Many parents in the Edmonds School District who rely on their child’s school to provide morning and afternoon care will have to seek an alternative this coming fall.
District officials announced Monday that child care programs at Brier, Edmonds, Evergreen, Madrona, Seaview and Woodway elementary schools will be discontinued in August. Child care at Alderwood Early Childhood Center and Chase Lake Elementary school will end this month.
The idea of losing the child care program has been a hard hit for families.
“I’m really disappointed. It’s a very convenient program for working parents like us and it’s great to have them in a place where they are challenged, kept active and there is a focus on homework,” said an Edmonds Elementary parent whose two sons attend the after school program.
The cut also will cost 22 district employees their job, including a child care supervisor and 21 assistants.
It was not an easy choice, district officials said.
“It’s one less service we will be able to offer our families, and we understand it’s a security thing for parents to have a safe place where their kids can go straight from school,” district spokesperson Debbie Jakala said. “But unfortunately, this kind of thing reflects our economy.”
While the district tried to balance the cost of the once-self-sustaining program by increasing tuition and marketing strategies, the reasons for the cut are similar to the budget-related issues area districts have been dealing with for some time now: declining enrollment and loss of revenue.
At its peak, the Edmonds child care program served approximately 550 students. Today, an estimated 380 elementary and 50 preschool kids are enrolled in the program. Combined with fixed staffing requirements, that loss has forced the program to operate on a deficit for three years. The debt incurred from the program – an estimated total of $120,000 – will be paid for through the district’s reserve fund.
The district’s goal now is to find alternative child care options for families.
“We are currently working with non-profit organizations to try to link them with our schools so we could have on-site child care,” Baker said. “We are hoping to have only a minimal impact on families.”
For more information, contact Edmonds School District community relations at 425-670-7044.
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