By Mary Cameron Perillo / For The Herald
As a new parent on a tight budget, I made the hard choice to quit my job and stay home with my newborn, Penny. After just four months as a stay-at-home parent, it was clear I couldn’t afford to stay home, but I also couldn’t afford to work.
My family was in a Catch-22. And that’s when I started advocating for affordable and accessible childcare and preschool for Washington families.
After my husband lost his job, our family entered the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP). Through ECEAP, Penny entered a quality, reliable preschool with valuable learning experiences that prepared her for kindergarten. She also participated in the Children’s Leadership Training Institute which built her self-confidence, independence and empowered her with the skills to speak with adults like our local lawmakers or in public settings. The powerful combination of these programs dramatically enhanced my daughter’s ability to move confidently through life.
ECEAP also helped me. I’ve always loved working with children. In high school I volunteered with ECEAP during the day and went back to play with the kids in after-school programs. I saw first-hand how early education can set a child up for later success. When I started a family, I trusted my daughter was in good hands with ECEAP. I was later encouraged by one of the teachers to participate in the Parent Ambassadors program and the Parent Leadership Training Institute.
Now, six years later, I’ve had the extraordinary opportunity to fight for Washington families like mine to change the future for our babies and toddlers. I’ve been to Washington D.C. I go to Olympia. I will talk with anyone ready to listen about the critical need to address our childcare and pre-school gaps. There are whole communities without early childcare and education programs for hard-working families.
One of the primary reasons we are struggling with the availability of childcare and pre-school options is the lack of professionals in the field. I would love to be a pre-school teacher myself, but I can’t afford to do that job. Caregivers and pre-school teachers are leaving the field, not because they want to; they have to for financial reasons.
I work part-time as a recruiter. Sadly, I sometimes hire people leaving the childcare profession. They will make more in a call center with commissions. Parking lot attendants make more than a pre-school teacher. These jobs do not require the same advanced training as a childcare provider or preschool teacher. Imagine having all the great qualities and qualifications to educate and care for our youngest learners but choosing a call center because you have to pay for a roof over your head.
Just like my family, Washington’s childcare and pre-school system is in a Catch-22. The costs are too high for many families to afford, but the pay to our providers is too low to keep people in their jobs. Early care and education programs loose professionals, and then they lose business. They raise rates to cover the lost business which adds more financial barriers for families.
The whole quagmire results in lost opportunities. Opportunities for families to access financial stability and independence; for businesses who lose their employees; and most importantly, for our children who are being left out; caught in the middle of the Catch-22 and losing opportunities to develop critical social, emotional, and learning skills that will serve them for a lifetime.
This is why I support the early childcare and learning proposals currently being considered by the Washington state Legislature. These proposals will support care givers and teachers, expand access to early learning options for hard-working families, and help close the gap for quality childcare and preschool for our youngest learners.
Mary Cameron Perillo lives in Everett.
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