 Countywide Options ................................................................................................................. 40 CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................................... 41 APPENDICES ........................................................................................................................ 42 San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 4 INTRODUCTION Statewide in California, about four million children need child care, but less than one million slots are available. In San Luis Obispo (SLO) County, nearly two-thirds of children of working parents from birth through age 12 do not have access to the quality child care that can help them succeed in school and beyond.1 The SLO County child care stakeholders are encouraged by recent work at the state level to shore up California’s early childhood educatfon systems. They are also poised to creatfvely mobilize local resources in both the public and private sectors in a shared effort to unlock child care capacity across the Central Coast. A May 2019 town hall called “Where’s the Care?” brought together families, child care professionals, and leaders from business, educatfon, and government to examine local solutfons to the child care crisis. In response, the initfatfon of this collaboratfve child care study is a commitment of four public sector partners, as policy developers and major employers, startfng with this report. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has impacted this study since the permanent impacts on the local or state child care landscape cannot be estfmated and considered in proposed Optfons for actfon. At the same tfme, the public sector partners are addressing significant challenges and face uncertain future conditfons. Keeping the long-range vision, while implementfng strategies as feasible, will be the key. Every day, families across San Luis Obispo County are making difficult decisions about who will care for their children. Some choose center-based programs. Others select providers who care for children in the provider’s home. Yet others choose to have family, friends, or neighbors care for their children. Regardless of the provider and setting, families want high quality, affordable child care where their child is safe, happy, healthy, and learning. Too often, however, families experience challenges when trying to access quality child care, which in turn makes it difficult to maintain employment and/or educatfon or training. High costs price some families out of the child care market. Finding child care that is open during work hours can be especially difficult for families who work second or third shifts. These challenges cannot be overcome by families and providers alone. Child care must be part of a broad County-wide effort to improve early learning and development as a way to improve the prosperity and quality of life in The County. 1 San Luis Obispo Child Care Planning Council Needs Assessment 2018-22 pg. 22 “Child Care” The term “early care and education” is the most descriptive and most encompassing term used for the care of young children outside the home, and the preferred name for many of those in the field. For brevity’s sake, the term “child care” will be used in this report and refers to licensed and license-exempt early care and education programs for children from birth to 12 years, including centers for young children, afterschool care and family child care homes. Care by family members and others (Family Friend and Neighbor) is also mentioned. Regardless of the name or type, children need high quality care for optimal development and learning in part or full day settings that meet care and supervision needs of their families. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 5 This Report focuses on three Study Component areas of interest to the Study Partners: A. Employer child care benefits/optfons for public sector partner agencies B. Planning/zoning and/or other local public policy optfons to unlock child care capacity; and C. Child care workforce pipeline enhancement optfons. For this first phase of the Study, LIIF was asked to study, refine, and analyze the child care needs and capacity of Study Partners, the state of the broader child care field in some cases, and provide a suite of policy and/or programmatfc opportunitfes within the three Study Component Areas for the public sector partners to consider as viable pathways toward an improved local child care system . The second phase will allow Study Partners to select the most impactiul strategies, build structure to support the work, and begin implementatfon. Understanding high-quality, affordable, and accessible child care The tensions around the child care “trilemma” of accessibility, affordability, and quality exist in most communitfes natfonwide, with no universal system or guaranteed access to services. Untfl there is a comprehensive state or federal system, high-quality, affordable child care is only achievable with significant investments beyond parent tuitfons and the current limited state and federal subsidies. Existing child care programs are being subsidized by the low wages and benefits of teachers and by free or low-cost (often inadequate) facility space. California’s new “Master Plan for Early Learning and Care” (MPELC) provides a vision that all California children thrive in their early years and a 10-year framework to achieve that vision. MPELC focuses on access to high-quality early learning and care resources; equitable opportunitfes for the workforce that advance equitable outcomes for children; and greater efficiencies through contfnuous improvement. The plan recommends many steps to address the needs, for which communitfes can and should prepare. Communitfes can prepare now for the implementatfon of the plan by adoptfng aligned strategies and helping current families and children with child care needs while building for the opportunitfes that the plan will bring. The informatfon presented above is critfcal for San Luis Obispo County families, residents, businesses, and other organizatfons to hear. A public awareness effort about child care affordability is critfcal and must include informatfon about the true cost of quality. Such a campaign can help set parent expectatfons about the cost of care and can act as a call for all stakeholders, including organizatfons not traditfonally seen as interested in this work, to join the cause for a collectfve impact. The results can include directfon/redirectfon of existfng resources and tracking and capturing of new ones, as well as a culture shift regarding the value of child care. Changes in federal and state policy around the early care and educatfon system are underway both in reactfon to the COVID-19 pandemic and as part of a pre-pandemic shift in understanding the value of child care for families, children, and the economy, including state and federal policy changes and potentfal funding. It is important that Study Partners understand the existfng system and are informed about state, federal, or other changes in the works. While no one can be sure of new funding opportunitfes or policy provisions, this study can help Study Partners prepare for new opportunitfes by highlightfng resources and preliminary steps their organizatfons can take now to be positfoned for future growth. Included in the MPELC plan is targeted universal preschool achieved by combining Transitfonal Kindergarten and Title 5 preschool in school and community classrooms. Planning conversatfons can begin San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 6 now between school districts and community child care providers of all types. Such partnerships and the identfficatfon of interested partfes and available/needed resources are some steps that can be taken to increase readiness. Where possible, specific MPELC and federal investment notes are included in this report. The transfer of most child care programs from the Department of Educatfon to Social Services in July 2021 is another major change with as-yet unknown impacts. Methodology For this report, the main data used was qualitatfve and collected through interviews and focus groups. Secondary data came from existfng reports and studies in San Luis Obispo County and other communitfes . The SLO County Study Team selected the individuals to be interviewed and introduced them to the LIIF Team, who conducted the interviews. Nineteen individuals, including Study Partners and Study Team members, were interviewed, along with nine stakeholders related to the three Study Components. ● Partner agency representatfves included organizatfonal leaders, human resources, planning and community development, property/facility managers, and direct services providers ● Study Team members ● Key community stakeholders/partners: o San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce (Chamber) o Economic Vitality Corporatfon2 (EVC) o REACH 2030 (REACH) o Trust Automatfon o Cuesta College o Community Actfon Partnership of San Luis Obispo County, Inc. (CAPSLO) Two focus groups were held virtually: one with early care and educatfon center directors and one with family child care providers. Outreach to the child care community was conducted through emails from the Child Care Planning Council and CAPSLO. The emails provided informatfon about the study and requested partfcipatfon in the focus groups. The center focus group had four partfcipants and nine partfcipated in the family child care focus group. Study Limitatfons The report focused on the four County of SLO public Study Partners, but with some analysis and Optfons for broad, countywide efforts to resolve issues beyond the purview of Study Partners. However, the report is not intended to be a comprehensive study of child care in the County of SLO. Because the focus of the study was on Study Partners and broad systems, we could not fully research the needs of low-income families in The County. These families likely feel the effects of the lack of child care spaces, high costs of child care and cost of living, and are often in jobs that are deemed “essentfal” during COVID-19, so must be at work. Pandemic-related impacts on the child care supply and on families’ needs change weekly. While data from natfonal and other surveys shed some light, it will be some tfme before an assessment of lastfng effects in SLO can be done. 2 As of December 2020, REACH and the San Luis Obispo Economic Vitality Corporation Boards have voted to consolidate under the REACH banner, uniting efforts to create a brighter future for the local economy. The consolidation provides momentum and capacity for tackling the pressing issues of economic recovery and working together to grow the collective impact on important initiatives such as expanding broadband access, supporting The County’s industry clusters and supporting the child care industry. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 7 OVERARCHING FINDINGS AND OPTIONS There is not one solutfon to all aspects of the child care puzzle for Study Partners, employers, and the community, but with the momentum and partnerships already in place in San Luis Obispo County great strides can be made on all fronts. The key will be to prioritfze short-term or urgent strategies, while building towards longer term projects that require more tfme and resources . The Optfons are generally organized this way, with current opportunitfes listed first. Some strategies overlap across the three components. Where this occurs, we have cross-referenced for clarity and connectfon. We have included “Findings and Optfons for All Study Partners” where the informatfon would have been duplicatfve if listed for each partner. Specific informatfon for each partner then follows, as appropriate. As such, each Study Partner is asked to consider the “All” items in additfon to those specific to their organizatfon. Due to the variety of component topics and the differing partner functfons, some sectfons have more findings and Optfons for some Study Partners and fewer for others . The Study Team’s selectfon of short- and long-term Optfons for implementatfon will occur in Phase 2 of the Study. A team of key stakeholders can be created for guidance, coordinatfon, and accountability. Overarching Findings ● Although there are just four public agency Study Partners for this study, these organizatfons have the potentfal to greatly influence the trajectory of the child care work in The County. By taking on the work laid out in this report, they can also influence and engage other public and private organizatfons to learn from their work, and potentfally partner to expand the impact. ● With over 7,000 employees combined, the Study Partners employ close to 10% of the entfre workforce in The County of SLO. If the Study Partners can address the child care needs of 10% of The County’s workforce, they will significantly impact the child care capacity in The County. They will also provide inspiratfon for other public sector agencies and private organizatfons. ● The public sector Study Partners have major pieces of the child care puzzle available to them – buildings and land, relatfvely larger size workforces, control of land use, ability to set child care- friendly policies, and significant influence. ● The Study Partners’ ability to set child care-friendly policies and align resources with child care can improve the social fabric of the whole community. With additfonal support and fewer barriers, child care providers are more likely to be able to grow and sustain their programs. Partner employees and community families will benefit personally and professionally from having greater access to more high quality child care, which also helps employers and the economy. “City leaders are responsible for promoting a city’s economic vitality, making it a place where their constituents can be productive, engaged citizens. They are best positioned to champion the issues of the early education workforce because they are closer to constituents and more in touch with their challenges than state and federal policymakers.” National League of Cities: Cities Supporting the Early Childhood Workforce San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 8 Overarching Options We encourage Study Partners to consistently view their operatfons, policies, and resources through a child care lens, contfnually asking how policies or practfces will affect child care . If the partner organizatfons make child care a priority throughout their departments, they can use their resources, policies, and politfcal influence to affect positfve change in child care accessibility and quality in the following areas: 1. Build infrastructure for the Selected Strategies Throughout the implementatfon of each component, develop infrastructure within each partner organizatfon for that work, along with strong relatfonships among Study Partners, and policies to ensure sustainability. a. Broaden the connectfons. Connect and share resources with state and natfonal organizatfons that support public sector efforts around child care and support for children and families. i. The Natfonal League of Citfes (NLC) provides a robust child care focus, including: ● Early Learning Natfon ● Afterschool and Summer Learning: A City Strategy for Workforce Development ● Early Learning Community Actfon Guide ● A Guide for Equitable Early Care and Educatfon NLC has invited the City of San Luis Obispo to contact them directly to explore all of the resources and opportunitfes provided. ii. The Natfonal Associatfon of Countfes (NACO) has launched a new Early Childhood Initfatfve and website, Countfes for Kids, which serves as the hub for informatfon and resources. NACO has invited The County of San Luis Obispo to contact them directly to explore all of the resources and opportunitfes provided. iii. The Natfonal School Boards Associatfon provides background and advocacy around early care and educatfon iv. A similar associatfon to those above for universitfes could not be found, but much of the NLC and NACO strategies and advocacy positfons can be adopted by colleges and universitfes. As well, other models where higher educatfon focuses on child care can be replicated, such as the University of South Carolina College of Educatfon’s Child Development Research Center. b. Form strong partnerships with local child care agencies for strategy design. For example, the LPC would be a good partner with the Early Learning Natfon, where the City would be the lead, as a member, and can partner with the LPC in planning and implementatfon of actfvitfes to ensure the strategies are designed for the SLO county child care industry . c. Consider operatfng or expanding child care programming to serve Study Partners and/or the community. d. Dedicate staff to lead the selected strategies from the study. Consider collaboratfve contributfons and/or long-term funding streams to fund staff positfons to support all Study Partners to implement the plan. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 9 e. Search for opportunitfes for strategic partnerships between a subset of Study Partners to achieve specific goals i. Example: City of Santa Monica’s Child Care Master Plan, in partnership with Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District and Santa Monica College. This plan is “the framework for a long-range strategy to address critfcal needs like the shortage of child care facilitfes, protectfon of existfng child care and increased care for infants and toddlers.” ii. Example: The City of Irvine and the Irvine School District created the Irvine Child Care Project through a Joint Powers Agreement to address after school child care . A summary of the partnership is here. 2. Secure Funding for the Work a. Study Partners can track and capture every available source of funding for all child care in The County – a creatfve and dedicated focus and team effort can uncover opportunitfes that might have gone undetected. Sources can include federal, state, and local government funds, as well as foundatfons and private funding. For example, housing funding can be considered more broadly to incorporate child care. b. Develop a concerted effort to ensure all eligible child care providers apply for, and receive, any COVID-19 relief funds available. i. One fund that is available at the tfme of the writfng of this report is the California Small Business COVID-19 Relief Program. SBDC is listed as a local technical assistance provider. Individual and special training and support sessions can be provided to ensure all eligible providers submit successful applicatfons. (This resource is listed in Component C as well). Have experts who are knowledgeable about funding opportunitfes as well as child care facilitfes development, operatfonal funding and other grant funds to facilitate conversatfons and connectfons to make projects and deals happen. c. Engage funding partners, in additfon to First 5, who can not only secure financial support, but can also serve to distribute program funds. Consider foundatfons, United Way, District Educatfon Foundatfons, etc. The Natfonal Associatfon of Countfes offers ideas on how to build the case for investfng in early childhood programs. d. Identffy, and study the feasibility of, regional tax and other revenue-generatfng strategies. One example is San Francisco’s Measure C, the Early Care and Educatfon for All Initfatfve, which supports the child care workforce, parent tuitfons, educatfon, and quality. 3. Set Child Care-Friendly Policy a. Most policies set by public agencies can be amended to impact child care. Applying a child care lens across the entfre organizatfon will guarantee good child care policies across all departments. b. Cultfvate child care expertfse in key departments, such as human resources, planning, “Counties play a major role in shaping local child care systems and investing in core services for infants and toddlers that help to support a thriving community and positively impacting outcomes into adulthood.” National Association of Counties San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 10 community development, economic development, and public works. With knowledge and a child care lens, staff can pinpoint ways to remove barriers and increase access to high quality child care. 4. Refocus Economic Development a. Coalesce economic development efforts around child care and include the economic development agencies such as the Chamber(s), REACH and Cal Poly University’s Center for Innovatfon and Entrepreneurship (CIE). b. Use a child care focus in all economic development initfatfves within the organizatfons. 5. Advocate for child care - Study Partners can advocate broadly for high quality child care, and specifically, for state and federal subsidies for low-income families. The value of local government and business advocacy for child care support at the state level cannot be overstated, so local Chamber involvement is key. Communicate with government and elected leaders about the need for child care in The County. Define and track data that will help tell the story. The US Chamber of Commerce Foundatfon and the Bipartfsan Policy Center have resources and examples. Equity in child care High quality child care can be a tremendous lever to ensure equity for children and families. The MPELC focuses on strategies that will ensure equity within the child care system. References to resources that support equity are shared throughout this report. For public agencies, nearly every actfon offers an opportunity to ensure equity. For example, city and county community development departments can plan for child care where needs are the greatest, and resources can be distributed using data-informed equity formulas. And, child care design models can be encouraged where children of all economic backgrounds can partfcipate together through blending and braiding of funding sources. The Natfonal Associatfon for the Educatfon of Young Children offers equity guidance for public agencies. The Study Partners are encouraged to plan together, find metrics, and track the success of their child care strategies through an e quity lens. COVID-19 Pandemic and child care The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on child care have been tremendous. Many programs have had to shut down, temporarily or permanently. Public agencies have their own budget constraints and impacts to staffing and services during the pandemic. Some Optfons for responses from the Study Partners are included throughout the report. Three supportfng resources are: ● US Chamber Foundatfon report on impact of COVID-19 on child care ● County responses to the COVID-19 Crisis - Child Care ● Legislatfve Brief on addressing the COVID-19 child care crisis San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 11 COMPONENT A C H I L D C A R E B E NE F I T S /O PT I O N S FO R P U B L I C S EC TO R PA RT N E R AG E N C Y E M P LOY E E S SUMMARY Families find it challenging to arrange for child care while working or attending school. Family-friendly policies can boost employee engagement and promote work-life balance and flexibility. When employees do not need to worry about who is caring for their children, they are better able to focus on their jobs. This is also true for employees responsible for aging adults or others with special needs. The Study Partners, and all employers, can provide support through policies that respond to the diverse needs of employees. Component A focuses on employer-sponsored child care support, including internal policies for parent employees with young children, as well as direct child care initfatfves, such as the provision of child care. The LIIF Team looked at individual partner Optfons, as well as possible partnerships with other agencies. Also included in this component, and in Component C, are strategies the organizatfons can implement to impact child care across The County, which will positfvely impact their employees and community families. The cost of family-friendly policies has traditfonally been looked at as an expense to an organizatfon, as well as a direct individual employee benefit. But these policies should be considered business strategies that benefit the entfre organizatfon. Return on Investment (ROI) results for organizatfons with good family- friendly policies include improvements in recruitment and retentfon, reductfons in lost tfme, improved reputatfon, and tax benefits. When employers invest in child care, whether for their employees or for other families, the entfre community benefits. Studies show the societal effects of supportfng high quality child care for families, with returns of 12% to 14% in greater financial success for children and reduced need for, and lower costs of, social services. And the earlier the investment is made, the greater the return. Public sector organizatfons have a critfcal role to play in developing and supportfng child care for the community. They create systems, can prioritfze their resources and focus on what young children and families need, and have tremendous influence on residents, businesses, and other organizatfons. Every public entfty that takes on such a role serves as a model for other similar organizatfons, creatfng a ripple effect of change. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 12 COMPONENT A: STUDY QUESTIONS AND FINDINGS The specific questfons posed for this Component of the Study were: ● What opportunities exist for enhanced family-friendly workplace policies among the partner public agencies, in relation to expanded access to quality affordable child care? ● What opportunities exist for partner public agencies – either individually or jointly with other entities -- to build or open additional child care capacity for the children of local government employees? ● What existing local government facilities might be repurposed for suitable use as a child care center? ● What potential multi-organization options exist for shared development and/or repurposing of existing facilities to expand child care capacity for public sector employees? ● What is the cost and the potential return on investment for innovation in the above two opportunities areas? (e.g., talent attraction, employee retention, productivity, child-centered outcomes) For this study area, three main topics were explored in key informant interviews and focus groups to address the questfons above. ● Return-on-investment data ● Family-friendly workplace policy ● Public sector employer-sponsored facilitfes or arrangements San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 13 RETURN ON INVESTMENT FOR EMPLOYEE CHILD CARE POLICIES Return on Investment (ROI) measures, when applied to family-friendly workplace policies (or Work/Life policies), can highlight the organizational benefits of policies, such as flexible schedules and teleworking. When measuring such effects from employee child care strategies specifically, some base employee data will be required, as well as specific data from employee surveys and focus groups. Using this type of data, the US Chamber Foundation project analyzed the impact of child care breakdowns across 5 states and found that each state loses over $1 billion annually in economic activity as a result. The following are two formulas that can be used to calculate ROI for child care strategies: 1. The cost of breakdown in child care arrangements can be determined by asking employees how many days of work they missed in the previous year for this reason. The cumulative number of days reported by employees can be multiplied by the average salary of the respondents to measure the financial impact on the organization. Helping employees secure more stable child care arrangements can be accomplished through a number of the child care policy alternatives listed in Appendix C, with the costs of those strategies factored in. For example (using combined County and City average salary): ○ 100 employees missed x days in the past year due to child care breakdown. ○ The average of the responses is 4.3 days. ○ The average annual salary of all employees is $65,000 ($250 per day) ○ 100 x 4.3 x 250 = $107,500 lost for the organization in one year. Responses can be set up to be filtered by groups of employees’ responses and salaries so that calculations can be made more specific. 1. Employees who are experiencing the stress of caring for a family member or cobbling together child care arrangements often consider quitting their job as a solution to the issue. The number of employees who consider leaving their job can be multiplied by the average salary of the employees plus 50-200% of salary just for rehire costs to understand the impact should those employees quit. Offering solutions to relieve their child care issue can reduce the impact. For example: ○ 100 employees respond that they have considered quitting due to child care challenges. * (This question can offer a scale to indicate seriousness of consideration.) ○ The average annual salary of all employees is $65,000. ○ The average cost to replace an employee at 125% of annual salary is $(81,250).** ○ If just 5 of those employees actually quit, the cost to the organization would be $406,250. Supportive child care and caregiver policies can impact business outcomes, employee loyalty, turnover, productivity, and retention. With over 7,000 employees between the four Study Partners, the collective effect of solid, data-driven child care solutions could be considerable. Notes: * In a ReadyNation study, 13% of respondents had actually quit a job due to child care challenges. **According to Gallup, the cost of replacing an individual employee can range from one-half to two times the employee’s annual salary. (“This Fixable Problem Costs U.S. Businesses $1 Trillion.” March 2019). An average of 125% is used here. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 14 FAMILY-FRIENDLY WORKPLACE POLICY The Findings and Optfons for this element of Component A are combined for all Study Partners, with any specific Findings and Optfons for each listed in the Study Partner Findings and Optfons sectfon below. All Study Partner Findings and Options Findings: ● All four Study Partners have varying degrees of family-friendly policies in place, and all have an interest in including additfonal supports for child care and caregiving. ● The Study Partners currently do not regularly gather data specifically about child care and caregiving needs of employees. ● All organizatfons have cultures that would likely categorize family-friendly policies, such as child care, as individual benefits for employees rather than organizatfonal strategies, although all seemed open to thinking of such strategies differently. ● The four Study Partners have reflected that they have heard a great deal about the child care needs of employees, especially during the pandemic and have shifted quickly to accommodate work situatfons, which has brought child care to the forefront of organizatfonal discussions about employee needs. Options: 1. Build employee child care into the organization’s policies a. Immediately add child care questfons into relevant planned employee surveys/data gathering. b. Conduct self-assessments of the organizatfon’s readiness to implement child care policies and gather necessary data. The Organizatfonal Work-Life Assessment and Checklist are offered as tools to help with this process. c. Work with child care experts, such as the LPC and San Luis Obispo Child Care Resource Connectfon (CCRC), to determine the impacts that the pandemic has on the San Luis Obispo County child care industry, and on the child care needs of employees in general. For example: will there be a reduced need, or a change in locatfon of child care need, if more employees contfnue to work from home? d. Utflize the new Family Friendly Workplace Toolkit from We Are The Care to guide organizatfonal planning and make use of the resources provided. e. Develop a plan to introduce employees to the organizatfon’s commitment to Family Friendly policies, engage employee parents, and identffy and track child care needs on a regular basis. f. Include these types of questfons in an initfal child care survey and routfne follow- up surveys. i. Need for child care for ages birth through age 12 ii. Type of care families need, by age of child (full day, part day) iii. Type of care families would use if the organizatfon offered it. Include optfons from Appendix C, along with a full list of work/life policies iv. Locatfon where child care is needed (near home vs near work). San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 15 g. Incorporate questfons on other caregiving needs, such as care for an elderly person or a child with special needs. h. Survey examples: i. With pandemic questfons: https://hicleo.com/blog/nows-the-tfme-to- check-in-with-employees-with-caregiving-responsiblitfes/ ii. Without pandemic questfons: file:///C:/Users/emona/Downloads/covid- 19-pulse-survey-results-caregiver-crisis.pdf 2. Build a strong, lasting family-friendly structure in the organization. a. Sustain current support for family-friendly policies and child care by: i. Assigning staff to oversee the effort (consider a Work/Life Coordinator) ii. Providing family-friendly-specific training for Human Resources employees iii. Allocatfng funding for the effort iv. Forming an employee committee to help guide the work v. Putting policies in place that reflect the intent and commitment of the organizatfon’s leadership b. Begin, or contfnue, a shift within the entfre organizatfon to think about family- friendly policies as business or organizatfonal strategies rather than employee benefits. c. Adopt a broad view of employee needs and consider a range of policies and offerings that fit the specific needs of employees in different life stages from early career to retfrement age. d. Learn about, and use, metrics to build individual business cases for how family- friendly policies improve the organizatfon’s bottom line. Share this data with other businesses to encourage them to adopt child care and other family friendly policies. (See overview above) e. Engage managers in the process and provide support and training to help them shift to the new way of managing that embraces employee work/life balance. f. Join with partners to share strategies and build a support system for the development and sustainability of family-friendly policies. PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYER -SPONSORED FACILITIES OR ARRANGEMENTS The findings and Optfons for this element of Component A are combined for all Study Partners, with any specific Findings and Optfons for each listed in the Study Partner Findings and Optfons sectfon below All St udy Partners Findings and Options Findings: ● The City of SLO and San Luis Obispo County YMCA (YMCA) currently provide school age care on San Luis Coastal campuses. ● School-age child care needs support coordinatfng with schools during and after COVID-19, addressing the conditfons of current facilitfes, and securing new facilitfes. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 16 ● All Study Partners have property that is currently in use, planned for use, and/or not planned for use. San Luis Coastal and Cal Poly had, prior to this study report, identffied propertfes that could serve to locate a child care center, separately, or as part of housing. ● A number of other findings, Optfons and examples regarding child care facilitfes strategies on public land and in mixed-use developments can be found in Component B. Options: 1. Conduct an analysis of all Study Partner propertfes (individually or together) and determine which might be viable optfons for child care facilitfes. 2. Begin planning with Study Partners for the potentfal of one or more collaboratfve child care optfons. Make use of the informatfon gained from Component B on facility development and assess the feasibility of various child care optfons for employees, such as creatfng a consortfum child care center or contractfng for slots in local child care programs . Begin conversatfons first with current partner providers, including the City of SLO and YMCA. Consider a sliding fee scale where higher paid employees pay the true cost of quality, allowing lower fees for other families. A summary of Optfons is listed, along with benefits and consideratfons, in Appendix C. Select strategies based on the surveys and other employee data-gathering to ensure employees want and will use these benefits. Potentfal facility optfons are described in Component B. 3. Consider various models to support employee child care, such as vouchers or scholarships. The Early Learning Coalitfon of Miami-Dade/Monroe has created a School Readiness Match Program, where employers provide subsidies for employee families. 4. Include centers and family child care optfons in housing developments and research building or allocatfng housing for child care employees. More in Component B. 5. Build a strong child care knowledge base across the departments by offering training and resources, as well as incorporatfng child care into job descriptfons and department responsibilitfes. 6. Track all employer child care efforts and learn from the successes and challenges and take advantage of opportunitfes to support or expand child care. INDIVIDUAL STUDY PARTNER FINDINGS AND OPTIONS City of S an Luis O bispo Findings: ● The City of San Luis Obispo has 576 employees and values diversity, equity, inclusion, affordable housing, engagement of families, and support for work/life balance for all employees. The City’s culture promotes a sense of purpose and attracts people who want to serve their community. ● The current City Council has a priority to advance child care for employees and for the community. Employee child care needs have been discussed over the years, but the pandemic has brought the issue to the forefront, resultfng in a rapid change in employee work policies, many of which support families with young children. ● The City surveyed employees in the summer of 2020, asking about the impacts and needs as a result of the distance learning plans of the local schools. Sixty employees completed the survey and the HR and Parks and Recreatfon Departments collaborated on creatfng a resource page for San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 17 the City’s website, specifically geared towards helping parent employees with their child care challenges. ● The City is seen as a leading partner in school-age child care in San Luis Obispo County through the services they offer. The City’s Parks and Recreatfon Department offers robust school-age programming, including licensed child care, sports, and classes. In partnership with San Luis Coastal, the City’s licensed programs are offered on campus at a number of schools, although few City employees use the service, as most live outside the City and have their children in neighborhood schools. • The City has been able to quickly adapt and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the support of San Luis Coastal, ensuring that child care is available for school-aged children. Options: 1. Ensure the City staff and leadership know the breadth of child care programming currently provided and understand the value to the organizatfon and the community. Consider this a resource for City employees, as well as community members. Track the need for both, adapt to fill the need, and partner to share the responsibility and the benefit. 2. Contfnually assess and reimagine City property as potentfal child care space in case the need for office space is different post-COVID. Consider “shared work space” optfons for employees who work most of the tfme from home, eliminatfng the need for individual office space and freeing up space for conversion to child care. County of S an Luis Obispo Findings: The County of San Luis Obispo has 2,643 permanent and 204 temporary employees and is a family- focused workplace, a perspectfve supported by the Board of Supervisors. ● The County offers a broad range of family friendly workplace policies including flexible schedules, telecommutfng, disability benefits, and voluntary dependent care flexible spending accounts. ● The HR department has been studying employee turnover and the return on investment of various strategies to mitfgate the impact of turnover. With COVID-19, the turnover rate has reduced from 14.05% to 10.48%, but may be a factor post-pandemic. Employees typically leave for private sector jobs. ● The unions representfng County employees conduct surveys asking about employee needs . As a result of the surveys, The County created a scholarship fund to support summer child care expenses. ● In a recent survey of all staff where 70% of employees responded, child care was ranked 6th of 25 choices in response to a questfon about “Primary challenges you are facing”. Options: 1. Study the impacts of the summer scholarship fund, and if significant, contfnue to offer the program. Consider expanding to more employees and/or other tfmes during the year. 2. Contfnually assess and reimagine City property as potentfal child care space in case the need for office space is different post-COVID. Consider “shared work space” optfons for San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 18 employees who work most of the tfme from home, eliminatfng the need for individual office space and freeing up space for conversion to child care. Cal Poly University Findings: ● Cal Poly has approximately 3,000 employees and has formed a child care initfatfve committee to investfgate creatfve ways of providing child care - exploring sites, considering ways to partner with businesses, etc. ● Employees are attracted to Cal Poly for its diversity, equity, and inclusion, the opportunity for advancement, work/life balance, and competftfve compensatfon and benefits. Cal Poly also offers up to one-year maternity/paternity leave of absence for permanent faculty, flexible work schedules, dependent fee waivers for Cal Poly classes, and two on-campus child care optfons and a preschool lab program. ● A plan is in the works, but currently on hold, for workforce housing with an onsite child care center for Cal Poly employees and the community. (referenced in Component B) ● The Sacramento child care model referenced in Component B was identffied by Cal Poly as a possible partnership model. Options: 1. In additfon to Optfons in Component B, consider joining forces with other Study Partners to develop the housing child care center and/or the Sacramento model. Identffy interested partfes and conduct a feasibility study for a consortfum child care center through one or both optfons. 2. Consider offering extended maternity/paternity leave of absence for more staff beyond permanent faculty. 3. Work with the LPC, CCRC, and Cuesta College to track and plan for federal funding for child care from the new administratfon, especially workforce supports . 4. Work with REACH to conduct a Child Care Economic Impact Report (see more under Economic Development below). San Luis Coastal Findings: ● There are 1,224 employees in the San Luis Coastal School District. The District’s salaries and benefits are strong recruitment tools and job sharing is a popular optfon for employees. ● Current employee challenges around child care are more acute as a result of COVID-19 and the District is temporarily providing tuitfon subsidies for parents. ● The District hosts child care provided by the City and other providers. ● As mentfoned in Component B, the District has surplus sites that could be redeveloped for housing and may be suitable for child care for employees, the community, and/or the Study Partners. Options: 1. In additfon to the Optfons in Component B, consider joining forces with other Study Partners to conduct a feasibility study for a consortfum child care center at one of the District’s surplus sites. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 19 2. Proactfvely track and plan for the Universal Preschool expansion included in the Master Plan for Early Learning and Care, which aligns preschool and Transitfonal Kindergarten (TK). From the onset of planning, including the LPC, CCRC, the City, state-funded programs, and other providers to ensure programs are high quality, are integrated across private, public, and school district offerings. Consider working with the LPC to initfate a County-wide effort to plan across all districts. County -wide Economic Development 1. Work with Study Partners to conduct a Child Care Economic Impact Report to determine the role child care plays in the San Luis Obispo economy. Use the report to communicate the benefits of child care and the urgent need for solutfons. REACH has lined up a firm to conduct such a report in partnership with Cuesta College and has secured a portfon of the funding needed. i. The Committee for Economic Development produces state-level reports, the metrics of which can be calculated at the county level. Also included are talking points and a “Business Case” document. https://www.ced.org/childcareimpact 2. Chambers can partfcipate in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundatfon’s Early Childhood Educatfon initfatfve, which is full of resources, technical assistance, advocacy support and training. The Study Partners can encourage at least one Chamber leader to join the Business Leads Fellowship, which offers year-long training and sharing with other Chambers on ways to effect positfve change in child care. 3. Conduct intensive and specialized outreach to engage and support child care providers in accessing customized resources, grants, federal stfmulus funds and other business- related supports. 4. Begin conversatfons with employers across The County to assess the interest levels and opportunitfes for child care solutfons. 5. Support businesses to take advantage of Federal Tax Credit for Employer-sponsored child care facilitfes and Services – Form 8882 6. PG&E is partnering with a local child care program for employer-sponsored child care. Track and support the development and offer as a Model or Demonstratfon site. Child Care Experts The Study Partners will need child care experts, such as the LPC and CCRC, along with local consultants, who are trained and ready to be intermediaries available to support the Study Partners and businesses as they address child care for their employees. These types of experts also will be needed to offer technical assistance for child care providers navigatfng the systems and applying for funding, some of which will come from the Study Partners. Provider Perspectives All of the providers who partfcipated in the study focus groups confirmed the great need in the community - some shared that they typically have very long waitfng lists. A few are interested in expanding and are likely representatfve of other child care providers who were not able to partfcipate in the focus groups. They are ready to fill the need by expanding and/or opening additfonal sites if they have the assistance and resources needed. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 20 COMPONENT B P L A N N I N G / ZO NI N G A N D /O R OT HE R LO CA L P U B L I C P O L I C Y O PT I O NS TO U N LO C K C H I L D CA R E C A PAC I T Y SUMMARY All too often, child care business start-ups or existfng child care businesses need help expanding their services and must find their way through a confusing maze of codes, regulatfons, financing requirements, building requirements, and constructfon challenges. The goal of this Study Component Area is to identffy potentfal current and future sites for new child care center-based facilitfes. (While increasing the numbers, and avoiding loss, of Family Child Care Homes is equally important, those are reliant on availability and conditfon of housing.) Secondarily, reducing barriers and creatfng policies, practfces and incentfves that encourage or support facility development are also addressed. Strategies to address the shortage of physical facilitfes must be considered in context of the complexity of program operatfons and current conditfons. Public and private agency partners, including the child care provider community, must work collaboratfvely to inform actfons. ● Child care facilitfes are costly and tfme-consuming to develop due to multfple state and local requirements and lack of financing. Convertfng vacant retail, office or other space is not a simple solutfon. (Appendix B provides some basic informatfon.) ● Ensuring that there are public or private child care agencies/companies potentfally interested in (and with capacity for) operatfng new sites is critfcal. ● The impact of the current pandemic on the supply of child care centers and family child care programs is unknown. It is important that existfng center programs and their facilitfes are not lost from the supply. Ongoing efforts by CAPSLO staff and others support both center- and home-based operators, including regular virtual network meetfngs and communicatfons about COVID-related resources. When facilitfes are difficult to build, retaining them, even with a different operator, is desirable. Community Care Licensing and CAPSLO track temporary and permanent closures. ● "High-quality, affordable” child care cannot be expected or envisioned without addressing teachers’ low compensatfon and the high cost to properly maintain facilitfes (or build new ones). STUDY QUESTIONS AND FINDINGS The specific questfons posed for this Component of the Study were: ● What opportunities exist in the county/cities/education campuses to update land use policies to facilitate creation of new affordable/accessible child care capacity? ● What opportunities exist to link planning for affordable housing with planning for affordable child care? ● How might public sector relationships with developers (residential and/or commercial) be used to address the child care challenge in San Luis Obispo County? ● What options exist to retrofit existing facilities or structures that do not require new construction? San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 21 ● What public-private partnership opportunities might be pursued, such as government facility lease arrangements with child care operators at subsidized rates? ● How might additional local public funds be generated to support expanded access to quality affordable child care in San Luis Obispo County? ● What viable opportunities might be pursued to update General Plan or Strategic Plan language that reinforce public sector prioritization related to quality/accessible/affordable child care? ● What existing planning and zoning barriers do child care providers face in finding facilities, and what role can local government play in improving and expediting access to facilities? For this study area, four main topics were explored in key informant interviews and focus groups to address the questfons above. ● Publicly-owned propertfes of partner agencies ● Development actfvity under Study Partners’ purview ● Land use policies and practfces ● Financing sources INDIVIDUAL STUDY PARTNER FINDINGS AND OPTIONS City of S an Luis Obispo Publicly owned properties The City currently leases space, at a nominal rate, to CAPSLO for their Head Start program at the City’s Ludwick Community Center. A future financing measure could support replacement of aging buildings and include child care space. The city, county and district could partner on a joint facility. Parks & Recreatfon-sponsored actfvitfes occur in other community centers. Their after school child care programs operate on five City school campuses, leased from the District under a joint use agreement. Many operate in classrooms shared by other users. Dedicated rooms would be ideal and could allow them to address long waitlists. Staff would be interested in expansion after the pandemic. Public Works and GIS staff manage property inventory and sometfmes identffy land that could be used for housing. All sites are challenging to develop. The Airport Land Use Plan has been a barrier but is in the revision process and the City will update its plans, as noise and hazard conditfons have changed. Options: 1. Investfgate a list of city-owned vacant land as well as existfng buildings that might be used for future child care facilitfes. Underutflized office, library, community centers could be converted and leased to operators. Propertfes identffied in an initfal scan, using the criteria below, would need a closer assessment of Building and Fire Code, ADA, and Child Care Licensing regulatfons to determine feasibility and initfal cost estfmate. (See Appendix A. Property Search Criteria and Appendix B for more informatfon.) i. 4,000-10,000 square feet of building space, all/mostly ground floor San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 22 ii. Outdoor space to accommodate playgrounds (approx. equivalent to indoor space) and parking iii. Appropriate zoning (residentfal or nonresidentfal) iv. No known environmental hazards 2. In collaboratfon with the School District, explore feasibility and site capacity for locatfng modular classrooms to expand after school care after the pandemic, should facilitfes funds become available. 3. Longer term, consider including child care space in future city buildings, financed with bond or other tools. Collocatfng with senior centers can be an optfon. Development landscape/opportunities Significant development projects are underway or in the pipeline. Developers ask if child care is an allowable use, and the City encourages it. The large Froom Ranch proposal includes a child care center. Diablo Ranch and San Luis Ranch are among other large developments. The City is allowing child care use at Trust Automatfon’s new offices and is making Specific Plan amendments as needed. There are no child care centers currently located in existfng affordable or market rate housing developments. All affordable housing developments that use Low income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) financing must include a community center/space and many use that space for after-school actfvitfes, tutoring, computer labs, etc. for resident families. Broad Street Village and South Hills Crossing are examples. It is likely that some licensed Family Child Care Home providers (as well as exempt Family Friend and Neighbor care) are operatfng in all types of housing units, as this is considered a residentfal use of property under state law. Options: 1. Support inclusion of licensable child care facilitfes in large developments, like Froom Ranch, as well as co-locatfon in smaller residentfal and commercial projects. 2. Consider incentfves, such as increased density bonus and impact fees. 3. Assign staff to review all development proposals to identffy potentfal opportunitfes for co- locatfon, and ensure that child care centers and homes are appropriately addressed (e.g., no requirements or prohibitfon of licensed family child care homes) 4. Negotfate child care space in development agreements where possible. The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara is including a child care center in its low-income housing redevelopment in Guadalupe. The traditional community center has been designed as a second story, with a child care center underneath. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 23 Land Use Policies General plan: There are no child care programs in the Housing Element. Since the Child Care Study was underway, at a recent meetfng, Council decided to wait to consider the study Optfons before making changes to the Housing Element. Appropriate programs for implementatfon will be incorporated at that tfme. The Land Use Element (2014) includes policies that support development of elder care and child care; encourage new developments to fund them; consider incentives. Program 3.16 (pg. 1-58): “The City shall provide zoning incentives and investigate a program coordinating commercial and industrial development for the provision of child care and elder care for workers.” The City Zoning Code was revised in 2018. Child Care Centers are allowed in most zones, either by right or with a Minor Use Permit. Centers in housing or other developments are allowed by right, whether over or under the land use threshold, such as Trust Automatfon’s. A development impact fee for child care was considered about two years ago. LIIF Team analysis finds child care-supportive policies overall. Zoning Code changes are needed to align with SB234, effective 1/1/20, and others are suggested for clarity. For example, definitions of the two types of licensed child care facilities are inconsistent and in places combined with adult day care. Options: 1. Revise zoning code to align with Large Family Child Care Home exemptfons in SB234 (eff. 1/1/20), including use /home occupatfon permits, parking requirements, and business license. (Sample language from Goleta is provided in Appendix A.) 2. Include Family Child Care Home informatfon (per SB234) in fair housing informatfon (see CDSS on Housing Discriminatfon and Appendix A. Project Sentfnel brochure) 3. Create website page (e.g. San Mateo) or summary document (e.g. Goleta’s, in Appendix A) with child care planning /development informatfon for potentfal applicants; work with CAPSLO to update “Planning for Child Care Centers” document (in Appendix A) 4. Consider reducing permit requirements and fees for child care centers and expeditfng and coordinatfng with other relevant departments (e.g., Building, Fire). 5. Immediately identffy any child care projects in the development pipeline and provide technical assistance, expedited process, and resources to ensure the project is successful. Use each as a case study to inform and streamline the City’s processes and policies. 6. Encourage other jurisdictfons in The County to take the above steps. Financing facilities Child Care impact fee on development was considered about two years ago. The City could include child care space in future community centers or other projects supported by a new financing measure. Family child care home providers who are homeowners are eligible for city home improvement programs such as weatherizatfon projects. Options: 1. Reassess adoptfng a child care impact fee on new development, as well as inclusionary ordinance for large developments. (See Keyser Marston table of linkage programs in Appendix A) San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 24 2. Explore use of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds for home improvements for licensed Family Child Care Home providers. (Model: Rebuilding Together Peninsula, that receives CDBG funds from county and citfes, carries out repair/renovatfon projects in Community Facilitfes including family child care homes and centers.) 3. Along with partner organizatfons (CAPSLO, First 5, etc.), monitor availability of new state child care facilitfes funding and discuss potentfal projects. 4. Long-term: consider inclusion of child care space in future community center, library or other facilitfes financed by a new measure. County of S an Luis Obispo Publicly owned properties The County has leased land for many years to Child Development Resource Center of the Central Coast (CDRC), a local nonprofit child care agency that serves 80 children and specializes in therapeutfc services. CDRC maintains the building and depends on the nominal land lease to support sustainability and affordability. The County has plans to redevelop the larger site and has agreed to either accommodate the existfng CDRC building or work to find alternatfves if future buildout necessitates moving CDRC. The County’s Real Property/Central Services Department staff can identffy other underutflized buildings or vacant land for future child care programs. (See Appendix B for more informatfon.) Within the County’s borders are state-owned land and buildings which can be used for child care facilitfes. State facilitfes (Atascadero Hospital and CA Men’s Colony) are two of the largest employers in The County and may have child care onsite. Employment numbers are used in determining Regional Housing Needs Allocatfons (RHNA) among eight jurisdictfons, for Housing Elements. Options: 1. Direct Real Property staff to screen inventory of county-owned land and buildings to identffy potentfal future locatfons for child care (as described in Optfon 1 for SLO City). Child care design experts and building officials can do initfal feasibility assessments. 2. Explore state-owned propertfes as potentfal sites. Development landscape/opportunities A large number of development projects are in the pipeline. Affordable housing developers (e.g., People’s Self-Help Housing, Housing Authority) try to incorporate child care as there is tax credit for it. Dana Reserve in South County (Nipomo) is early in its entftlement process (June 2020 submittals) and proposes to donate land to a nonprofit developer to build low income housing. Child care is a need for all residents, not just those with lower incomes. Also, only 75 of 1195 units are proposed as affordable, meeting the requirement. Note that restrictions on Family Child Care Homes in Single- and Multifamily Housing components appear to be inconsistent with state Health and Safety Code. Options: 1. Provide guidelines and resources on child care to developers or refer to CAPSLO for assistance. 2. Ensure that references to child care homes or centers in developers’ plans are consistent with state law. (See zoning code note below.) San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 25 3. Consider adoptfng a child care impact fee on new development, and/or an inclusionary ordinance for large developments. Land Use Policies General Plan The Housing Element revision was adopted by the Board on 11/17/20. It includes Program DD to be considered in 2025 and possibly implemented in 2026. (See Appendix A) No references to child care or early education were found in the Land Use Element. Zoning Code: Staff plan to make amendments to zoning, etc. over the next eight years (related to the Housing Element). Conditfonal Use Permits may be required for child care, which can be a barrier as it is an expensive and tfme-consuming process. LIIF Team review identified revisions needed to comply with SB234 Family Child Care Home exemptions, effective 1/1/20. Dana Reserve plans cite illegal prohibition of this use in residential properties. Options: 1. Revise zoning code to align with Large Family Child Care Home exemptfons in SB234 (eff. 1/1/20), including use /home occupatfon permits, parking requirements, and business license. 2. Consider streamlining permits and reducing fees for child care centers (as suggested in City Optfon #4). 3. Provide clear informatfon for child care operators (as suggested in City Optfon #3) 4. Consider pre-2025 measures (per Housing Element) to support development of new child care facilitfes needed by new residents and workers. 5. Include child care language in future General Plan updates. (Appendix A includes a compilatfon from a countywide scan of citfes in San Mateo County.) 6. Consider adoptfng a child care impact fee on, or inclusionary ordinance for, new development Financing facilities The County receives Urban County CDBG grants and citfes are entftled to a formula-based share. The Board of Supervisors has final say on projects but defers to citfes. Amounts are large enough to do capital projects like community centers and ADA accessibility improvements. The County partners with CAPSLO for a minor home repair program. Most funding sources are aligned with affordable housing. Options: 1. Identffy potentfal CDBG-eligible child care facility expansion, repair/renovatfon projects, including adaptfng existfng buildings for child care use. New state law requires lead testfng of water in centers but does not fund mitfgatfon if identffied. 2. Ensure that Family Child Care Home providers (and other child care workforce) receive informatfon about home repair programs to improve care environments. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 26 Cal Poly University Publicly-owned properties The University currently has two child care centers operatfng in campus spaces: The Preschool Learning Lab school (30 student capacity.) and the Orfalea Family and ASI (Associated Students) Children’s Center (120 student capacity.). They have explored extending the Learning Lab, or expanding the ASI center on the parking lot, which would be very expensive ($1 million estfmate). There is no vacant or unused space on campus. On campus constructfon is challenging (and around $600/square foot), and they have looked at buying or leasing. They also own the Technology Park. Development landscape/opportunities Cal Poly’s Technology Park houses tech companies: in the upcoming expansion phase, there may be an opportunity to include child care to support those companies and campus employees. A developer’s housing project is in the pipeline with 350 market-rate apartments and a 6,000-6,800 square foot child care space, with priority to Cal Poly employees. It has initfal approvals but is on pause due to financial challenges. The collaboratfve partnership of UC Davis Health, Sacramento State and SMUD to create and support a new 200-child center for employees is of interest (see sidebar). Options: 1. Conduct feasibility analysis of including child care space in Tech Park expansion. 2. Study the Sacramento project model to identffy potentfal partners and next steps. 3. Refer housing developer, as needed, to child care facilitfes design/planning experts to ensure program sustainability and external resource leveraging. 4. Engage Cal Poly graduate students in City and Regional Planning for research projects. (Master of City & Regional Planning Program) Land Use Policies The 2019 Campus Master Plan includes the housing project and Tech Park expansion mentioned above. The increasing need for child care is described. “Additional locations can be identified as new projects are programmed.” (pg. 2-65) Center for 200 employee children UC Davis Health, Sacramento Municipal Utilities District (SMUD) and Sacramento State University are partnering to create a new child care center at 6011 Folsom Blvd in Sacramento, to open mid- 2021. It will replace the old Lighthouse/SMUD center. The facility will be 17,000 square feet with an additional 15,000 square feet of outdoor space. The building is owned by University Enterprises, Inc. (UEI), a nonprofit auxiliary organization of Sacramento State that creates and manages programs and services for the college. SMUD has signed a 15-year lease on the property and SMUD, Sacramento State and UC Davis Health will share costs equally. The anticipated 207 spaces will be shared between the three organizations. While the overall center will be subsidized by the SMUD/CSUS/UC Davis partnership to enable below-market tuition rates to their affiliates, individual rates will not be subsidized. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 27 Options: Contfnue to identffy both on- and off-campus opportunitfes and partnerships to address child care needs of employees and students. Financing facilities The CSU system has funding to maintain facilitfes, but Cal Poly did not get an allocatfon in the recent round. Bond funding is possible, but it is needed for other buildings; child care might not be a priority on a bond wish list. They have local facility maintenance funds, which is what would need to be used to enlarge the Lab school. Options: 1. Consider expanded ASI and Lab school facilitfes in future bonds and for use of facility maintenance funds. 2. Along with partner organizatfons (CAPSLO, First 5, etc.), monitor availability of new state child care facilitfes (as well as child care workforce) funding, and discuss potentfal projects. San Luis Coastal School District Publicly-owned properties All elementary school sites have dedicated spaces used for after school child care. Other spaces, like multfpurpose rooms, could be adapted but currently have multfple users. The District could explore available land on operatfng campuses where portables could be added to expand child care capacity. Options: 1. Identffy potentfal land on operatfng campuses, where school-age care is at capacity (or in less desirable/shared space), to locate modular buildings. (Note the current push for universal Transitfonal Kindergarten may increase needs for before/after-school care.) 2. Work with the City and other interested school-age operators to envision expansion. Some may be willing to finance modular additfons. Development landscape/opportunities The district has three surplus school sites; Morro Elementary is currently being used by a charter school, adult educatfon, and a church. The District’s proposal to build workforce housing on this property has city support but oppositfon from other groups; a community building with child care space may be included. The three campuses could be used for workforce housing. The development and state/local approvals process is extensive and tfme-consuming. Options: Contfnue to engage partners to advocate for workforce housing with child care on surplus school sites. School districts in other communitfes are working to address teacher compensatfon/cost of living issues with teacher housing. (Cañada and Skyline Colleges in San Mateo County built staff housing on campuses; Pacifica School District has a project in the pipeline at a surplus school site.) Land Use Policies Child care spaces are not identified specifically in the Facility Master Plan or bond projects list (mentioned below). San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 28 Options: 1. Include spaces for before/after-school and preschool-age programs in future Facility Master Plans. State-funded universal TK (all four year olds) and preschool for low-income three year olds, as currently proposed, will need to be housed both on and off sc hool sites. 2. Explore space/land leasing policies that could support child care/preschool, e.g., long-term nominal land lease in exchange for installatfon of modular classrooms. Financing facilities School districts are prime partners since they have the land and facilitfes, and can go for bonds, with state match. There are partnership possibilitfes. A $177 million bond measure D was passed in 2014 which will fund only a portfon of the facilitfes, technology and infrastructure needs identffied in the Dist rict’s Facility Master Plan. Options: 1. Consider potentfal preschool and after-school care space as bond projects move forward. Partnerships with other public agencies and/or providers could bring added resources. 2. Antfcipate potentfal impact of universal Transitfonal Kindergarten efforts, proposed in the state MPELC and new legislatfon, for all four year olds in a mixed-delivery system (LEA and private programs). Advocate for state funding for facility remodels that will be needed. County-wide Options for Other Cities: 1. Encourage other citfes to investfgate similar opportunitfes, analyze land use policies, advocate co-locatfon and employer/developer partfcipatfon. 2. City and county planners develop/share policy language for SB234 alignment (use permits, home occupatfons, housing discriminatfon, business license) for website/print use. 3. Contfnue to coordinate with We Are the Care’s Local Government Engagement Task Force, and other local initfatfves and agencies, to maximize efforts. The Low Income Investment Fund report: Housing Development + Child Care Facilities: Strategies and Financing highlights the influence of local leaders, importance of public/private partnerships, and solutions to challenges of co-location. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 29 Options for Others: 1. Explore the suggestfon by Economic Development stakeholders that Building/Design/Constructfon business cluster could support facilitfes projects, e.g., conversion of existfng buildings. Child Development Resource Center has benefited from such support over the years for maintenance. (One model: Rebuilding Together Peninsula has long-term relatfonships with constructfon companies and skilled labor that have done pro bono work in child care centers.) 2. Engage/survey the faith-based community to identffy underutflized propertfes. 3. Identffy potentfal facilitfes projects that might be eligible for state child care infrastructure grant funding, should funding be made available in the future, either for new spaces or renovatfon/repair projects. 4. Include priority for inclusion of child care space in any future RFPs for affordable housing developers on public land. (Model: Arroyo Green senior housing with child care facility will open this year in Redwood City. The City identffied child care space as a desired component in the RFP.) 5. Form a Child Care Facilitfes Task Force with agency representatfves to coordinate implementatfon of Optfons; include We Are the Care’s Local Government Engagement Task Force 6. CAPSLO should apply for any new CCIP funds available to support start-up/expansion of more family child care homes. Consider needs of families in rural areas and those who work nontraditfonal hours. 7. Consider optfons to address housing needs of child care teachers in workforce housing efforts. (Also addressed in Component C) 8. Advocate for state policy changes to support facilitfes grants, link to subsidy funding, and incentfves for employers/developers. Provider Perspectives In focus groups and interviews, child care operators indicated interest in future expansion of services after the pandemic. This included private centers, family child care, and the City after- school program. Some interviewees had been working on projects before the pandemic, facing various barriers including lack of potentfal sites, costs of remodeling, building code/occupancy change impacts, etc. In additfon to facing zoning barriers, one operator who looked for propertfes for over six years, reported that city staff discouraged locatfng child care centers in various places due to neighborhood oppositfon. Another asked that development fees be reduced, considering the inability of operators to bear the development costs. Family child care home providers were not all aware that their city cannot require permits or business licenses (per SB 234). For many, their renter status, especially those in apartments, leads to turnover and discourages or prevents facility improvements. Optfons offered earlier, especially for the City and County, address some of these barriers. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 30 COMPONENT C C H I L D C A R E WO RK FO R C E P I PE L I NE E N H A N C E M E N T O PT I O N S SUMMARY To ensure there is high quality child care in The County of San Luis Obispo, the most critfcal component is the teaching staff. They must be well trained and compensated, consistent, and available to serve the children of study partner employees and families across the county. With the low profit margins of most child care programs and the relatfvely high cost to families (10% of the family income; 40% higher than “affordable”), there must be contributfons from outside to make the finances work for child care programs and families. A major challenge for the child care workforce in The County of SLO is the cost of living. According to the Child Care Planning Council's 2018-2022 Needs Assessment, approximately 48% of renters in the county are cost burdened: they spend more than 30% of their income on housing . And the median home price is 25% higher than that of California. These high costs affect not only child care staff themselves (one of the lowest paid groups of professionals in the natfon), but the operators and owners as well. Staffing costs typically make up at least 70% of a child care center’s operatfng budget, with high property and lease costs on top of that. There is not one solutfon to this challenge. The California Master Plan may provide some strategies and funding relief. However, untfl then, individual and collectfve efforts can be made locally to identffy effectfve strategies to reduce other costs for programs and increase wages for staff. Component C: Study Questfons and Findings The specific questfons posed for this Component of the Study were: ● What options do local education partners (i.e., Cal Poly, San Luis Coastal Unified School District) have to increase the workforce pipeline for child care professionals? ● What local options/current models exist to tangibly address the low compensation market in the early care and education workforce? ● What role can municipal and county government partners (i.e., City of San Luis Obispo, County of San Luis Obispo) play to increase the child care workforce pipeline? Specifically, what policy and/or funding levers can they pull? Many factors influence the quality of child care and early education programs, but perhaps none matter more than the education and experience of early childhood providers. Developing the workforce in early care and education is central to the delivery of high-quality experiences and environments for young children - National League of Cities San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 31 For this study area, two main topics were explored in key informant interviews and focus groups to address the questfons above. ● Compensatfon supports ● Career pathways All Study Partners Findings a nd Options The findings and Optfons for this sectfon are listed by study area first for all Study Partners and a county- wide effort, followed by partner-specific findings and Optfons as appropriate. Findings for All Study Partners San Luis Obispo County has a wealth of resources and expertfse available to address the child care workforce challenge, both among Study Partners and in other organizatfons around workforce development, business support, finance, architecture, and other areas. Study Partners understand the low wage issue, and child care is seen as a community good. COVID-19 has focused attentfon on the importance of child care, bringing to light the need for child care, the challenge of low compensatfon, and the impact to employers of a lack of capacity and affordability. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 32 Many family child care providers remained open through the pandemic, while some centers closed, at least temporarily. The Natfonal Associatfon for the Educatfon of Young Children provides a report of the impacts natfonwide. Options for All Study Partners 1. Develop a comprehensive county-wide workforce development and child care business support system for all programs serving children birth through 12. The key will be a multf- partner effort with specific long-term plans whereby each partner can find and take on strategies that fit their resources and capacity, although there are some strategies that Study Partners are well suited to undertake. Consider utflizing existfng models, such as the San Francisco Office of Early Care and Educatfon’s Workforce Development initfatfve to design and implement a comprehensive system for workforce development. 2. As mentfoned in other parts of this report, making COVID-19 relief funds available specifically for child care providers can help ensure that the loss of spaces is minimized. Compensation Supports All Study Partners Findings and Options Findings: As in most citfes and countfes, competftfon among child care programs for highly skilled staff is high. In a high-cost area like San Luis Obispo County, the pool of qualified staff who can work at the low wages typically paid in child care is even more limited. Child care salaries are low compared to other industries in the county. Using the chart below, compared to the Bureau of Labor Statfstfcs data on industry salaries in San Luis Obispo, child care salaries start just above the two lowest salaries listed, for food workers and farming. Full Time Part Time Programs with State or Federal Funding Average $23.20/hour Range $15.00 - $43.59/hour Programs without State or Federal Funding Average $22.65/hour Range $15.00 - $25.96 Programs with State or Federal Funding Average $19.57/hour Range $14.00 - $31.25/hour Programs without State or Federal Funding Average $17.15/hour Range $14.00 - $22.5/hour Source: CAPSLO (2018) San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 33 Options: 1. Utilize CARES COVID-19 relief funding to shore up the child care field, providing direct grants to child care providers. Some City, County and State examples include: ● LA County: Grants to child care programs to offset losses during COVID-19 ● Spokane: Grants for child care programs and subsidies for families ● New York: Grants to help programs reopen and restructure ● Houston: Grants to help programs stay open ● San Mateo: Relief funds for programs adversely affected by COVID-19 ● Long Beach: Grants for purchase of supplies ● San Diego: Cash grants to help providers stay in business 2. Immediately consider the technical assistance needs of child care providers in applying for COVID-related funding, such as the Payroll Protectfon Program (PPP). Connect with economic development agencies to provide direct technical assistance or collaborate with local CDFIs that are distributfng PPP or other economic relief funds. ● One fund that is available at the tfme of writfng this report is the California Small Business COVID-19 Relief Program. SBDC is listed as a local technical assistance provider. Individual and special training and support sessions can be provided to ensure all eligible providers submit successful applicatfons. 3. Support child care with Work/Life strategies. As part of the Study Partners’ Family-Friendly policy efforts, ensure there are models for employers to support employee child care optfons, such as employers paying to reserve spaces for employees in existfng child care programs. Payments can go directly to increase wages of staff. See Appendix C for more optfons. 4. Utilize resources such as the Natfonal League of Citfes’ Instftute for Youth Educatfon and Families, e.g. their Toolkit for Citfes Supportfng the Early Childhood Workforce, to find strategies and models that are appropriate for San Luis Obispo County. A strategy that Seattle took was to create a BA degree optfon at a community college by building in additfonal courses (pg. 5 of the Toolkit). 5. Reduce child care expenses. Create a long-term, County-wide, multf-partner effort to reduce operatfonal costs for child care programs who agree to use their savings to raise wages of teaching staff. Work with a group of ECE providers to calculate cost of high quality care in SLO and create a list of specific costs that can be underwritten or subsidized through this effort. Use this informatfon to create model budgets and resources needed to guide the effort. Strategies may include: ● Source and make available materials – PPE, landscaping materials, learning equipment, general supplies, etc. The cost of these items either deters providers from moving forward on program upgrades, repairs and enhancements, or negatfvely affects their bottom line. “Child care teachers can work at In-N-Out and within six months can be making $20/hour with no education. During COVID-19, child care was deemed an essential service. After COVID, the providers need to be paid what they are worth.” ~Quote from the child care provider Focus Group San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 34 ● Provide help with the high cost of properties (also referenced in Component B). ● Ensure that space provided in housing developments is free, or as low cost as possible. ● Investfgate ways to reduce commercial lease rates. ● Encourage home and facility ownership for providers by using housing supports for providers and offering training and technical assistance to prepare for ownership ● Dedicate affordable housing for child care workers, as part of workforce and low- income housing developments. Incentfvize the development or provision of low cost or free housing, helping make their overhead as small as possible. Require and/or incentfvize developers of all types to build in family child care-specific units, based on need in the area. Alternately, Women's Empowerment and Neighborhood Care Project, funded through the Community Foundatfon San Luis Obispo recruited residents in existfng units to become licensed child care providers3. Additfonal ideas can be found here (pg. 157). ● Provide expertise on landscaping, building, architecture, human resources, legal etc. through a Cal Poly-led Technical Assistance Team – include Innovatfon hub, SBDC, and departments – architecture, planning, business, etc. – and include Cuesta College and Study Partners. ● Help providers build and renovate. Create opportunitfes for businesses in the constructfon trade to offer pro bono family improvement. Rebuilding Together Peninsula is a model that can be replicated. Cited in Component B. ● Start up a shared services initiative, which can reduce costs for child care providers by offering back office services, which not only strengthen the business foundatfon but also helps reduce costs for the provider. One example is that many child care programs do not have a comprehensive data system for tuitfon payments, budgetfng and enrollment informatfon. Purchasing and using a Child Care Center Management Software (CCMS) program can be transformatfonal for programs. Study Partners can help programs purchase the software and provide ongoing training and financial support for this. ● Example: Richmond Area Service Alliance, Virginia ● The First 5 CA Commission has approved a $1.5 million Shared Services Alliance funding strategy: The Shared Services Alliance is a post-COVID strategy to strengthen small early learning and care settings by supportfng them to become financially sound and more efficient and allowing them to offer high-quality opportunitfes to children and families. Tracking this, and future funding, will be important to take advantage of any opportunity to pilot and/or fully implement the strategy. ● More on the Shared Services Alliance 6. Investigate the feasibility of a City or County sales or other tax to provide direct support to teachers, higher educatfon subsidies, and ongoing funding to child care programs. If significant, the funding may allow for lower cost of care for families. 7. Help providers build equity and sustainability. Provide specific resources and support to encourage home ownership for family child care providers, and facility ownership for centers. 8. Utilize, and align with State plans and funding 3 Email from Shana Paulson, CAPSLO CCRC 11.13.20 San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 35 ● Strategically plan for expansion of state preschool, bringing together operators to share best practfces and receive training on ways to maximize the State Reimbursement Rate. ● The District, COE, CAPSLO and other entftfes can coordinate plans to apply for more state subsidy. Consider the model of one entfty securing a contract and subcontractfng spaces to a variety of programs. This is especially helpful in areas, like the city, where there may not be a high enough level of eligible families to make the area a priority for the State. State funding can raise teacher salaries and can support quality improvements in the programs. ● Plan now for the implementatfon of the Master Plan for Early Learning and Care. The plan includes: ● Targeted universal preschool, with a blend of state preschool and Transitfonal Kindergarten, partnering with community programs to fill the need. Beginning conversatfons now for this model, and for full day programming, will create opportunitfes in the near future, and will ensure the county is prepared when the Master Plan rolls out. ● Establish a regional pay scale for teachers and aides. A full study of teacher and aide salaries and benefits across programs in the county will provide a solid foundatfon of data and insights that will be necessary to implement this strategy. Career Pathways To have a robust child care industry in San Luis Obispo County, a streamlined, easily accessible and affordable teacher preparatfon pipeline will be needed to ensure that services are high quality. All Study Partners Findings and Options Findings: ● There is tremendous expertfse in nearly all aspects of child care, with Cuesta College and Cal Poly University programming. ● Cal Poly offers a BA degree, and minor, in Child Development and provides opportunitfes for students interested in child care to focus their lab and internship courses in this area. The Preschool Learning Lab and ASI Children’s Center can provide practfcum- type experiences with individual mentoring for those interested in working in the child care field as teachers and/or directors, etc. ● Most teacher preparatfon happens at Cuesta College where the focus is on the ECE AA degree. ● CAPSLO provides a variety of training opportunitfes for family child care, including the ● Child Care Initfatfve Project (CCIP), mental health and trauma-informed care programs. Also available for San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 36 family child care and centers is the Quality Counts quality ratfng and improvement system, which provides support, training and a framework for improving quality. ● There is a need for Spanish ECE courses to prepare teachers for degrees. Cuesta College had offered combinatfon ESL/ECE courses, where ECE is the content for ESL courses, but that program is not currently available. ● San Luis Obispo county has a relatfvely new and excitfng educatfonal support - Ticket 2 Teach SLO. The apprentfceship program provides on the job training with professional development, addresses low wages by supplementfng apprentfce salaries at selected programs. The program has good tractfon and can provide support for those entering the field, and for current professionals and includes: o Pre-apprentfce program (min 6 ECE units) o Preparatfon for transfer to BA program o A partnership between SLO County Office of Ed and Cuesta College ● The Master Plan for Early Care and Educatfon includes robust workforce development strategies and supports. The following strategies for workforce development are included in the plan: ● Career lattices that include multfple entry points and pathways, along with reasonable stepping stones toward demonstratfng competencies through a variety of approaches, including embedding demonstratfon in professional learning opportunitfes and coursework. ● Preparatfon and professional development opportunitfes that are engaging, relevant, and accessible, with opportunitfes to practfce in a clinical, practfcum, or work-based setting as appropriate. ● Tiered incentfves and recognitfon, including within a level of the matrix, to support child care professionals as they move toward increased compensatfon that may be available as reimbursement rate reform advances over tfme. Options: 1. Create a Workforce Pipeline for The County of SLO. Convene San Luis Coastal, Cuesta College, Cal Poly, Allan Hancock and other colleges to align educatfon opportunitfes and create workforce pathways for those who care for children from birth through age 12. This could be part of a new effort, or built into an existfng one, such as Cuesta College’s Early Childhood Advisory Board. Create new, and revise current, offerings to ensure there are multfple onramps for individuals at various stages in their career that meet the needs of all potentfal teaching staff. This work can only be accomplished through collaboratfve efforts, and the connectfons between organizatfons in the pipeline need to be strong, coordinated and flexible to meet the changing demands of the field. An effort of this magnitude involves varying organizatfonal needs, expectatfons, and cultures. There are also state requirements, logistfcs and funding consideratfons. Such an effort will require dedicatfon and a solid infrastructure to see it through. It is recommended that each partner assign staff to the project, and that a lead staff person is hired or assigned to oversee the collaboratfve’s work. Early Matters Dallas has provided a summary of child care workforce pipeline models. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 37 Potentfal elements for The County Pipeline: ● Set standards based on MPELC guidelines and align with all educatfonal opportunitfes. ● Craft an early childhood BA completfon program at Cal Poly and/or through Cuesta College (or Allan Hancock). ● Provide scholarships or forgivable loans for those who remain in the local child care field, building on the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. ● Contfnue the Ticket to Teach program as a way to support and encourage teachers to reach higher educatfon levels and consider expanding the reach. ● Layers of educatfon to consider for the pipeline: o High School dual enrollment o School Age track o ECE/ESL courses o Family Child Care track o Ticket 2 Teach o 6 units o AA degree o Certfficate programs o Dual Language Learners o Inclusion o Director o School Age o BA degree o MA degree 2. Identify funding to help teachers pay for education. The low wages of child care providers make paying for higher educatfon a true challenge, especially in a high-cost area like The County. Financial support is necessary to achieve the goals of a well- educated workforce. 1. Develop a cohort model like the Community Equity Collaboratfve’s Teacher Pipeline project, where community resources are used to support child care teachers to achieve their degrees. 2. Consider broad employment funding such as the Workforce Accelerator Fund through the California Workforce Development Board and the Employment Development Department. 3. San Francisco’s SF Seed provides financial support for teachers who are working, as part of the San Francisco Office of Early Care and Educatfon’s Workforce Development initfatfve. 4. Engage foundatfons to create a workforce development fund where donors and organizatfons can contribute to the project. Washington D.C. has such an effort through the Washington Area Women’s Foundatfon. 3. Prepare for the possible relaunch of the State Quality Counts California Workforce Pathways Grant Program and other state resources that may become available in response to the MPELC. 4. Create a Career Pathways guide for SLO County providers. Arizona Early Childhood has a Job Bank showing the many types of careers available to early educators . San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 38 Individual Study Partners Findings and Options City of San Luis Obispo Findings: ● The City offers school age child care at all five elementary schools through its Parks and Recreatfon Department and has its own staffing needs. Workforce shortages and finding staff who meet the qualificatfons are ongoing challenges. ● The Natfonal League of Citfes’ report Citfes Supportfng the Early Childhood Workforce offers strategies and models the city can adopt to address child care workforce. Options: Conduct a study of the school age programming offered by the City and consider including all providers of school age care operatfng in the city. Create a strategic plan to sustain and build the services. Partner with the Planning Council and CCRC to gather and analyze the data. The Natfonal League of Citfes offers a planning guide for this purpose, and includes strategies for financing and partnerships. County of San Luis Obispo Findings: The National Association of Counties compiled resources and best practices for how counties can support child care during COVID -19. Options: Take a leadership role in organizing partner support for child care, through the various County government and emergency management roles. Include child care in COVID-19 relief planning, as well as any future disasters or emergencies. Cal Poly University Findings: ● As a polytechnic university, Cal Poly offers a variety of areas of study, with a special focus on vocatfonal or technical subjects. The university has the desire to offer only the highest quality programs, including child care. There is an abundance of expertfse in the child development department and energetfc, passionate students and faculty who can help create, and benefit from, successful, replicable models to build and sustain quality child care. ● Cal Poly’s strategic plan vision is “Cal Poly will be the natfon’s premier comprehensive polytechnic university, an innovatfve instftutfon that develops and inspires whole-system thinkers to serve California and to help solve global challenges.” ● The Cal Poly Center for Innovatfon & Entrepreneurship offers many opportunitfes for child care business support, community engagement and innovatfon around child care, and strategies for offsetting child care costs. Some existfng programming can be more tuned towards child care, and other strategies can be developed through the various initfatfves. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 39 Options: 1. Utilize the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) to study and innovate around child care. There are many aspects of child care requiring creatfve solutfons, including the study topics of this report, as well as financing, technical assistance for facilitfes development, facility design and policy development. a. Conduct a child care-focused “Hackathon” to develop creatfve, innovatfve solutfons to child care issues, in partfcular, child care financing strategies. (Note: this may be possible in 2021) b. Deploy the Small Business Development and other CIE programs to build business acumen for child care providers. The SBDC focuses on small businesses, and nonprofits can also take advantage of some services. As an example, in the mid-2000’s, the Ventura SBDC crafted specific business and facility development classes for child care providers, in partnership with the local Child Care Planning Council as part of the Low Income Investment Fund’s Constructfng Connectfons project. 2. Develop a Cal Poly-led technical assistance team focused on supportfng child care needs from the various departments. For example, in the child care center focus group we learned that one program was offered landscape design services through the landscape architecture department, which saved the provider tfme and financial resources, with high quality results. SLO Coastal School District Findings: ● The Career Technical Educatfon (CTE) ECE program, in collaboratfon with Cuesta College, provides a child care sector pathway with a sequence of courses that teaches rigorous and relevant career readiness skills. The program connects with Cuesta College through department meetfngs and dual enrollment opportunitfes to further the journey of the students from the district. This is a strong model and an important part of the pipeline. ● Child care is offered on school campuses, which depends on both the compensatfon support and educatfon pipeline strategies included in this plan. Options 1. Contfnue to join with other districts that provide a CTE ECE program in coordinatfon with Cuesta College to ensure that this model is a strong and integrated onramp to the workforce pipeline development. 2. Develop a child care committee or liaison positfon to proactfvely plan for, and work with, the City and other child care providers to offer services on and off campus to meet the needs of student families and staff. Create a comprehensive strategic plan for child care within the district. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 40 Countywide Options Economic Development 1. REACH offers connectfons to the following resources that are available to child care providers: ● Small Business Administratfon (SBA) loans ● Score ● SBDC (Through Cal Poly CIE) ● MCSB/Women’s Business Center ● SLO Seed Ventures ● Coastal Business Finance ● Valley Economic Development Center ● Tax Credits Expert An effort can be made to tailor these services specifically for child care providers, and then engage the providers in accessing the services. The Child Care Planning Council and CCRC would be two ideal partners for this effort. 2. The SLO Workforce Development Board can draw down funding for specific ECE supports needed, either as part of the pipeline, or as augmentatfon to it. Example: As recommended in the Annie E. Casey Foundatfon Report, they can also address the child care needs of their clients. 3. The Chamber(s) can be a resource for businesses and an advocate for employer- sponsored child care. One strategy could be to launch a campaign to encourage businesses to offer discounts for child care providers. Child Care Experts - Local child care organizatfons and experts can develop a list of providers interested in expanding and identffy training and supports needed. Use this list to create a pool of providers ready to grow their program to meet partners’ needs, and to prepare for MPELC and other opportunitfes. Provider Perspectives Through the study focus groups, providers shared their desire to increase their educatfon in the child care field, especially needing classes in Spanish. They felt there were not enough local resources to make this happen. They spoke of needing more technical assistance, funding and materials to provide high quality care in their programs. Many expressed the fatfgue they feel, with the challenges of operatfng during COVID-19 and not knowing what the future will bring for their businesses. Some expressed gratftude for the business support they received from economic development agencies during the pandemic, and others were not aware of available resources. The overall sentfment expressed was that they are dedicated to providing quality care for young children but need more support and connectfon in order to be successful. “Child care is the most important job there is. We are raising the future”. ~Child care Focus Group participant San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 41 CONCLUSION The purpose of this document is to report on the results of the first phase of the Collaboratfve Child Care Study for San Luis Obispo County. The LIIF Team’s goal was to provide a suite of optfons for expanding quality affordable child care in San Luis Obispo County. The four Study Partners share a vision that their employees and other residents in San Luis Obispo County will have access to quality, affordable child care that fits the developmental needs of the child and the economic, professional, and health-related needs of families. To achieve the goal of this study phase, the LIIF Team focused on the employees, policies and re sources of the Study Team organizatfons, and included broader Findings and Optfons where appropriate. For the Phase 1 portfon of the Study, the LIIF Team researched the Study Partner organizatfons and the child care landscape in the county. Interviews were then held with Study Partners, the Study Team members, and key community leaders with knowledge of the Study Partner organizatfon and/or the San Luis Obispo child care industry. A suite of Optfons was then curated from which the Study Team can select as next steps in the quest to improve 1) child care policies for public sector Study Partner employees, 2) regulatory or systemic barriers to unlock child care capacity, and 3) child care workforce pipeline. As a general guide to the Study Partners, as public agencies, the LIIF Team identffied five overarching focus areas to address the issues we mentfon above. They are infrastructure, funding, policy, economic development, and advocacy. As the Study Partner agencies think about next steps, the LIIF Team suggests that Phase 2 be considered in two parts - first selectfng the Optfons that can be adopted now, and then developing the implementatfon plan for longer range Optfons and beginning the work. The LIIF Team encourages the Study Partner agencies to contfnue this collaboratfve work and broaden the partners beyond the four agencies. As a child care provider said during this study, “If we put resources in, the whole community will benefit for many years to come.” Engaging a facilitator from outside all of the partfcipatfng agencies can assist with the process and document the efforts. This study and its outcomes can chart the course for several generatfons of this community’s children, families, and child care providers. The LIIF Team hopes these Findings and Optfons lead to positfve changes throughout The County of San Luis Obispo. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 42 APPENDICES Appendix A – SLO Study Resource Documents (Google Folder) The following documents, cited in the report, are provided in a Google folder that can be accessed via this link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/18v2WHDx8XRoUsk9vQLc9-1lHN2w1gE34?usp=sharing 1. Building Child Care Facilitfes: A Brief on Inclusive Spaces for Children with Disabilitfes and Other Special Needs. Build Up for San Mateo County’s Children for SMCOE, 2019 2. CAPSLO Guidelines for Planning a Child Care Center 3. Early Learning Facilitfes Checklist (Design Criteria), Kathryn Tama 4. SLO County Housing Element, draft Program DD 5. General Plan language in San Mateo County/Citfes, 2017 compilatfon by City of San Mateo 6. City of Goleta. Establishing a Day Care Facility. Guide to new Zoning Ordinance Provisions (2019) 7. Keyser Marston Associates. Child Care Linkage Programs (2005 table) 8. City of San Jose 2019-20 Council Prioritfes; Progress report on Child Care 2/2020 9. LIIF, First 5 Sonoma Co. & First 5 California. Housing Development + Child Care Facilitfes: Strategies and Financing 10. Property Search Criteria for Child Care Centers/Preschools--for Realtors 11. Project Sentfnel. Housing Discriminatfon/Family Child Care brochure 12. Organizatfonal Work-Life Self-Assessment 13. Organizatfonal Work-Life Self-Assessment Checklist 14. Family Child Care Homes-Goleta Zoning Ordinance language.2020 15. Build Up for San Mateo County’s Children, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundatfon case study San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 43 Appendix B – Creatfng New Child Care Center Facilitfes Introduction Identffying existfng propertfes and convertfng them for child care use is one strategy for addressing the facilitfes shortage. The identfficatfon, feasibility analysis, and cost estfmatfon for propertfes was beyond the scope of this study. The following informatfon provides some background and illustrates the challenges involved. Identifying existing public vacant or underutilized properties The report suggests an initfal step the City and The County can take to begin to identffy potentfal of their buildings and land (or even other publicly owned property). Space in currently occupied buildings (offices, libraries, community centers) can be considered as well. See City of San Jose’s related work plan actfvity. The change of use for Building and Fire Code purposes is likely to require certain upgrades. Using the criteria of minimum State child care licensing requirements for the facility, local land use restrictfons, and environmental health/hazards, an inventory of propertfes can be compiled. Additfonal site feasibility work, funding analysis, and project informatfon would be needed for each site to determine financial viability. Child care design experts, and staff in Planning, Building, Fire, Public Works or other relevant departments, should be consulted. Other site and/or building assessment tools/guidelines are available in the CDC’s Choose Safe Places for Early Care and Educatfon materials, and in LISC’s Developing Early Childhood Facilitfes guide. Adapting/converting properties Creatfng new child care and early educatfon spaces in existfng or new buildings or land is typically expensive and tfme-consuming. Federal, state and local requirements and approval processes relate to: CDSS/Community Care Licensing, Building and Fire Codes, Americans with Disabilitfes Act, and local land use codes. Meetfng the minimum requirements for approval does not ensure a high-quality learning and care environment, however, and purpose-built facilitfes are rare, since child care operators typically cannot afford them. A large portfon of centers are located in school and church buildings which have classroom and/or assembly spaces, as well as space onsite for playgrounds and parking (except in many urban areas). The layout and/or size of spaces (e.g., inconvenient bathrooms or overly large church hall space) may not support quality programming, appropriate supervision or attentfon to the special needs of certain children. (Brief on designing Inclusive Spaces). State code /regulatfons requirements include: CDSS/Community Care Licensing regulatfons (Title 22) Physical plant requirements for Child Care Centers include: ● 35 square feet per child of indoor play space, not including child/adult support spaces, storage, bathrooms, hallways, kitchen, crib area/room for infants, etc. ● 1 toilet and sink per 15 children (separate girls/boys rooms required for school-age only); separate adult bathroom ● Diaper changing statfon with adjacent adult handwashing sink, if appropriate (for infants, toddlers, or others with special needs) ● Adult sinks for food prep, actfvity clean up, and custodial uses San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 44 ● 75 sf per child outdoor play space, with minimum 4 ft fence, and shade provided. Waivers may be approved, to reduce the playground square footage, by scheduling different groups, but age- appropriate playgrounds are needed for different age groups served. “Best practices'' recommendations address the ideal layout and design of all spaces that children, staff and families use. Well-designed facilitfes that support teachers’ daily work are an unrecognized, underestfmated employee benefit. See the Early Learning Facilitfes Checklist. Other child care design resources include Head Start Design Guide and LIIF’s Quality Environments for Children. Building and Fire Code Typical changes needed to an existfng building, related to the E-3 occupancy type for child care, include additfonal classroom doors, additfonal fire preventfon/suppression equipment (such as sprinkler systems); and elevators or lifts (if above/below ground). Americans with Disabilities Act While public buildings may be ADA compliant, there may be changes needed to accommodate children with physical disabilitfes. Estimating Costs: Child care facility development costs will vary depending on the specific building conditfons, or site conditfons, if vacant land (e.g., for modular building), as well as constructfon costs in the area. When comparing to other constructfon costs, one should use mid-range residential figures for the region, due to the extent of plumbing, cabinetry, etc. needed for child care (e.g., vs office space). In the San Francisco Bay Area, current costs of build-out of a child care shell ranges from $400-600 or higher per square foot. For San Mateo County’s Early Learning Facilitfes Needs Assessment (2016), data on recent child care center projects was collected to develop average child care costs per space, for five types of constructfon, including new, remodels, and modular constructfon (land costs excluded). The overall average cost for all types of spaces was $40,717. The average cost by type of development is shown in Figure 1 below . Adaptfng existfng commercial space is usually more costly than a new building, as can be seen in the Figure 1 chart. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 45 (Note that employer-based centers often do not report full costs.) San Mateo County’s study included a memo on financing that proposes a multf-sector and –strategy approach to creatfng facilitfes estfmated to be needed over many years. Since then, advocacy by Build Up for San Mateo County’s Children has led to commitment of child care facilitfes space in several affordable housing and mixed-use developments proposed in various citfes. Two in Redwood City will offer space rent-free with one also committing to build out the child care facility. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 46 Appendix C – Family Friendly Employee Policies Snapshot of Child Care Supports for Employee Parents Note: A thorough Needs Assessment should be conducted to thoroughly understand employee needs and potentfal use of policies before adoptfng any of the strategies listed. Option Advantages Considerations In-house child care informatfon and referrals ● Resource and Referral ● Parentfng/Child Care Seminars *Note: The local Resource and Referral agency, CCRC, offers Enhanced Referrals, which provides support to families untfl they secure child care (more intensive than the typical referral system) ● Low cost ● Addresses a variety of child care needs ● Appropriate for any size company ● Success depends on sufficient child care services in the community ● Informatfon must be kept up to date to be useful ● Does not offer assistance for paying for child care Flexible work and leave policies – flex scheduling, job sharing, parental leave, use of leave ● Minimal investment with high return ● Reduces absenteeism, improves morale and productfvity ● Expands pool of potentfal employees ● Enhances recruitment and retentfon ● Requires planning tfme and training of managers ● May disrupt workflow if not carefully planned Providing Financial Assistance – Dependent Care Spending Plan, Child Care Vouchers, Child Care vendor plan *Consider specific financial needs for employees, such as assistance with a difficult birth or supportfng a child with special needs. ● Relatfvely low administratfve responsibility ● Can support and strengthen community services ● Appropriate for any size organizatfon ● Does not require large capital or start- up costs ● Impacts just the cost of care, not low supply or poor quality ● Some alternatfves can be costly Providing Child Care Services – ● On-site or near-site care ● Consortfum child care (partnering with other employers) ● Family child care network ● Back-up child care ● Before/After school and during breaks ● Can address specific needs and/or shortages in the community ● Builds community resources for families ● Can be a very effectfve recruitment and retentfon tool ● Cuts absenteeism and improves morale and productfvity ● Can adapt hours and programs to employees’ needs ● Initfal start-up costs can be significant ● Requires a long-term financial commitment ● Demand may fluctuate or be difficult to predict (opening to the community in those situatfons can address this) ● May take tfme to build stable enrollment. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 47 Detail on Providing Services Back-up/emergency child care program – care for employees’ children when regular care is not available, when schools are closed, and when employee is needed for work on holidays or weekends. ● Can reduce absenteeism, increase productfvity, and company reputatfon. ● Can accommodate large numbers of employee children with relatfvely small space ● Space must be flexible in size to accommodate varying numbers of children ● Employers typically subsidize the tuitfon ● families must be clear on criteria for use of the program. School-age child care program – for ages 5-12/14 before, after school and during school breaks. ● Addresses a critfcal child care need ● Improves morale and reduces parent stress ● Contributes to lower absenteeism and higher productfvity ● Requires transportatfon if the program is not housed at the school ● May require multfple sites if organizatfon has multfple campuses Family Child Care Network – Family child care providers connected through a child care center, agency associatfon. Provides support services such as training, equipment, lending libraries and licensing assistance. *Note: Quality control can be increased by ensuring that programs are partfcipatfng in the Quality Ratfng and Improvement System, and/or are natfonally accredited. ● Children can be cared for close to where they live or where their parents work ● Able to accommodate children through age 12 ● Can provide infant care, which is the most difficult to find ● Can stfmulate the supply of providers. ● Is typically lower cost than centers. ● To be effectfve, much coordinatfon and support is needed. CCRC is a good partner for this strategy ● Quality control may be difficult to ensure with multfple providers. ● Less expensive to start than centers ● Financial support from employer may be necessary Near-Site Child Care spaces reserved for employees at community child care centers *Note: Quality control can be increased by ensuring that programs are participating in the Quality Rating and Improvement System, and/or are nationally accredited. ● Can meet business needs ● Child care can be provided in multfple locatfons and to multfple ages ● Lower cost than startfng up on-site child care ● Builds community resources for families ● Visible retentfon and recruitment tool ● Reduces child care-related absenteeism ● Increases productfvity ● Enhances public image ● Centers may not be located close to work sites ● Requires ongoing cost to subsidize and hold child care spaces ● Quality control may be difficult to ensure with multfple providers. On- or Near-Site Child Care Center – sponsored by an employer, operated by employer or a child care operator. ● Can meet business needs ● Visible retentfon and recruitment tool ● Reduces child care-related absenteeism ● Increases productfvity ● Improves morale and loyalty, even among childless employees ● Enhances public image ● Serves a specific populatfon and age group ● Startup can be expensive ● Ongoing support is required to ensure quality and affordability ● Ongoing management responsibility ● Possible tax advantages San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 48 Consortfum Child Care Center – group of employers share the cost and benefits of establishing and operatfng a child care center. *Note: in a public/private partnership consortium, partners can bring the unique resources of their type of organization to the table. • Resources, liability and costs are shared ● Ideal solutfon for small and medium employers ● Large size of the combined labor force can ensure full enrollment ● Can be built into a community or business park ● Sustainable as a long-term child care center, regardless of management or consortfum members ● Visible recruitment and retentfon tool ● Enhances public image ● Complex negotfatfon, legal and control agreements ● Limits on number of employees per partner ● Recruitment/public relatfons value is reduced ● Possible tax advantages ● Ongoing support is required to ensure quality and affordability San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 49 Glossary of Key Agencies, Initfatfves, Programs and Terms California State Preschool Program (CSPP) Assembly Bill 2759 (Chapter 308, Statutes of 2008) created the California State Preschool program. The program provides both part-day and full-day services to income-eligible families and a core class curriculum, as well as meals and snacks for children, parent educatfon, referrals to health and social services for families, and staff development opportunitfes for employees. The following organizatfons in The County have state contracts to operate CSPP programs: SLO County Office of Educatfon, Cal Poly ASI Children’s Center, Child Development Resource Center, and CAPSLO. Career and Technical Education (CTE) Career and technical educatfon (CTE) is the practfce of teaching specific career skills to students in middle school, high school, and post-secondary instftutfons. Child Care Initiative Project (CCIP) The Child Care Initfatfve Project (CCIP) is a statewide initfatfve to build the supply and improve the quality of licensed family child care homes in California. The CCIP works through local Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) agencies to recruit, train, and retain licensed family child care providers. Child Development Resource Center of the Central Coast (CDRC) A nonprofit organizatfon and community program that provides educatfonal and therapeutfc programs that focus on protectfng children through its commitment to heal, support, and strengthen families in need within San Luis Obispo County. Funding for this program is leveraged through California State Preschool Program (CSPP), CCTR (General Child Care), local partnerships, and private-pay tuitfon. Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo County, Inc. (CAPSLO) CAPSLO houses a variety of programs related to child care and educatfon, including Head Start/Early Head Start (in The County of SLO and other countfes), as well as the following services within the “Child Care Resource Connectfon” (CCRC): ● Resource & Referral Agency Under the mandate of the California Department of Educatfon, each county has a designated Resource and Referral agent that assists in coordinatfng and helping generate accessible quality, affordable child care services in San Luis Obispo County working with families and child care providers. ● Alternative Payment Program (APP) Agencies contract with the California Department of Educatfon (CDE) to distribute federal and state child care and development subsidies (vouchers) for CalWORKs and eligible working poor families. Alternatfve Payment Programs San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 50 (APPs) support hundreds of thousands of working families and children by ensuring parental choice of child focused programs meets both parent needs of working and child needs of learning. Community Care Licensing (CCL) The core mission of the Child Care Licensing Program is to ensure the health and safety of children in care. The Child Care Licensing Program strives to provide preventfve, protectfve, and quality services to children in care by ensuring that licensed facilitfes meet established health and safety standards through monitoring facilitfes, providing technical assistance, and establishing partnerships with providers, parents, and the child care community. Community Care Licensing falls under the jurisdictfon of CA Department of Social Services and operates under California Code of Regulatfons, Title 22. Community Colleges Cuesta College (In the County of SLO) and Allan Hancock College (in north Santa Barbara County) are the two community colleges that offer locally available associate-level educatfon and credentfal preparatfon in early childhood development. First 5 Commission SLO County First 5 is a leader in the collectfve effort to support young children, both at the state and local level. First 5 San Luis Obispo County is an independent public agency created in 1998 by California’s Propositfon 10, a voter-approved initfatfve that added a 50-cent tax on tobacco products. This revenue provides a dedicated source of funding for programs that serve children from prenatal development through age five and their families, with priority areas in health, early learning and family resiliency. Local Child Care Planning Council (LPC) LPCs are funded by the California Department of Educatfon, Child Development Division, mandated in the Educatfon Code and overseen by the County Board of Supervisors and Superintendent of Schools. LPCs are mandated to undertake planning tasks, such as needs assessments, strategic plans and identfficatfon of priority zip code areas for state funding. CAPSLO serves as fiscal agent for the San Luis Obispo County Child Care Planning Council. Master Plan for Early Learning and Care: California for All Kids (MPELC) The MPELC is California’s 10-year plan, released in Dec. 2020, to improve the system of child care and early educatfon. Implementatfon is dependent on legislatfve and budgetary actfons. The Plan provides a research-based roadmap for building a comprehensive and equitable early learning and care system over the next decade. It identffies key policy goals to ensure that all California children can thrive physically, emotfonally and educatfonally in their early years through access to high-quality early learning and care programs. San Luis Obispo County Office of Education (SLOCOE) SLOCOE’s Early Learning and Educatfonal Support (ELES) Division promotes planning and actfons to advocate for a quality early care and educatfon system that meets the needs of all children and families. ELES includes several projects that support the Early Care and Educatfon (ECE) workforce with professional development. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 51 Ticket 2 Teach Ticket2Teach is a locally-designed partnership to inspire future Early Childhood Educators by providing tuitfon assistance while completfng Cuesta College’s Associate of Arts degree in Early Childhood Educatfon, guiding partfcipants through the Early Childhood Educatfon permit process, and supportfng access to pathways to advance to a Bachelor of Arts Degree. Transitional Kindergarten (TK) Transitfonal kindergarten (TK) is the first year of a two-year kindergarten program that uses a modified kindergarten curriculum that is age- and developmentally appropriate. Senate Bill (SB) 858 establishes the intent that TK curriculum be aligned to the California Preschool Learning Foundatfons and California Preschool Curriculum Frameworks developed by the CDE. Each elementary or unified school district must offer TK classes for all children eligible to attend. A child is eligible for TK if they have their fifth birthday between September 2 and December 2 (inclusive) and each school year thereafter (EC 48000[c]). We Are The Care (WATC) The We Are the Care Initfatfve was created as a result of the "Where's the Care? Town Hall" that was hosted in May 2019. The town hall was hosted by First 5 SLO County and dedicated equal tfme to addressing/exploring the child care challenge and beginning to problem solve. We Are the Care has since evolved to launch a variety of efforts to spotlight challenges and pursue solutfons to the child care crisis. The initfatfve is made up of four unique task forces: Public Awareness Campaign, Local Government Engagement, Cross-Sector Collaboratfon, and Power to the Profession. Workforce Development Board (WDB) The Workforce Development Board (WDB) is part of the public workforce system that supports economic expansion and development of talent in the local workforc e. In San Luis Obispo County, the WDB is housed within The County Department of Social Services. San Luis Obispo County Collaborative Child Care Study Page 52 Acronyms ASI Associated Students, Inc. (Cal Poly) CAPSLO Community Actfon Partnership of San Luis Obispo County CCIP Child Care Initfatfve Project CCL Community Care Licensing CDBG Community Development Block Grant CDE California Department of Educatfon CDSS California Department of Social Services CIE Center for Innovatfon & Entrepreneurship (Cal Poly) EVC Economic Vitality Corporatfon (now joined with REACH) FCCH Family Child Care Home LEA Local Educatfon Agency (School District, County Office of Educatfon) LIHTC Low Income Housing Tax Credit LPC Local Planning Council – San Luis Obispo County Child Care Planning Council MPELC Master Plan for Early Learning and Care R&R Child Care Resource and Referral Agency RHNA Regional Housing Needs Allocatfon ROI Return on Investment SBDC Small Business Development Center Title 5 California Educatfon Code- includes state-funded Child Development Programs TK Transitfonal Kindergarten WATC We Are The Care