For more than a decade, Erin Farias has watched the low-income families who send children to the day cares she runs navigate America’s broken child care system. Many of those parents had government assistance for school tuition, but half the time, Farias couldn’t count on them to make their co-payments. They were still too high. 

Child Care Aware® of America applauds bipartisan FY 2024 bill positioned to  
support and sustain child care across the country  

Child Care Aware of America applauds ACF efforts to lower costs and improve provider payment practices. 

Staffing shortages and a lack of facilities have contributed to the long waits for childcare, though the situation has improved somewhat since the pandemic. 

Experts say the supply-and-demand mismatch limits opportunities for families and communities alike: Without reliable and affordable child care, parents can’t join the workforce, stunting household financial stability and regional economies. 

ARLINGTON, VA, December 11, 2023 – Child Care Aware of America is pleased to welcome four new members to its Board of Directors. These new leaders will assume their positions in January 2024.  

ARLINGTON, VA, December 7, 2023 – Child Care Aware® of America today announced that they have been recognized by one of the country’s largest charitable organizations, Yield Giving. Founded by MacKenzie Scott, Yield is named after the belief in adding value by giving up control. The fund aims to grant money to nonprofits to allocate where they believe is most needed, which is a philosophy now known as trust-based philanthropy. CCAoA is honored to join the ranks of these prestigious organizations as a grantee of $5 million.  

Child Care Aware® of America applauds the White House for calling on Congress to invest an additional $16 billion in child care stabilization grants over the next year. Proposed funding would bolster the nation’s fragile child care system as current American Rescue Plan Act stabilization grant funding expired at the end of September. Stabilization grants have been critical to helping families return to work and rebuilding the supply of child care to pre-pandemic levels. Grants helped offset fixed costs and raise the wages of the child care workforce beyond the average $14 per hour in what remains a tight labor market.  

Perry joins cohort building intergenerational family prosperity and well-being 

The cost of child care is on the rise in the U.S., up more than 14% over the last five years with the average cost per child at almost $11,000 per year.

CCAoA's CEO Susan Gale Perry shares how critical high quality child care is for families in the U.S.