Snohomish Times Newspaper: Snohomish News Story

Opinion, Letters & Your Stories

Thursday, December 11, 2008
Director/Owner of Pacific Preschool in Lynnwood
By Susan Torngren, Director/Owner of Pacific Preschool in Lynnwood As a child care provider in Snohomish County for the past 20 years, I support the Smart Start for Washington campaign, a coalition of community leaders and child care providers committed to ensuring Washington parents and families have access to quality child care and early learning. We believe simply that the people who provide the care should have a voice in the political decisions that affect our centers, our communities and the parents and children we serve. Providers at more than 80 percent of the child care centers in Washington care for more than 36,500 state-assisted children. Child care center providers currently have no legal voice when it comes to debating the merits of the issues affecting our industry, communities and children we serve. Research and parents agree, quality early learning and child care are critical to lifelong learning and prosperity for our children. But the single greatest barrier to quality child care and early learning in Washington is its unstable workforce. High turnover rates erode the continuity and quality of care by destroying the bonds children form with teachers during the most critical stage in life to learn: birth to age five. Cultivating trust in and connecting with their caregivers during this critical time is an essential milestone in a childs growth and development. It affects their future ability to mature normally in other areas. The Smart Start for Washington campaign is committed to educating the public, employers and lawmakers on the need for sustainable industry incentives to improve the quality of child care and early learning in Washington. The first step to improving quality is to stabilize our workforce. It is critical that child care providers have a voice to identify important industry incentives that attract and retain providers. These incentives range from healthcare benefits, professional development to competitive salaries, to name a few. Our legislative proposal is aimed at a single objective ensure child care center providers have a voice in the issues affecting the industry and communities they serve. Child care providers like Ginger Still are short-sighted in their approach, asking for a one-time subsidy increase during the worst budget crisis in our states history rather than advocating for a seat at the table to give providers a voice in the long-term. We know parents want access to the highest quality, safest and most affordable child care child care that would give their children the best start in life. A smart start for our children begins with Smart Start for Washington

Susan Torngren - Lynnwood

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