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Nice to see our "complaints" and worries are not just ours alone.
This is the most telling paragraph
“These folks aren’t making much money — the average is about $11 an hour,” said Dave Edie, who led the state’s child care office for years. “The question becomes, ‘Why should I get a degree and continue to make $11 an hour?’”
The state is trying to address these barriers, particularly through a popular scholarship program.
Some child care workers welcome this move toward college training, saying it will professionalize the field and finally put to rest the “baby sitter” label. Others, especially veteran providers with decades of experience, say the emphasis on college training is misplaced, even insulting."
Then the article goes on to say that centers taking low income children will receive higher reimbursement rates....I don't know about your state but that "higher rate" is a 15% increase in reimbursement which equals out to be about $8-$16 more per month per child....NOT an increase that makes any kind of financial impact unless you care for 50+ kids.
Plus that increased funding has to come from somewhere....tax payers?)
It just seems so biased to me because all these articles that talk about the benefits of QRIS programs are targeting low income kids....what about the other kids? The kids that aren't low income but their parents are high income either....you know the ones...the ones living pay check to pay check and can barely afford to pay daycare costs as it is?
Plus the long term study done by Head Start itself says there is NO evidence that early education has any benefits beyond 3rd grade at the very most???? :confused:
I get what the states are doing (or trying to do) but it just seems so backwards to me... the only real benefactors to any of this are the low income families that are already receiving help/assistance.
I'd like to see some kind of incentive for those families that are falling through the cracks and just barely above poverty levels....I think we should start researching and addressing their unique issues and find ways to assist them in finding ways to remain self supportive. -
Our state is making it also making it that the more STARS you more you will make off of State Pay families.
In the beginning they kept telling us that it was nothing like Head Start and the set ups would not resemble them. They have now stopped saying that because way to many people saw that yes, it is being piloted after HS.
I can never be a 4 or above because I won't have an employee but in the end it may have to change because I know many people that its just them.
Since we are doing the pilot program its going to be interesting to see how many changes they make before the official QRIS rolls out.Comment
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Nice to see our "complaints" and worries are not just ours alone.
This is the most telling paragraph
“These folks aren’t making much money — the average is about $11 an hour,” said Dave Edie, who led the state’s child care office for years. “The question becomes, ‘Why should I get a degree and continue to make $11 an hour?’”
The state is trying to address these barriers, particularly through a popular scholarship program.
Some child care workers welcome this move toward college training, saying it will professionalize the field and finally put to rest the “baby sitter” label. Others, especially veteran providers with decades of experience, say the emphasis on college training is misplaced, even insulting."
Then the article goes on to say that centers taking low income children will receive higher reimbursement rates....I don't know about your state but that "higher rate" is a 15% increase in reimbursement which equals out to be about $8-$16 more per month per child....NOT an increase that makes any kind of financial impact unless you care for 50+ kids. Plus that increased funding has to come from somewhere....tax payers?)
It just seems so biased to me because all these articles that talk about the benefits of QRIS programs are targeting low income kids....what about the other kids? The kids that aren't low income but their parents are high income either....you know the ones...the ones living pay check to pay check and can barely afford to pay daycare costs as it is?
Plus the long term study done by Head Start itself says there is NO evidence that early education has any benefits beyond 3rd grade at the very most???? :confused:
I get what the states are doing (or trying to do) but it just seems so backwards to me... the only real benefactors to any of this are the low income families that are already receiving help/assistance.
I'd like to see some kind of incentive for those families that are falling through the cracks and just barely above poverty levels....I think we should start researching and addressing their unique issues and find ways to assist them in finding ways to remain self supportive.
The most the state will pay for a child in my county is $115 per week. Minus the parent's copay. So, even if I were a 5 star, the most will be $132.50, minus the co-pay, and for family childcare, they pay on attendance only, so that's $3.77 per hour minus the parent co-pay, at a maximum of state-pay of 35 hours per week. The parent is expected to pay the co-pay, and absent days, and any hours over 35, or the provider is expected to eat the cost. Centers are paid on enrollment.Comment
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I'm paid based on what the parent schedules so if a parent schedules 5 days a week but the child only comes 4 days, I am still paid for 5.
The most the state will pay for a child in my county is $115 per week. Minus the parent's copay. So, even if I were a 5 star, the most will be $132.50, minus the co-pay, and for family childcare, they pay on attendance only, so that's $3.77 per hour minus the parent co-pay, at a maximum of state-pay of 35 hours per week. The parent is expected to pay the co-pay, and absent days, and any hours over 35, or the provider is expected to eat the cost. Centers are paid on enrollment.
I already receive the MAXIMUM reimbursement rate my state allows and that is still about $4 LESS per week than what I charge.
There is NO way in he double hockey sticks that any provider here (both family and/or center) can earn $11 per hour.....even the local centers here pay only minimum wage to their employees and the employees are required to have at minimum a CDA credential.
Working at Head Start 20+ yrs ago, I STARTED at around $11 per hour and I am betting that ALL H/S staff will get paid fantastically as the ONLY people benefiting from any of this are them IMPO.
Every time someone posts something about QRIS and star ratings, I cringe and seem to always post negative stuff and I am in no way always trying to be the Debbie Downer about it but being that we (providers) are the ones who are hands-on.....we get to see first hand how this REALLY effects us.
Not just the "on paper" or "in theory" outcomes but real life outcomes/effects.
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I guess I'm confused in what you mean by saying that childcare providers can't earn $11 an hour. I easily make $15+ an hour.
Also, you made $11 an hour 20 years ago with HS?! Wow, thats just unreal for even back then I would think. The workers here get between $9-$11 an hour now and lead teachers make just a little more. One of my friends left HS to start a childcare and is making more doing that then working with HS. Our aides in the school district even top out at $13 an hour. In fact several of the positions here are no longer with HS due to budget cuts. I think they had 9 people laid off.Comment
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Not every provider makes that, many are struggling. I do now, but it too a long time to get here. I have an AA, but am currently working on my BA. There is no way once I get my BA (and maybe even Masters) that I will continue working as an in home provider. My income is pretty limited at that $15-19 per hour mark, plus I work almost 55-60 hour weeks (actual child care + cleaning/set up) no health benefits or retirement, etc. My husband has a Masters and when he does do hourly work (tutoring, etc.) he easily makes double per hour than what I do. He also has a lot more time off than I do (as do many of my dc parents who are not teachers...)
As of right now, I am not seeing any issue with the rating system - as our state is still in the beginning stages. But I do foresee a time when parents (even private pay) use that rating system to find a caregiver. Many of the standards are difficult to impossible for an in home provider to meet so our ratings won't be as high as a center. My hope is that many of my more educated parents won't drink the Kool-Aid, but I'm not going to bet the farm on it.Comment
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Personally, (and many of you know this) I think it is a great thing. I wholeheartedly believe that if providers want to be treated as professionals, they need to "behave" like professionals, and that means higher education, set, rigid standards and oversight. Just like any other business. Although, I truly feel that we should be held to a HIGHER standard than many businesses, as we hold the future in our hands.
And, as far as money goes, the higher your level of professionalism and quality of your program, the higher rate you can charge. I don't buy the notion that we won't make more money. And for those who cannot charge a higher rate, if you meet the standards, you'll likely be running at capacity with waitlists, whereas programs who do not meet standards will see a dwindling group of children frequenting their programs.Comment
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Just because a provider makes more than $11 per hour doesn't mean that after taxes and expenses that they are still making that same amount per hour....kwim?
Yes, I personally make more than that....but I have also been in this business for 2 decades, don't struggle to fill spots (although many providers around me do) and I have a degree in ECE too so.....
I was really referencing the amount new providers or sahm's had the potential to make without a degree as well as what most center employees make.
Yes, I earned $11+ as a starting wage for HS. Our HS workers here now start at well over that amount. They are required to have at minimum a CDA credential. Lead teachers here make a lot more than public school teachers.
Our Head Starts aren't struggling with finances at all and as a matter of fact, just recently opened a couple more centers in my town as well as begun offering summer classes/care to their students. Head Start here is flourishing and is fast becoming the number one place for parents to enroll their children for preschool and child care options. Even though low income children are accepted first, they can still enroll over income families and do.
For one particular metro area in my state the average income for:
Preschool Teacher is $33,000
Public School English Teacher $43,000
Head Start Lead Teacher $109,000
So yeah, pretty sure we know where the money is going for these programs.
Google Head Start teachers in your area and see for yourself....they make GOOD money! According to one site, the average salary for a lead teacher is $25.14 per hour.
There are hundreds of sites that will tell you how well they are paid.
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My problem isn't with having quality initiatives or setting higher standards. My issue is with the cookie-cutter approach that the ONLY way to provide high-quality care is through meeting these 100 or so standards above and beyond health and safety (which in WI, is roughly 750 standards already). A degree alone does not make one a better provider, nor does experience alone. It's a combination of things, and then there's a lot of things one can't really quantify, either.
First of all, the QRIS process is designed to look at flaws in a program, not strengths.
It's someone with a measuring tape and a stopwatch saying "oh...dcb touched the dog and you didn't wash his hands immediately...minus point". Not, "Wow, the way you handled that meltdown shows that you really understand child development, and how much that child's self-worth means to you".
It's "those children sat at the table and waited 4 minutes for their lunch" and "all children must have chairs their size where their feet touch the floor", not "boy, this is really a family environment where you all sit down for a meal together".
It's "everything must be designed around the child", not "these kids are learning to live in the real world".
There are many, many different ways to offer quality care. WI's QRIS says there's one way. That's my issue with it.
Oh, and one other MAJOR issue. Our state does very, very little to shut down illegal providers. There are people around here who have 15 or 18 kids in their homes every day ALONE, or with the help of their home-schooled kids. If we are so worried about quality, let's get that taken care of. The state is very aware of these places, but claim "their hands are tied".
They also let providers (mostly centers, but family, too) who should have been shut down due to violations long ago remain open. Some of these places are disgusting; dirty, bottle-propping, bleary-eyed bored "teachers" who have no business caring for children. They get violation after violation, even fines, but rarely do they shut one down. There is a program on the south side of Madison (in the poorest neighborhood) that I've been in a handful of times over the last 23 years. It honestly makes me want to cry. They are a 2-Star program. I am a 3-star program. Yeah, right!Comment
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Wowie! I am absolutely sure our Headstart teachers don't get paid that here. Rural area...Just because a provider makes more than $11 per hour doesn't mean that after taxes and expenses that they are still making that same amount per hour....kwim?
Yes, I personally make more than that....but I have also been in this business for 2 decades, don't struggle to fill spots (although many providers around me do) and I have a degree in ECE too so.....
I was really referencing the amount new providers or sahm's had the potential to make without a degree as well as what most center employees make.
Yes, I earned $11+ as a starting wage for HS. Our HS workers here now start at well over that amount. They are required to have at minimum a CDA credential. Lead teachers here make a lot more than public school teachers.
Our Head Starts aren't struggling with finances at all and as a matter of fact, just recently opened a couple more centers in my town as well as begun offering summer classes/care to their students. Head Start here is flourishing and is fast becoming the number one place for parents to enroll their children for preschool and child care options. Even though low income children are accepted first, they can still enroll over income families and do.
For one particular metro area in my state the average income for:
Preschool Teacher is $33,000
Public School English Teacher $43,000
Head Start Lead Teacher $109,000
So yeah, pretty sure we know where the money is going for these programs.
Google Head Start teachers in your area and see for yourself....they make GOOD money! According to one site, the average salary for a lead teacher is $25.14 per hour.
There are hundreds of sites that will tell you how well they are paid.
http://www.glassdoor.com/Salary/Head...es-E133376.htm
Here is their job board.Comment
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I also think that, if done correctly and fairly, the QRIS program can be a good thing. I do have some concerns about the requirements especially about requiring a degree. For example in CA they are not quite clear on the requirements yet since they are also just in the pilot program but one of the possible requirements for the highest rating would be having a masters degree. Let's face it ... unless I hired an employee so that I could go to school I would not be able to take all of the required classes online or during the evening (after daycare) because my local colleges don't offer them all during the evening or online. Some require hands on learning and face-to-face observations which makes sense. Also I can only have a sub 20% of the time so I wouldn't be able to take FT classes so it would take me a while to get a degree. And this is just talking about getting an AA, there are other concerns that I have with having to get a masters degree such as the cost, time and whether if and how long it would take for me to recoup the cost.
Also from what I understand any degree may count (again, they are not sure yet) and if that is true then to me that doesn't make sense. I mean if you were a center director and you had a degree in Business Administration and your staff that worked with children were required to have CDA's, units in child development etc then I could agree ... however I don't feel that it would be realistic to give a center 5 stars because the director had never taken any child development courses but had a masters degree in Liberal Arts, Multi Media or other degrees that had nothing to do with child care or the business of child care but only give a FCC home 3 stars because the provider only had an AA in child development (which in my opinion is more important than having a masters in any other degree including business administration).
I do however feel that some type of education should be a requirement. Why wouldn't you want to improve your knowledge base and understanding? It can improve your abilities as a provider, your relationships with your clients, your relationships with the children and in the end your business as a whole. I myself am taking college courses towards getting child development permits (CA), and towards an AA in Child Development (for starters), maybe even for a CDA or accreditation if I qualify and if I have the money. Why not?
But again, it depends on how they implement the QRIS program so I will have to wait and see what the details will be. This is why participating in the pilot process is so important, I'd like to have a voice too.Comment
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But the bus driver's get paid pretty good for as little time on the job as they have ....Wowie! I am absolutely sure our Headstart teachers don't get paid that here. Rural area...
Here is their job board.
"19 hours/week; $10.34-$11.41/hr"Comment
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