May 13th is “Day Without Child Care” in West Virginia. During the 2024 Legislative session lawmakers did not pass any of the sixteen bills that would have helped working families who need childcare. While the federal government continues to increase funding coming into the state through the Child Care and Development Block Grant, the total state match in West Virginia continues to decrease. Tuition for 77% of our families is reimbursed through the state's CONNECT funding.
At most child development centers, families who pay tuition must pay for the space for their child whether they attend or not. This is necessary because staffing must be in place for all children who show up for the day. However, the state has not used this pay model until the last few years. West Virginia lawmakers have decided to allow the old model of paying for “attendance only” for subsidized children to return this fall.
In an effort to bring awareness to the need to maintain “enrollment based tuition reimbursement,” many child care centers across the state have closed today.
While we fully support the efforts and idea behind today, we understand that our 75 families rely on the YWCA Mel Wolf Child Development Center to remain open and provide safe care in an enriching learning environment.
We are open because our families count on us.
Please bring awareness to “Day Without Child Care” by having conversation and raising awareness of the need for enrollment-based tuition reimbursement.
