In quotes: Connecticut’s disappearing child care spots

“A new report from the Connecticut Association for Human Services estimates that public and private child care centers in Connecticut are serving 24,000 fewer children than they were before the pandemic. Across the wider group of home-based and center-based programs CAHS surveyed for the report, which serve a range of children from infant to school-aged, enrollment was at about 75% of capacity as of April of this year.

“Liz Fraser, policy director for CAHS and author of the report, attributed the decline to staffing shortages.

“ ‘We’re serving fewer kids, and it’s not because fewer families need care — it’s that they can’t find the staff to fill the positions,’ she said. 

“Earnings for child care teachers are low, and as wages rise in other sectors, many are choosing to leave the profession.”

— “Report: Thousands fewer CT children in child care since COVID,” by Erica E. Phillips, The CT Mirror, July 13, 2022