Vermont
Working families in Vermont need accessible, affordable, quality child care and early learning opportunities for their children.
Currently, federal and state early learning programs reach thousands of young children and their families in Vermont. But too many working families in Vermont are missing out. As a direct result of child care issues, the Vermont economy loses millions of dollars each year in the form of lost earnings, productivity, and revenue.
There are 34K children ages 5 and under in Vermont – 74% of these children have all available parents in the workforce.
The typical annual cost of child care for an infant in Vermont is around $18,000.
The Child Care and Development Block Grant only reaches 16% of eligible families in Vermont. (This federal program helps low-income parents afford child care.)
On average, child care providers in Vermont earn just $35,990 a year; this can make it a challenge to recruit and retain this workforce, leading to supply issues.
Vermont’s economy loses $195M annually due to child care challenges.
Vermont: In The Headlines
Opinion: We are early childhood educators
VT Digger | aUGUST 13, 2024
Our audacious vision is a state and nation where each and every child, beginning at birth, has the opportunity to benefit from high-quality, affordable early childhood education, delivered by a diverse, effective, well-prepared and well-compensated workforce.
Opinion: Solving America’s child care crisis will help all of us
Bangor Daily News | June 28, 2024
With many businesses saying they can’t find enough workers and many working families still struggling to find and afford day care for their children, I am surprised at how controversial support for child care can be.
Is Vermont’s big investment in child care paying off?
WCAX | August 7, 2024
Is last year’s multi-million investment in Vermont child care paying off? Advocacy groups say more families are accessing child care but they say the system is still falling short and may require another infusion of public dollars.
Vermont Resources & News
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