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Is there a need for more early childhood care and education services in Douglas County?

Yes. While child care and education programs ably serve children in Douglas County, there are not enough to meet the demand. Currently, licensed facilities meet just 49 percent of the potential need. There are ten children to fill every infant or toddler spot in a licensed facility. Douglas County has lost thirteen licensed child care facilities since 2024. With fewer licensed slots, families are struggling to meet childcare needs. Difficulties range from unintentional competition among families for spaces, a child care plan that is pieced together and lacks consistency, or families using unlicensed child care, which can be unsafe. We are trying to scale up to meet demands, and to do so affordably requires a community investment in our workforce and families with young children.

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Why the focus on infants and toddlers at the early childhood community center?

Low child-to-teacher ratios make providing affordable, high-quality infant-toddler child care a struggle. As a community, we must minimize the financial consequences of serving infants and toddlers, leading to more providers and services.

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Who will have access to these services and programs?

We are working to ensure equitable access to high-quality early childhood care and education for every Douglas County child from birth to age five. The achievement gap between different income levels and ethnicities is seen in national studies before kindergarten. We want to ensure that every family with young children has access to high-quality services they can afford, with specific strategies in place to support the most vulnerable and marginalized.

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Why are child care and education important to the Douglas County economy?

Quality child care and education is a public good, fueling our county's economic engine by helping parents work while building the workforce of the future. It supports parents seeking additional education and training, contributing to higher earnings over an individual's lifetime. Parents are forced to reduce their work hours without affordable child care and education or opt-out of the workforce. Child care and education capacity should be essential to the community discussion about economic development and job growth.

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As an employer, why is a strong early childhood infrastructure good for business?

A strong early childhood infrastructure is good for business! It helps meet the needs of both employers and employees. Douglas County businesses will be more successful in recruiting companies and employees with children to locate here because our early childhood infrastructure will meet their family's needs.

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Will the early childhood community center put other child care facilities out of business?

The ECCC is not in competition with other child care and education programs but supports them! We want to increase coordination across the entire Douglas County early childhood community to work better for everyone, including our center and home-based providers.

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Who will be paying for this?

In the fall of 2021, the early childhood community center project received its first significant financial commitment from the Kansas Children's Cabinet in the form of a Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention Grant three-year pilot project award to Community Children's Center in the amount of $582,000. LMH Health and the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce each provided $10,000 of the required $20,000 in matching funds for that grant opportunity. In July of 2022, Douglas County awarded $3,676,405 in American Rescue Plan Act funding to Community Children's Center to acquire a building to serve as the primary ECCC location and to begin renovations of that space. In November of 2023, the project received a $4.9 million Capital Projects Fund grant to complete the majority of the renovation. We have also received funds to complete renovations through grants, foundations and private donors. We will actively seek funds to complete renovations through grants, foundations and private donors. While there is currently unprecedented support for reimagining the early childhood infrastructure at all levels of government, we need the support of the business community and private donors to make this work. We believe early childhood systems should be a shared investment with benefits across Douglas County.

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What can I do to help?

Your support makes all the difference. Here are steps you can take:

• Educate others on this exciting project in Douglas County.

• Share input through both formal and informal opportunities.

• Advocate for early childhood at all levels of government.

• Implement family-friendly workplace practices at your place of business.

• Volunteer your time and talents.

• Donate to the ECCC fund at the Douglas County Community Foundation or visit Community Children's Center for more options  (https://www.communitychildrenks.org/donate)

• Contact Kim Polson at kimpolson@communitychildrenks.org if you would like to get involved.

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Why did you decide to work with a group outside CCC for child care and education? 

The original financial model for the child care center was dependent upon engagement and investment from Douglas County employers who wanted to support their employees in securing high-quality, reliable child care. While businesses acknowledged the challenge that child care places on their workforce, our efforts did not translate into the necessary employer investment required for the success of the model.

 

CCC needed to look at other collaborative models for the sustainability of the child care piece of the project. At the same time, Creating Connections was looking to expand its services to the families of Douglas County. Creating Connections currently has three locations in Johnson and Wyandotte County, Kansas, where they provide applied behavior analysis (ABA), speech, and occupational therapy services in an inclusive setting with peers. Most recently, they have expanded their services to include child care and preschool services to provide all children the opportunity to learn from each other and have the support of their highly qualified, multi-disciplinary staff. At 346 Maine, Creating Connections will provide care and education for infants through five-year-olds, in addition to ABA, speech, and occupational therapies, parent training, and behavior intervention. Not only does this result in additional child care capacity for Douglas County, but also much needed support for children with autism and other developmental differences.

 

Why has the project taken so long? 
Community conversations about an early childhood community center began in 2021. Community Children’s Center acquired 346 Maine St. for that purpose in summer 2022 using American Rescue Plan Act funds from Douglas County. The dreams and plans started taking shape, but the bulk of the funding necessary to make the project happen was not available to the project until November 2023 through a $4.9 million Capital Projects Fund grant through the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund. The original renovation timeline for the project was twelve months. As is often the case, we ran into several construction delays due to supply chain issues, permit delays, and coordination of subcontractors. The project is now slated to be completed June 2025. The Family Resource Center will open immediately when construction on that side of the building is done. Creating Connections child care will open soon after when licensing through the Kansas Department of Health and Environment is complete.

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