Adair County is developing a child care and early education community plan. Led by Kirksville Regional Economic Development, Inc. and a team of community stakeholders, the community is conducting research on the current child care and early education landscape, fiscal resources available, and the true cost of implementing a high-quality, child care and early education system that meets the community’s needs.
The number of children who need care is higher than the number of available slots. Only 35% of infants and toddlers and 73% of preschoolers are served by existing slots.
On average, families are paying 21% or more of their income to cover the cost of care.
Current, unaffordable annual tuitions are not enough to cover the true cost of high-quality care.
of surveyed employers report that employees’ access to child care greatly or significantly affects their business
of surveyed employers report employees doing at least one of the following: taking time off to fill child care gaps, terminating their employment, permanently changing their work hours/availability, or temporarily changing their work hours
“Lack of child care options have forced employees into situations where a significant portion of their pay goes to child care expenses, so they’re almost better off not working .”
– Employer
Parent and employer quotes and survey data are drawn from a non-representative convenience sample of Adair County parents and senior leaders of county employers, and ECE directors and owners from 5 Missouri Counties, including Adair.
The number of children who need care is higher than the number of available slots. Infant and toddler care has the greatest gap between the availability of care and the demand for care with 351 kids who do not have a slot. Additionally, there is a 27% gap in available slots for children ages 3-5. This data is based on 70% of the estimated total number of children in the area, aligned with policy research estimates used by the State of Missouri.
“When my son was first born, I thought I would have to quit my job because there weren’t any available providers. I had interviewed two women, but I didn’t feel safe leaving my newborn in either place.”
-Kirksville Parent
Infant & Toddler (Birth-2 Years)
Kids Served
537 Kids
186 Slots
Preschool (3-5 Years)
Kids Served
522 Kids
383 Slots
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), child care is considered affordable if it costs families no more than 7% of their income. With median household income of $41,977, local families are paying 21% or more of their income to cover the cost of care for one child.
% income parents pay for Infant & Toddler Care
% income parents pay for Preschool
* 7% affordability threshhold
Median Household Income (MHI)
Infant & Toddler parent tuition
Preschool parent tuition
Affordable Cost Level ( 7% MHI )
In addition to being unaffordable to families, the annual cost of tuition does not cover the
true cost of high quality care for providers. Additional funds from other stakeholders are needed to support high-quality care.
Infant & Toddler
Preschool
*Lead Organization
Data compiled and presented by IFF in partnership with Kids Win Missouri and Katie Rahn Consulting. Thank you to our partner, Kirksville Regional Economic Development Inc., and our funder, Children’s Trust Fund.
