Travis County allocated nearly $51 million of remaining Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to assist non-profit organizations and other programs on Monday, in an effort to address ongoing community needs, including food access, childcare and rental assistance.
The money is part of the $247 million Travis County received in American Rescue Plan Act Funds in 2021. The county split its funding into four components that funded emergency assistance programs during the Coronavirus pandemic, including relief funding and public health needs, and supportive housing projects to help solve the county’s homelessness issue.
Money will go to strengthening the local childcare system by partnering with organizations like the United Way and Workforce Solutions Capital Area, that will help fund stipends for childcare providers.
Austin city officials have outlined new criteria on the table to help expand affordable child care services citywide.
In a memo released Monday, city leaders released a list of proposed criteria for Austin City Council to consider. Back in early December, council approved a resolution centered on creating affordable, high-quality child care services.
As part of its efforts, city leaders collaborated with the Success By Six coalition members and the Early Childhood Council to help inform recommendations. Additional input from Workforce Solutions Capital Area staff, the city’s Economic Development Department, Financial Services Department – Real Estate and the Housing and Planning Department were also incorporated.
Child care in Central Texas can be hard to find – and affordable child care is even harder to locate. But United Way of Greater Austin is helping connect people to resources they can afford.
United Way is a nonprofit that has a community-wide coalition that networks to find high-quality child care, as well as resources to afford it. This network is something that has had a major impact on local providers and local families.
The nonprofit has its Connect ATX call line that helps parents navigate resources like the Workforce Solutions child care program, federally-funded head-start programs through Child Inc., public schools and Pre-K programs.
As cases of respiratory illnesses spread across the Austin metro, the importance of providing quality child care in a safe environment becomes all the more important. To support our providers, Workforce Solutions Capital Area and Austin Public Health hosted curbside pickup events for providers to receive cleaning supplies and at-home testing kits for COVID19 at no cost on December 9 and 10 at the Rosewood-Zaragosa Neighborhood Center.
Over the two days, we distributed 20 pallets’ worth of supplies to 134 providers. These included 1,600 cans of spray disinfectant, 620 buckets of disinfectant wipes, 760 bottles of hand soap, and 620 cases of gloves. Austin Public Health provided hand sanitizer, masks for adults and children, gloves, and at-home testing kits for COVID19. These providers care for 7,431 children across Travis County.
One of the providers was Shannon Saldana at Austin Community College Children’s Lab School. This full-day, year-round early childhood program has 12 full-time and 15 part-time staff and cares for 44 children.
“I was excited because we are running low and it’s hard to find masks and gloves sometimes,” Shannon said. “The cost of things has gone up, so finding the little things and not having a high cost or a long wait time is helpful.”
For Sharon Knight, director of Tarrytown Children’s Center, the rising costs of necessary supplies has been an ongoing challenge for her 14 staff to care for the 56 children at their center.
“I am so happy that someone is thinking about child care and the larger picture, instead of us trying to scrape together, ask parents for more, and try to dig into our funds,” Sharon said.
“This has really saved us during this three-year period, and I honestly don’t know what we would do without it because finding supplies has been almost impossible. I am very appreciative of what Workforce Solutions does,” said Sharon.
Tarrytown Children’s Center is a 4-star rated provider in the Texas Rising Star program, the highest rating available. The Texas Rising Star program is for child care providers who meet quality requirements that exceed the state’s minimum licensing standards and that are designed to enhance the intellectual, physical, and social development of children in care. In return for their commitment to quality, providers receive numerous benefits including enhanced reimbursement rates, learning materials and equipment, child development college course scholarships, and more.
Workforce Solutions Capital Area is committed to supporting providers in Austin who care for the children of our region’s workforce. By providing care in a safe and nurturing environment, Austin’s child care providers are helping to develop a future workforce that is skilled and productive. Learn more about how we support child care providers.
Providing eligible parents with financial assistance for quality child care is essential for these parents to work or train to better provide for their families. It also helps to develop the future skilled workforce of Central Texas. To help accomplish this, Workforce Solutions Capital Area hosts the annual Child Care Symposium for child care directors, owners and workers in Central Texas.
This year, we held the symposium in person and virtually August 5 and 6.
In-person attendees gathered at the Joe C. Thompson Conference Center at UT Austin for a full schedule of training opportunities and to hear from speakers representing state and local governments and a fellow child care provider.
On August 5, 85 directors participated in-person or virtually.
On August 6, 234 teachers participated.
Our grand total was 319 early learning professionals who received 1,750 hours of training at the Child Care Symposium.
Speakers included Aaron Demerson, Commissioner Representing Employers for the Texas Workforce Commission, José “Chito” Vela, Council Member representing District 4, and Dr. Desmar Walkes, Austin Travis County Health Authority.
The event’s keynote speaker was Reshaun Webb, an Early Childhood Education coach and trainer who also owns a child care center.
“At the City of Austin, we are doing everything we can to be supportive of working parents and their children. We’re hosting summer camps all summer long for kindergarten all the way up to high school to support working parents,” Vela said.
Dr. Desmar Walkes, Commissioner Aaron Demerson, and Council Member José “Chito” Vela
“Quality child care is a win-win situation for Texas employers and job seekers alike,” Demerson said. “I believe in the importance of supporting child care providers in growing their business and providing much needed services to the growing population of our state.”
Dr. Walkes provided an overview of monkeypox and how to help prevent the spread of infection.
“When we talk about essential workers, we talk about doctors and nurses, but what we really mean are child care providers,” Dr. Walkes said. “None of this is possible without you.”
What they’re saying:
For the directors and teachers who participated, the Child Care Symposium provided valuable learning opportunities and moments to connect with one another, whether in person or virtually.
“This is my first time as a teacher and am finding every day as a teacher is different, so all this information has been very interesting,” said one attendee.
“I loved the interaction and conversation. I also liked the opportunity to connect. The Workforce Solutions staff were super helpful and friendly,” said another teacher.
Workforce Solutions Capital Area works with 400-plus providers across Central Texas to provide care for over 5,000 children.
Workforce Solutions Capital Area is working to help low-income families work, go to school, or both. Chief Operations Officer Yael Lawson has the details.
A KXAN investigation recently found that some families are being met with 12–14-month waitlists for childcare. Workforce Solutions said it was working with more than 300 childcare providers so parents can go to work or school.
Yael Lawson, the chief operations officer at Workforce Solutions Capital Area, said the organization’s goal was to connect local people to local jobs, and an important aspect of that was to help find affordable, quality childcare services.
For child care providers in Central Texas, providing quality care during a pandemic and a labor shortage makes for a twofold challenge as limited resources and rising costs impact care.
To support our providers, Workforce Solutions Capital Area and Austin Public Health hosted curbside pickup events for providers to receive at-home testing kits for COVID19 and gloves at no cost on March 4 and 5 at the Rosewood-Zaragosa Neighborhood Center.
Over the two days, we distributed 6,840 boxes of gloves to 127 providers. Austin Public Health provided 5,130 testing kits for centers located in zip codes with the highest transmission rates. The 127 providers care for 7,981 children across Travis County.
One of the providers was Annie Sabetti, development director at Trinity Child Development Center. Her 11 staff provide care for 48 children.
“The cost of gloves and other supplies is a lot for us right now so we are always on the lookout for anything the community can give back to us,” Annie said.
“Our center provides affordable child care to families in East Austin. We have a lot of families receiving scholarships. We were about to order more gloves, so I was excited when I heard about this event,” said Annie.
For Sharon Knight, director of Tarrytown Children’s Center, rising costs related to staff turnover has become a challenge for her 12 staff to care for the 54 children at their center.
“I am thrilled that Workforce Solutions helped us out. Child care has been so difficult—last year, we went through 24 staff members,” Sharon said.
“Our extra expenses to hire and onboard staff have been phenomenal. The fact that Workforce Solutions helps us out with all of these supplies makes a huge difference in how we can serve our families,” said Sharon.
Tarrytown Children’s Center is a 4-star rated provider in the Texas Rising Star program, the highest rating available.
The Texas Rising Star program is for child care providers who meet quality requirements that exceed the state’s minimum licensing standards and that are designed to enhance the intellectual, physical, and social development of children in care. In return for their commitment to quality, providers receive numerous benefits including enhanced reimbursement rates, learning materials and equipment, child development college course scholarships, and more.
“I love having these guys as mentors and working with them,” Sharon said. “The work that TRS does to support the interactions between teachers and children, how they support us in providing a foundation for the children is absolutely critical.”
Workforce Solutions Capital Area is committed to supporting providers in Austin who care for the children of our region’s workforce. By providing care in a safe and nurturing environment, Austin’s child care providers are helping to develop a future workforce that is skilled and productive. Learn more about how we support child care providers.
Child care providers in Central Texas have struggled to obtain cleaning and protective supplies since the pandemic began in 2020. With limited resources, providing quality care becomes a challenge.
To support our providers, Workforce Solutions Capital Area and Austin Public Health hosted curbside pickup events for providers to receive cleaning and PPE supplies, at no cost on January 7 and 8 at the Rosewood-Zaragosa Neighborhood Center. Over the two days, we distributed 24 pallets of supplies, including hand soap and sanitizer, gloves and paper towels, bath tissue and bleach, for 128 providers. These providers care for 6,821 children across Travis County.
Austin Public Health also provided bleach and hand sanitizer, as well as at-home testing kits for COVID19 for centers located in zip codes with the highest transmission rates.
One of the providers was Valerie Johnson, Director of Gethsemane Lutheran Children’s Ministry. Her center has 16 staff and cares for 90 children.
“I was excited when I heard about this event. I have to say,, PPE is really cutting into my budget because everything is so expensive, so having WFS do this for providers is awesome,” Valerie said.” It’s really great you have the funding to do this for us. It helps out a lot.”
WFS staff load supplies into a provider’s vehicle.
With WFS Capital Area and Austin Public Health helping to meet her center’s high need for cleaning supplies, Gethsemane can now put their resources toward other needs.
“We go through gloves like water. We use sanitary wipes to sanitize our handrails, door knobs—the teachers are using them for everything,” Valerie said.
“This really helps us a lot because we can devote more monies on food or new toys, and helping the parents out if they need scholarship money to cover tuition if they are not working or in between jobs.”
Workforce Solutions Capital Area is committed to supporting providers in Austin who care for the children of our region’s workforce. By providing care in a safe and nurturing environment, Austin’s child care providers are helping to develop a future workforce that is skilled and productive. Learn more about how we support child care providers.
The ongoing COVID-19 Delta variant surge reminds us of the importance of creating safe and nurturing spaces for the children of working parents in Austin becomes more apparent. Across Travis County, many providers seek to continue offering care but have limited resources to do so.
To support them, Workforce Solutions Capital Area joined Austin Public Health to host curbside pickup events for providers to receive cleaning and PPE supplies, as well as resources for the City of Austin’s Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program, at no cost on August 19 and 20 at the Mexican American Cultural Center in Austin.
Shannon Eastman is the Child Development Center Coordinator at Eanes ISD’s two child development centers. The district’s 38 child care staff care for 128 children at its central location and 40 at the Barton Creek center.
“We definitely still need all the supplies. Gloves have been back ordered, and we just sit and wait, and wait, and wait for gloves,” Shannon said. “We have really struggled with getting gloves for the centers. Some of the pieces have been really hard to get ahold of.”
Diana Flores is the Community Engagement Coordinator for the City of Austin’s WIC program.
“WIC helps pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, and children from newborns to age of 5. We provide nutrition education, breastfeeding education and food benefits every month,” Diana said. “Right now, we are here to provide WIC incentives and information on how to enroll in the program for child care centers.”
Diana added, “I talked with some providers and they said they are really appreciative of what we are doing here today. This information is helpful because they get a lot of questions about how to enroll in the program.”
Over the two days, 70 providers picked up pallets of supplies, including hand soap and sanitizer, gloves and paper towels, bath tissue and bleach. These providers care for 4,074 children across Travis County.
“This is a huge undertaking that the Child Care Services staff do for us. Not only is it so helpful to have these PPE, but they have continued to be our backbone. I am really thankful for everyone at CCS,” said Shannon.
Workforce Solutions Capital Area is committed to supporting providers in Austin who care for the children of our region’s workforce. By providing care in a safe and nurturing environment, Austin’s child care providers are helping to develop a future workforce that is skilled and productive. Learn more about how we support child care providers on our website.
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