TLCCA ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

TLCCA recently hosted a Workforce Summit

We were joined by many organizations in Texas that represent the best in Texas Early Childhood Programs. 

Great discussion was held to identify the needs for childcare in Texas and what can be done in the upcoming Legislative Session.

This was an excellent opportunity to focus on what matters: taking care of the child and the business that takes care of them (Early Educators, not Daycare). We created a list of 9 ala carte options that we all agree could be “easy” wins.  These are:

1. Background Check – Expedite Ran - Allow Work with Supervisions – no sexual predator and know abusers (DFPS has 48 hours turn around now)
2. Cost of Background Checks – HHCS Cost and Fingerprint Cost
3. Liability Insurance -Cost and Availability
4. Pre-Service Training Transfer
5. Reimagination of TEPEDS
6. Teachers Automatic Qualify for Subsidy
7. Make Inclusion Rate Easier to Attain – TWC Special Needs Rate
8. Transfer TANF Money 300+ Million to TWC budget for direct care
9. Look at Grant or Funds Innovation Projects to Legislation

We are still working on the Bigger Ask –  What do we ask for, and how does it serve the legislator for their win in the home area? How can we get other organizations to help us with our ask and join us in this need? 

The constant and agreed data is essential for this group, and how do we correct data that is cherry-picked or misunderstood by others? It does not have to have the same language, but we must have similar language for the subsequent two sessions. I would call this branding for our profession, Early Childhood Educators, and The Workforce behind the Workforce. This helps educate each other and creates a positive view to our legislators. 

Lastly, many of the concerns and current challenges we have as Early Childhood Programs/Providers:

1. Our workforce issues - Pay and On-Boarding Time
2. Pre-K partnership - how do we measure success to guide this conversation before someone else tells us what that looks like? 
3. Fed Funding is over - Charging actual cost of early education for infants through kindergarten - push back from consumer parents.
4. Unlicensed care or children not safe at home - back to the 80's latchkey children movement 
5. 74% of Owners, Directors, and Teachers experiencing burnout
6. The current Business model does not work. How to reimagine the business. Followed by #7
7. The cost of Early Education for infants through preschool for 3's is straining the Texas family as we cannot spread the cost in the current business model over the five years of retainment of a student/child in our micro-schools. 
8. The increase in regulation over the years is not the problem, but the inconsistency across the state on top of the increase is the burden. 
9. There are only about 1.37 million licensed openings in our state, with 2.6 under 6, yet we are not full. The cost for this educational care is believed to be the main reason why. Then, staffing with its nuances.
10. The CCS waitlist across the state is over 96 thousand.

We look forward to continuing the conversation over the next few months.  The next meeting is scheduled for June 11, 2024.  Please reach out to us if you have comments/concerns that we can share with the group.