I was pleased to see coverage of the ongoing child care crisis here in Maine with the March 14 PPH article, “Child care providers say industry needs consistent financial support to survive.”

As an early child care educator and parent to a young child, I have seen the issues from both sides of the coin. Last June, as director of the program, I closed a child care in South Portland, largely due to ongoing challenges of running a program during the pandemic. Programs are still closing and those that remain open are facing staff shortages, running below capacity, and experiencing high levels of stress and turnover. As a result, families like mine are struggling to find affordable, quality child care and are having to leave the workforce to care for young children.

Most of the issues the child care sector continues to face during the COVID-19 crisis were not created by the pandemic, but were significantly exacerbated by it.

Now, more than ever, the impact of low educator wages, the high cost of care for families, and struggles with the accessibility and availability of programs are glaringly evident. Parents and educators are suffering, and while I am excited to see state support of child care here in Maine, we will need more to create positive, long-term change.

High quality early education and care is truly the backbone of our society and we need to fund it accordingly. Our children, families and educators deserve nothing less.

Gina Forbes
Brunswick

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