Lilibeth Acencio loves running her daycare out of her house. She cares for 11 kids, but the childcare network she works with stopped paying her and other workers, so she's afraid she'll have to close her doors soon.

Daycare.Photo byGabe PierceonUnsplash

People who send their kids to Acencio's program don't pay her. Instead, the city pays for their child care, but Acencio isn't paid directly by the town either.

About 50 in-home workers are connected with Highbridge Advisory Council Family Services. She is one of them. The city's education department pays Highbridge, and Acensio is one of the companies that Highbridge pays.

They ought to, at the absolute least.

She said, "I believe they owe me about $30,000."

The Highbridge Shuts Down Childcare Centers

Acensio said Highbridge shut down childcare centres because it ran its own business and put those workers on leave. That said, people like her who work as in-home workers haven't been paid in more than two months.

No one answered the door when I called Highbridge's main office in the Bronx. It was clear that the promised Head Start program was no longer running. New York 1 did not answer voicemails or texts.

On July 23, Highbridge's network head emailed providers about a payment delay. The email said the company was restructuring its operations but didn't say why.

The Education Department's Report

According to the education department, no payments are still due to Highbridge. The department is also trying to help providers join other networks.

In the first email, Highbridge told providers that they could switch to a different network. He then sent them a second email to remind them that the organization's affiliation deal requires 60 days' notice before they can do so.

In addition, Asencio said that the affiliation deal also states that providers like her should be paid twice a month, which hasn't happened since May.
She said some childcare centres have already shut down, so families must find new places to put their kids. Asencio doesn't want to do that, but she said her savings will probably only last her one more month.