Washington Isle News

Rather than use a $100,000 grant to help some parents pay for child care in the short term, Island County will apply the state funds to develop pilot projects with the community’s input through a task force starting in January.

When COVID-19 hit, the county’s needs assessment plans shifted. The child-care demand increased with kids out of school and a loss of providers, Stanwood Camano News reported in December.

The state grant came from the Washington Department of Commerce, which awarded 14 communities $1.36 million.

“Thousands of parents in Washington were either paying more than they could afford or struggling to find quality child care facilities and programs near where they live or work before COVID-19,” Commerce Director Lisa Brown said, Stanwood Camano News reported.

One in five Washington parents rejected a promotion or a job because of child care issues, the state’s Child Care Collaborative Task Force reported in a child care industry assessment study. That report said though 61% of young children live in homes where all parents work, the state’s licensed child care capacity only meets the needs for 41% of young children and 5% of school-age children.

How the community supports young families and children might look far different from what has been seen. Creating the local task force may result in a policy or solution that hasn’t been seen before, Theresa Sanders of Island County Public Health told Stanwood Camano News.

Island County wants its task force to include parents, providers or representatives of concerned organizations. The task force will work through September 2021. Virtual meetings enable Camano and Whidbey islanders to join the task force.

The group will help with in-depth child care needs assessment, rank priorities and develop three pilot projects on child care needs, with recommendations sent to the state.