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Jennifer
Chambers, The Detroit News, June 13, 2005
An acute shortage of day care facilities that take infants has sent many
Metro Detroit parents scrambling for alternatives, begging relatives for
help or seeking the services of a nanny.
The problem escalated in Macomb County earlier this year, forcing the
Michigan Community Coordinated Child Care agency, also known as 4C, to
send a letter to all licensed day care providers in the county imploring
them to expand their business by offering care for children 6 weeks to 18
months.
So far, no one has fulfilled the request.
The shortage appears to be a problem across the state. According to a 2005
study by the child care association, six counties don't have a single
infant day care provider. Deniz Conger and her husband, Austin, struggled
to find a day care near their Oakland County home that would take their
11-week-old daughter, Ayse. The Congers ultimately hired a nanny, a much
costlier option.
"It's really a challenge. We have three day care facilities around the
corner from us, but they don't take infants," Deniz Conger said.
The study showed Oakland and Wayne counties have the most infant-care
programs with 158 and 195 respectively, while Macomb has 63.
"It's very difficult to encourage providers to care for infants," said
Mary Frontiero, program coordinator at Macomb's Community Coordinated
Child Care agency. "It's more time-consuming; babies need quite a bit more
attention than a 4-year-old. Babies need formula, diapers, strollers,
cribs. And they need more space."
After spending seven months at home relishing her baby daughter's every
coo and milestone, Lisa Van Osdol of Grosse Pointe Woods was ready to
begin her foray into the world of day care.
One call to Assumption Nursery School and Toddler Center in St. Clair
Shores revealed Van Osdol had started too late and was up against fierce
competition in her community.
"They had 40 names on their waiting list," said Van Osdol, a
pharmaceutical sales rep turned stay-at-home mom.
"I was shocked. Most of the other phone calls I've made, they don't take
kids under the age of 2 or 3, which is kind of strange because you wonder:
What happens before that?"
Across the state, there are more than 18,000 regulated child care homes
and centers, which include family child care homes and group child care
homes -- both in private residences -- and child care centers.
That means there are 349,022 spaces for children, but those slots only
meet about 82 percent of the need, according to Mark Sullivan, executive
director of the Michigan 4C Association. That leaves nearly 80,000
children without licensed child care.
"The issue of infant care has always been a critical issue. Many more
parents are going back to work when their children are at an earlier age.
You find you have to get on the waiting list when you were pregnant,"
Sullivan said.
Sullivan said of the 60,000 requests the association got for child care
this year, 52 percent were for infant and toddler care.
During her pregnancy, friends advised Conger to start searching for day
care before the baby was born in order to secure a spot.
"I called those day care facilities and found they didn't take children
until 18 months. Some didn't take under 9 months. At private homes, we
kept running into issues where they were maxed out," said Conger, a
32-year-old fund raiser for Henry Ford Health Systems.
With nowhere else to go, the Congers ended up placing an ad in the local
newspaper for a nanny. They got 75 calls and learned that nannies want at
least $10 per hour.
"We sucked it up, and now we are paying for 25 hours a week. We didn't
want to go the expensive route, but I had to go back to work," she said.
On Wednesday, the nanny's car broke down so Conger ended up staying home
to care for her daughter, who is 9 months old. She also relies on family
members to help out in a pinch.
While the cost of caring for a baby may be turning off day care operators,
the expense for parents who can find care continues to skyrocket and
outpace the cost of care for older children.
The cost for one week of infant care across Metro Detroit ranges from $125
in Wayne County to $192 in Oakland County, according to the child care
association. The average cost of a week in preschool is $114 in Wayne and
$163 in Oakland.
Susan Dodd, the supervisor for the early childhood program run through
Berkley Schools, said her infant program, which charges $172 per week,
barely breaks even every year.
Dodd's costs are also higher because she keeps a ratio of 1 adult for
every 3 infants instead of the state-mandated 1 to 4.
"I use it (the infant program) as a feeder program. Those children will go
on to our toddler and preschool program," Dodd said. "I'm not under
pressure to make money, but if you have to turn a heavy-duty profit, you
are going to stay with a program that makes money."
In addition to the expense, Dodd said caring for infants is hard work.
"Infants need round-the-clock care. You are always feeding; you are always
changing. You have to record what they do throughout the day," she said.
With supply and demand out of sync, day care owners are making demands of
their own.
Parents who are expecting a baby and already have a child in a day care
facility are asked to put down a deposit to secure a spot for their unborn
child months ahead of time.
Registration for programs is typically six to seven months in advance, so
parents must commit to programs in February even though their child may
not begin the program until September.
Meanwhile, the waiting list at Assumption Nursery School in St. Clair
Shores, which offers programs for children 12 months to preschool age, has
reached 80 desperate parents.
Director Theresa Swalec said one woman was so desperate a few years ago to
get her daughter a spot in the toddler room that she camped out in her car
in the center's parking lot for two days and two nights -- in February.
"When we have an opening, they have to have that spot. That was a first,
staying overnight in a car," Swalec said.
In September, Frost Early Childhood Center, part of Warren Consolidated
Schools, expanded its program to include infants and toddlers.
Inquiries and visits to the program, which could accommodate 60 children
if more staff is hired, have been steady.
"We saw the need within our district, our employees and residents in the
district. We had parents coming to us asking when we were going to care
for infants," said Vicki Bebee, a child care facilitator at the program.
One recent morning at the center, in a room full of brightly colored toys,
books and play equipment, a 3-month-old girl with a tuft of brown curly
hair happily chewed on her pacifier while two nearby toddlers wrestled
over a pink rubber ball.
Bebee said the word is quickly spreading about the program, which only has
15 children enrolled.
Many families were thrilled the center expanded because it allows parents
to bring their older children and newborns to the same location -- a
frequent dilemma for parents who are often forced to use two different
facilities when infant care is not offered at their older child's day
care.
"I've had a lot of walk-through people who are looking for care in August
and September. I can see a big rush coming up," she said. "I know the need
is there. I've had a lot of calls."
Seeking a provider
Here is a list of questions parents should ask when looking for a
child-care provider:
Ask:
When is payment due?
Do you charge for holidays, absences due to vacations or illness, or late
pickups?
How many children do you care for?
How much child care experience and education do you have?
How many adults care for the children?
What ages do you serve?
Must a child be toilet trained?
In a home setting, ask:
Are there others living in the home?
Who and what age are they?
Who, besides the provider, may be caring for my child?
Will my child be taken out of the home while in your care?
Are there pets or smoking in the home?
Ask the provider:
Can I visit at any time?
How do you handle discipline?
What do you do if my child is sick?
How do you handle an emergency?
Do you have a back-up caregiver?
Where do children take naps?
Do caregivers have up-to-date CPR and First Aid training?
Do caregivers have training in child care?
May I see a copy of your license?
Are you accredited?
May I have a list of parents (current and former) who have used your care?
Source: Michigan 4C Association
Infant care costs
Average weekly full-time rate for infant day care and the estimated number
of programs per county as of April 2005:
Livingston: $162.25; 59 programs
Macomb: $179.33; 63 programs
Oakland: $192; 158 programs
Wayne: $125.38; 195 programs
Source: Michigan 4C Association 2005 Cost of Care Report
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