Kentucky education advocates, Rep. Barr discuss child care and education at roundtable

Kentucky education advocates met with U.S. Representative Andy Barr Friday to discuss how to improve state child care.

The Prichard Committee hosted a roundtable with Barr at Bluegrass Community and Technical College. They discussed the need to support students with children, and to grow Kentucky’s workforce.

The Committee says a two-income family can spend anywhere from seven to 10 percent of their combined income for childcare. That number more than doubles to 23 percent for single parents, and more than triples to 33 percent for single parents with infants.

Committee President Brigitte Blom says that makes it harder for parents to enter the workforce, or to get an education.

“Federal investment helps with affordability of child care and helps ensure that child care is a quality place for a little learner. It also helps when child care is available for families to attach meaningfully to the workforce, and stay attached,” Blom said.

Barr voiced his support of childcare programs at schools after the discussion.

“It produces self-sufficient parents who can take care of their kids, who can give, in turn, their kids self esteem because they see their parents being productive and have a job and have that upward mobility that every American deserves,” Barr said.

The group talked about BCTC’s CCAMPIS program as a successful example they’d like to see expanded. It’s a federal grant that supports child care for low-income parents going through higher ed. BCTC has 30 students involved in the program.

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