Leading a team of community stakeholders, The Community Partnership and Phelps County are conducting research on the current early childhood landscape, fiscal resources available, and the true cost of implementing a high-quality, child care and early education that meets the community’s needs. A child care and early education plan, full of community- and data-driven strategies, will be developed that supports a high-quality, accessible Phelps County early childhood system.
The number of children who need care is higher than the number of available slots. More than 600 additional infant and toddler slots are needed. Capacity for kids ages 3-5 is sufficient for the needs of the community.
On average, families are paying 15% 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
“Childcare is one of the primary reasons employees miss work. Also we feel like access to affordable child care limits the talent pool and makes recruiting difficult.”
– Phelps County Employer
Quotes and survey data are drawn from a non-representative convenience sample of Phelps County parents and senior leaders of county employers.
The number of infants and toddlers who need care is higher than the number of available slots, with 648 kids who do not have a slot. Pre-K and other preschool capacity for kids ages 3-5 is sufficient for the needs of the community. 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.
“I’m blessed to be able to bring my child to work with me in order to thankfully provide for my family. However I cannot give either 100%. If I give my child my attention work suffers. If I give my job attention my child suffers. Without affordable and reliable childcare I’m not able to provide 100% of myself anywhere. In the end everyone suffers. My job, my child, and my family as a whole.”
-Phelps County Parent
Infant & Toddler (Birth-2 Years)
Kids Served
1,022 Kids
374 Slots
Pre-Kindergarten (4-5 Years)
Kids Served
340 Kids
612 Slots
Other Preschool (3-5 Years)
Kids Served
1,015 Kids
1,050 Slots
of surveyed parents who have done one or more of the following to accomodate child care: left the workforce, reduced working hours, switched jobs, changed work schedules, started to work from home, or moved to a new home
of surveyed parents who were on waitlists prior to enrolling
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 $53,242, local families are paying 15% 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 by IFF in partnership with Kids Win Missouri and Katie Rahn Consulting. Thank you to our partner The Community Partnership. We also thank our funding partners Children’s Trust Fund and Upward Momentum.
