Child Care is Critical to Getting the Economy Moving Again

James White | October 1, 2020 | Ascend Fellowship

This interview is part of the Aspen Institute’s In Focus: Equity in Education multimedia series.

Parents across the nation face the impossible choice of going back to work or looking after their children as states phase into reopening without addressing child care.

https://youtu.be/yPRK8Jg7KIU

Like so many states, the COVID-19 pandemic has delivered a blow to South Carolina’s child care infrastructure. According to the Build It Back Better Survey, 62 percent of the state was considered a child care desert when temporary closures due to COVID-19 were taken into account as of August. Two out of every three children under age six reside in these deserts.

With the support of the Alliance for Early Success – South Carolina First Steps to School Readiness – led by executive director and Ascend Fellow Georgia Mjartan, the South Carolina Early Childhood Advisory Council, the United Way Association of South Carolina, and the Alliance for Early Success went directly to parents and caregivers of young children to better understand how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted their needs, experiences, and attitudes around child care.

They found that:

  1. Disruptions in child care have required parents and caregivers of young children to modify or reduce their work hours.
  2. Since March 13, 2020, families have relied on unpaid child care as the most common type of child care arrangement.
  3. Currently available child care options are not adequate for many working families.
  4. This crisis poses an acute threat to the wellbeing of young children and their families.
  5. There is no one-size-fits-all solution.

Read the Build It Back Better Survey Report for insights on the impact of COVID-19 on young children, their families, and child care needs in South Carolina

With federal and state policymakers focused on restarting the economy, now is the time to build a child care system that works better for families and caregivers. 

In Focus is a new multimedia series from the Aspen Institute that brings clear, diverse perspectives to the challenges shaping our society during a historic period of change and uncertainty. This series unites the Aspen Institute’s leading policy experts with our networks that span grassroots organizers, CEOs, student activists, and national lawmakers. Together, we’re showcasing new ideas, untold stories, and bringing the issues behind the headlines into focus.

Related Posts

In episode three of Aspen Ignites: Conversations to Build a Better World, Jenn White leads a conversation on leadership with Anne Mosle and 2018 Asce...
Ascend FellowshipJuly 27, 2023
100 Ascend Fellows will join the Aspen community for two afternoons of conversations aimed at Building Well-Being for Children and Families and Priori...
Press ReleasesJuly 25, 2023
We’ve selected four projects from the 2021 Class of Fellows that show impressive potential in both their scope and capacity to address timely issues...
Ascend FellowshipMay 25, 2023
Meet Nathan Chomilo, a 2022 Ascend Fellow and 2023 Aspen Ideas Health Fellow who’s incorporating community collaboration and racial equity into Minn...
Ascend FellowshipMay 16, 2023
In her Anchorage Daily News op-ed , 2022 Ascend Fellow, Jessica Saniġaq Ullrich, shares the importance of preserving Indigenous languages as a way to...
Media MentionsMay 8, 2023
Text over a landscape of South Africa
Tiana C. McCoy – Senior Associate, Operations and Convenings at Ascend – provides an inside look at the experience of a Fellows Forum.
BlogMay 2, 2023
In her Crain’s Detroit Business op-ed , 2022 Ascend Fellow, Leseliey Welch, discuss the importance of maternal health and midwifery care.
Media MentionsFebruary 28, 2023
In her HeraldNet op-ed, 2022 Ascend Fellow, Roxana Norouzi, discusses the important role that powerbuilding from community organizations has in electi...
Media MentionsJanuary 1, 2023
Over the last 10 years, the Institute’s Ascend Fellowship has seen 120 leaders from across the United States join together to break the cycle of int...
Ascend FellowshipAugust 22, 2022
In a recent article on EdSurge.com, Ascend executive director and founder Anne Mosle discusses the tighter focus of the 2022 Ascend Fellowship class.
Media MentionsAugust 17, 2022
Today, the Aspen Institute announced its 2022 Aspen Institute Ascend Fellows, 22 leaders from across the United States who are primed to transform sys...
Ascend FellowshipAugust 8, 2022
In an op-ed for amNY.com, Félix V. Matos Rodríguez shares insights and reflections on how higher ed can make a difference for families by supporting...
Media MentionsJuly 29, 2022
In an article in Early Learning Nation, the Ascend Fellowship and two Ascend Fellows - Joe Waters and Atiya Weiss - are highlighted for their leadersh...
Media MentionsJuly 26, 2022
In an op-ed for Chronicle of Philanthropy, Joe Waters highlights the Ascend Fellowship as an “example of an effective approach” to developing a ne...
Media MentionsJuly 19, 2022
Dr. Aisha Nyandoro, an Ascend Fellow, is one of three winners of the 2022 John P. McNulty Prize.
Media MentionsJuly 18, 2022