Re: Jan. 18 news story.
As a former Colorado child-care licensing specialist from the 1970s, I was saddened to read about the status of child care in Colorado. Back then, licensing visits were conducted annually, and the death statistics were considerably lower, though not, unfortunately, zero.
What changes have contributed to the deplorable situation we have today?
• Back then, most mothers could afford to stay home with their children, so there were fewer child-care facilities to oversee.
• Far more children were cared for in family child-care homes than in centers, and the maximum number of children allowed in licensed homes was six. Today, about two-thirds of Colorado’s children are in center care, and there are enough licensed slots to serve only 45 percent of the children under 6 who need care.
• Operating a family child-care home was a way for women to supplement the income of their breadwinner husbands. They charged very little, in effect subsidizing the real cost of care with the small hourly fees they charged. Women today find it necessary to work outside the home in jobs with benefits in order to support their families.
• Today, it is much more costly and time-consuming to become a licensed family child-care home, varying greatly depending on the county and city jurisdictions involved.
• Child-care facilities today are caught between the high demand for their services by parents who are desperate for care but cannot afford to pay, and the real cost of providing quality care.
An upcoming PBS documentary series, “The Raising of America,” explores the importance of early childhood and shows investing in early childhood is the best thing we can do for the life-long well-being of our children.
Cara Koch is public policy director of the Colorado Springs branch of the American Association of University Women.
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