CBS Mornings Interviews Bela Moté and Governor Pritzker on The National Child Care Crisis
Wednesday, October 20, 2021
CHICAGO, Ill. – With the country’s child care system in crisis, states are using more than $50 billion in federal relief money to test some creative solutions, but the money is temporary. Despite a logjam in Congress over President Biden’s proposal for more permanent relief, advocates like our President and CEO Bela Moté and Illinois Governor JB remain optimistic that this crisis may provide an opportunity.
CBS Mornings correspondent, Jan Crawford sat down to interview our very own, President and CEO Bela Moté, Governor Pritzker and Avonna Brown, a teacher at our North Lawndale site whose son attends The Center. Each of them highlight challenges in the child care field that were further exacerbated during the pandemic including:
- Low compensation for Early Care and Education (ECE) staff, causing retention issues
- A very dry teacher pipeline to recruit talented and qualified staff
- Limited options and accessibility to affordable high-quality ECE programs for all families across the country
The segment also explores innovative solutions by states such as Illinois, which has been a national example and leader on how to effectively support the sector during the pandemic using federal resources. Both Bela and Governor Pritzker stress that it is essential to make increase national investment in learning because of it’s ability to drive long-term social good and economic benefit.
Bela concludes by noting the opportune moment we are in, with policies being considered at the federal level –specifically, in the Build Back Better package – that aims to transform early childhood education and care in the United States.
Our advocacy efforts are hard at work to capitalize on this moment. Last week, Kenny Riley, our Director of Out of School Time Programs (OST), addressed the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) calling on broader support for increased After School and OST investment. Our Director of Community-Based Advocacy, Julissa Cruz, is looking forward to testifying at future budget hearings, while working with families and staff out our centers to amplify their voices and advocacy for policy change.
