ERIC Number: ED673899
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2024-Mar
Pages: 6
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Putting the Pieces of the Family Child Care Puzzle Together: Budgets, Rate-Setting, and Sustainability
Rebekka Zydel
Advocates for Children of New Jersey
New Jersey cannot afford to lose even one family child care (FCC) provider as access to high-quality child care is more challenging for parents today than before the COVID-19 health emergency. Staffing shortages and rising expenses make it increasingly difficult for FCC providers to keep their doors open, requiring these business owners to draw on all professional and personal resources to stay afloat. Advocates for Children of New Jersey (ACNJ) set out to understand what makes FCC uniquely different from traditional small businesses and identify training and technical assistance strategies that best align with the FCC business model. Building on the work done in October 2023 to assess the impact of federal COVID-19 child care funding, ACNJ worked with a small group of seven registered FCC providers who are leaders in their community, have significant experience operating an FCC business, and have had previous FCC business training. ACNJ held a three-hour FCC business session focused on four components: household budget, business budget, calculating the cost of child care, and tuition rate-setting. Combining lessons learned from industry experts, participating FCC providers lent their firsthand experience to ensure the nuisances of their business were appropriately addressed. The aim was twofold: to provide anticipated business training based on lessons learned from the ARP Stabilization Grant application, distribution, and record-keeping process, and to learn from experienced FCC providers about their unique needs to identify gaps between traditional small business training approaches and the FCC business model.
Descriptors: Child Care, Budgets, Educational Finance, Budgeting, Sustainability, Models, Small Businesses, Capacity Building, Educational Quality, Tuition
Advocates for Children of New Jersey. 35 Halsey Street 2nd Floor, Newark, NJ 07102. Tel: 973-643-3876; Fax: 973-643-9153; e-mail: advocates@acnj.org; Web site: http://www.acnj.org
Publication Type: Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Advocates for Children of New Jersey
Identifiers - Location: New Jersey
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A