Price of Service Cuts: Budget Impasse Leaves 300 Families Without Childcare as Day Care Centers Postpone Opening

August 21, 2009

Deep cuts to public services are being considered in Harrisburg as lawmakers and the Governor work to resolve the budget crisis. The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center (PBPC) is tracking news reports on the potential impact of these service cuts, as well as the impact of the state's budget impasse on local communities across Pennsylvania.
 
Today, we look at how the budget impasse has forced day care facilities to postpone opening their doors, leaving 300 working families scrambling to find childcare.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported August 21 that 300 families were notified by the Allegheny Intermediate Unit that their day care centers would be temporarily closed due to the budget impasse. Some day care centers have already laid off staff with more to come, one by as much as one-third with reductions in day care center hours to follow. Working parents who rely on Head Start and Pre-K Counts to provide day care to their children so they can work are left searching for options until at least early September.

More information about how proposed cuts will hurt Pennsylvanians can be found at PBPC's 30 Ways in 30 Days Service Cuts Will Hurt Pennsylvanians, which examines proposed cuts to public education, college costs, hospitals, children's health care, senior services, state police patrols, and agricultural programs, among other areas.  Read more stories in PBPC's Price of Service Cuts series.

Read the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article below.

120 attend forum on budget cuts affecting Allegheny Intermediate Unit
August 21, 2009
By Kaitlynn Riely
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09233/992322-298.stm

Today, Angie Marshall, the program director for the Butterfly Garden Early Learning Center in McKees Rocks, will be forced to lay off eight people from the center's 24-person staff.

The layoffs, which will be accompanied by a reduction in service hours for certain programs, are directly due to the state budget impasse in Harrisburg.

Ms. Marshall attended a forum hosted by the Allegheny Intermediate Unit last night to learn about why the state is making funding cuts for early education programs. She said she wanted to "send the message that we need a budget in favor of the children of Pennsylvania."

Last Friday, the AIU notified 300 families that their children's Head Start or Pre-K Counts classrooms will be closed because of a lack of state funding. Pittsburgh Public Schools plans not to fill about 120 preschool slots at six locations by stopping enrollment and recruiting for preschool programs beginning Sept. 4. The cuts at both organizations will also mean job losses.

About 120 people, including parents, teachers and school administrators and staffers, attended a forum last night at the AIU's Waterfront building in Homestead. The scene was one of frustration and anger. People held up signs asking for funding and support for early childhood education and applauded calls made by speakers for the legislators to pass a good budget.

Barbara Minzenberg, the senior program director for the AIU, cited research that showed the benefits of early childhood education, to the child, the family, the local community and the economy.

She called for the passage of a budget that fully funds early childhood education.

"These cuts are like thieves stealing our most prized possession -- the future of our children," she said.

The AIU offers three preschool programs: a federally funded Head Start program, a state-funded Head Start program and Pre-K Counts, which relies on state funds.

The federal Head Start program is not affected by the budget debate, but the reductions at the AIU will save $2.3 million and affect 16 locations.

"What is occurring right now is devastating and a crisis," AIU executive director Linda Hippert said.

Like Ms. Minzenberg, she cited research that showed the immediate and long-term benefits for the state that come from providing early childhood care. She urged people to contact their legislators and let them know how important that education is.

"We need a budget that is right for children," she said.

Melissa Stanish of Carnegie attended the forum with her 4-year-old daughter, Anna. Last Friday, she got a call saying that Carlynton Pre-K, where her daughter attends five days a week, would not be able to open Monday, but would aim to open Sept. 8. Mrs. Stanish, whose husband works during the day, said she is not sure what she will do now that her daughter doesn't have a safe place to be during the day.

"My job is at stake," she said.

Mrs. Stanish, who is on the policy council for the AIU, said she came to the forum to find out what could be done about passing a budget that provides funding for her daughter's pre-kindergarten program.

For now, she said, she is hoping her daughter will get a spot off the waiting list for a Head Start program.

Read more stories in PBPC's Price of Service Cuts series.