With a multi-sector team of stakeholders, Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) is leading the Kansas City region in research on the current early childhood landscape, fiscal resources available, and the true cost of implementing high-quality child care and early education. An action plan full of community and data-driven strategies will be developed to support an accessible, high-quality early childhood system for the Kansas City region.
The number of children who need care is higher than the number of available slots. Nearly 32,000 additional infant and toddler slots are needed. Nearly 6,000 additional Pre-K slots are needed.
On average, families are paying 14% 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
“I know that daycare costs are prohibitive which is why a large number of our employees use the Y-Care system. We looked at sponsoring some type of daycare benefit but found for it to truly be beneficial to the employee, the cost was too high to enact properly.”
– Employer from KC region
Quotes and survey data are drawn from a non-representative convenience sample of parents and senior leaders of employers from Johnson and Wyandotte Counties in Kansas, and Clay, Jackson, and Platte Counties in Missouri.
The number of infants and toddlers who need care is significantly higher than the number of available slots, with 31,846 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, but Pre-K slots are lacking. An additional 5,908 Pre-K slots are needed. 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.
“Our kid goes to a great center and we are fortunate that they had a spot and we can afford it. However it cost more than our mortgage when he was an infant. We intentionally only had one child because daycare costs so much. We also drive an older (2006) vehicle that we want to replace. I have the burden of drop offs and most pick ups because my work schedule is more flexible, but after several years my husband asked his employer to be late one day per week so that I could have a morning “off.”
-Kansas City Region Parent
Infant & Toddler (Birth-2 Years)
Kids Served
50,460 Kids
18,614 Slots
Pre-Kindergarten (4-5 Years)
Kids Served
17,118 Kids
11,210 Slots
Other Preschool (3-5 Years)
Kids Served
51,360 Kids
66,412 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 $82,721, local families are paying 14% 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
“We are offering $10,000 sign on bonuses, complimentary child care for one child, minimum wage for non degree is $16 and degreed is $18, tuition reimbursement, benefits, etc and we still have a hard time filling our positions.”
– Provider in Kansas City Region
*Lead Organization
Data compiled by IFF in partnership with Kids Win Missouri and Katie Rahn Consulting. Thank you to our partner Mid-America Regional Council. We also thank our funding partners Children’s Trust Fund and Upward Momentum.
