Magazine Rates State Tops In Child Care Study
Washington was one of nine states to enjoy the highest ratings in Working Woman magazine’s fifth annual study of child care nationwide. Idaho, meanwhile, was among three states bringing up the rear.
Washington joined California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Vermont and Wisconsin in drawing the highest marks for commitment, quality, safety and availability.
No state received the magazine’s highest rating of 5 on a scale of 1 to 5 in any of the categories.
Louisiana and Mississippi joined Idaho in receiving the lowest score possible - 1 - in all four categories. Idaho has the highest child-to-adult ratio for child care in the country.
While noting that advances are being made nationwide, the magazine said child care is still “woefully inadequate and quality is lacking in far too many programs.”
Many states still have to get away from the notion that child care is baby-sitting, said Judsen Culbreth, editor-in-chief of Working Mother.
The study is “an indictment of our country’s commitment to quality of care,” said Sandy Burud, a work-life consultant in El Segundo, Calif. “It means we’re not insisting that children get good care.”
“That’s compounded by the fact that there’s not enough child care,” she said. “That means parents have no choice if they need out-ofhome child care. … They pick programs that don’t meet their standards. It’s a very dangerous kind of choice they’re forced to make.”
In Mississippi, the study said, one woman was taking care of 17 children in her home, which was legal under state law since all the children were related to her in some way.
Terri Jordan, a General Electric manager in Albany, N.Y., put her children in a center where she feels that the caregivers are eager to educate, rather than just baby-sit, their charges.
She is also a member of a task force at General Electric that helps employees with child care.
Low wages paid to day-care workers prevent many educated people from being attracted to the job, Culbreth also noted. As well, low wages lead to high turnover.
“You don’t want your child to have four teachers in one year. If caregivers can make more money parking cars, mowing lawns, they’re going to get out of the field,” Culbreth said.
Gov. Jim Hunt of North Carolina was credited in the survey for being one of the most innovative governors on the issue of child care. He established the state’s Smart Start program, which provides affordable early childhood education to children through age 5.
North Carolina also founded Teacher Education and Compensation Helps, which rewards caregivers who complete the training with higher pay from the state. It’s being implemented in Colorado, Florida, Illinois and New York.
Since 1993 in North Carolina, 30,000 slots have been created, and care for 150,000 children has been improved, according to the study.
The study chided parents for not writing and complaining to their legislators about child care services.
“What they need are letters from mothers saying ‘I couldn’t go to work today because my child care broke down.’ “
Culbreth said there are numerous things that all states could do better very easily and cheaply: require that immunizations are up-to-date for a child entering day care; make sure caregivers are diligent about hand washing; and require playground surfaces to be safe.
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This sidebar appeared with the story: THE RATINGS State Qual. Safety Avail. Cmtmnt Wash. 3 4 4 4 Oregon 2 2 3 4 Mont. 2 2 1 2 Idaho 1 1 1 1