Be a child care voter

There is no doubt the early years are the most formative in determining the life outcome of a person.

The experiences children face in their first five years shape and form the brain not only psychologically, but in its physiology as well.

Unfortunately, the criticalness of the early years comes in direct opposition to the beliefs, values, and ultimately funding by our government. Some elected officials are dismissive of the early years, thinking that because a baby or young child will not remember an experience it is not important and won’t shape the child’s life. However, love, care, support, consistency, abuse, neglect, poverty and other experiences will deeply influence a child.

Another contributing factor leading to some elected officials’ misunderstanding and consequently underfunding of early childhood education is rooted in the American mindsets of “pulling yourself up by your bootstraps” and “your kids are your own problem” —  both of which have been harmful not only for our youngest but for our economy as well. The United States spends third to last on early childhood education among all of the developed countries. Even though scientists, economists and experts alike recommend spending 3% of our country’s gross domestic product (GDP) on early childhood education, we currently spend a meager 0.3 percent. This lack of support contributes to the devastating fact that just over one in six children in America are living in poverty — the highest rate of child poverty among all industrialized countries.

Why is investing in early childhood critical to the health of our communities and economy? Because when we don’t take care of our youngest when they are young, we will certainly “take care” of them later on in life at costs 10 times more than if we had provided the necessary support and funding when they were a child.

These costs can come in many forms, but we often see them appear in increases in financial assistance, incarceration rates, special education and medical costs, along with a shrinking  tax base. 

To achieve a reality where everyone is ready to be a productive member of our community, we need to be proactive and support children in their most critical years. Research demonstrates that when children receive quality early child care, they are more likely to thrive and have access to better opportunities.

For example, children are more likely to graduate from high school, more likely to have higher incomes, more likely to be healthier, less likely to need state assistance and less likely to be part of our criminal justice systems when they receive high-quality early childhood education.

This past year our lawmakers in the Wisconsin Legislature traveled around the state for listening sessions before approving the state budget. One of the top issues both Republicans and Democrats alike said they heard about from their constituents and businesses was child care — the lack of it, the inaccessibility of it, and high costs families face when they could find it.

Despite both parties acknowledging that child care was a top issue facing Wisconsinites, no policies were passed in the legislative session to provide sustainable, long-term funding for early childhood education. When it became  clear that nothing would be accomplished, Gov. Tony Evers allocated emergency, short-term funding to partially fund Child Care Counts, a critical stabilization program that has helped to keep child care providers’ doors open  across the state. 

Unfortunately, despite the partial funding, Child Care Counts is still set to terminate in June of 2025.

With the upcoming elections this year, I respectfully request that you look at the candidates on your ballot and ask the simple question; did they vote yes or no to fund Child Care Counts? A “no” means they do not value early childhood education and the development of children at their most critical stage.

Vote for the future you want. Become a child care voter.