Child Care Works

The Cerro Gordo County Child Care Works mission is to ensure every child has access to reliable child care to help them grow, learn and develop in a healthy environment.

History of Child Care Works

In 2023, CG Public Health received a grant from the de Beaumont Foundation to tackle the problem of accessible, affordable child care in Cerro Gordo County. This grant allowed partners to take a deep-dive into the issue, investigate the root causes, and come to a solution.

Finding a Solution

Affordable, accessible child care for all families is not a simple issue, and there is no one strategy that will solve the problem. That's why Child Care Works is approaching this in two directions - a short-term solution to improve the situation now, and a long-term approach to creating systematic change.

Wage Supplement Program

In Cerro Gordo County, the child care centers have the physical capacity to add hundreds of additional children, however, they do not have the workforce to care for them. It comes down to wages. The average starting wage for child care workers in Cerro Gordo County is just $9.51/hour, and the average wage for a tenured employee is $11.81/hour. The Wage Supplement Program, launched in January 2024, raises employee pay at qualifying centers by $2/hour, making the average wage more competitive and the industry more attractive for workers. This is possible because of the investment of local businesses and a matching grant from the State of Iowa. Click here to learn more about the Child Care Works Wage Supplement Program.

Systematic Change

Child care centers can not rely solely on grants and donations for sustainable wage growth. There needs to be a fundamental shift in how the child care industry is viewed and funded. Child Care Works believes this will require an increased educational focus on child care as a career pathway and additional resources for high school and postsecondary educators. In January 2024, Mason City Community Schools, NIACC, and Child Care Resource & Referral launched the Child Care Essentials Certification Program. This will allow high school students to go through the required training and background checks at no charge to them, and then work in a child care center, while receiving high school class credits.

There also needs to be a long-term, dedicated state funding source. Since 2020, centers and in-home providers have received several stop-gap supplements to keep the doors open and the lights on. But these funds have run dry, and providers are left to figure out how to continue to operate without them. Child Care Works believes early childcare education should be viewed and funded in a similar fashion as PK-12. Child Care Works is partnering with other communities in Iowa to craft legislation that will create a long-term revenue source for child care providers - a source they can count on every year.

Child Care Works Partners