As childcare facilities wait to reopen, some worry it may be too late
COLUMBUS (WCMH) – There is no word yet from Governor Mike DeWine on when child care centers may reopen.
In a press conference Monday, DeWine said the state is still working on a plan and will reveal it when “all the right protocols are in place.”
Meanwhile, as time goes on, there is concern childcare centers across the state may close for good.
”It’s been a really scary time,” Gina Ginn with Columbus Early Learning Centers said.
The organization has 78 employees and has been closed since March 20. It has operated in central Ohio for more than 130 years, but has never seen anything like this.
“If we are struggling, I can only imagine what other smaller providers are going through,” Ginn said.
While some care centers have stayed open under a pandemic license, many others have stayed closed.
”My top concern is for these businesses to stay viable enough to restart when they’re allowed,” Columbus City Councilor Elizabeth Brown said.
Brown sponsored legislation last week that allocated $1.6 million to 28 early childhood care centers and Columbus City Schools’ Early Start Program.
Other care centers have not been so lucky.
“There are some pretty disconcerting studies that show possibly up to half of providers may have to close,” Brown added.
She also fears as the economy opens but childcare stays closed, parents may be caught in the middle.
“Parents are facing absolutely impossible choices between showing up for work because their bosses told them or staying home to keep their children safe,” Brown said.
She blames the situation partly on the state not treating early childhood education as a crucial part of the education system.
“It’s sort of been marginalized as babysitting,” Brown added, “That has created a landscape of care centers that are non-profits and small businesses, which are being hit hardest during this crisis.”
Care centers like Columbus Early Learning Centers are trying to prepare for the day they can open, but are concerned for not only when that day will be, but what it will look like for children, families, workers, and how much support they will get.
“Childcare is the foundation of our workforce and that foundation must be supported,” Ginn said.