June 9, 2025 State Survey Asks Women About Experiences Accessing Healthcare Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s Advisory Commission on Women is asking for women to take part in a survey on their healthcare needs in the state. Learn More The survey aims to learn about Pennsylvania women’s real-life experiences of accessing healthcare in the state. Among the questions in the survey are: Do you know what services are available and covered by your health insurance? What stops you from seeking care? What barriers or issues have you run into when trying to get women’s health services? The survey takes about 10 minutes or less and responses are anonymous. The survey focuses on such topics as health screenings, birth control, pregnancy care, and mental health services. The survey will remain open until July 7. It is available in English and Spanish.
June 6, 2025 Allegheny County Leaders Hold Roundtable to Address Child Care Teacher Staffing Crisis Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato joined Trying Together, the Allegheny Conference, state legislators, and child care providers Thursday for a roundtable to discuss new state and local survey data showing how a worsening child care teacher shortage – driven by low wages – is closing child care classrooms and causing parents to struggle to find the care they need to be able to work. Learn More During the roundtable at Providence Connections, results from a September Start Strong PA survey were shared to demonstrate how the staffing crisis is affecting programs in Allegheny County and across the state. “Of the 118 providers that participated in the survey, 89% reported staffing shortages,” Innamorato said of the Allegheny County providers. “Those programs have 373 unfilled teaching positions, and if those positions were filled, they could serve an additional 3,000 children.” A total of 1,140 Pennsylvania child care providers took the survey, of which 92% reported difficulties in recruiting staff and 85% said they struggled with teacher shortages. The shortages, which are leaving more than 3,000 unfilled positions statewide, could serve an additional 25,320 children if programs could recruit and retain the staff they need. The numbers represent only 17% of the total open registered programs in the state. Leslie White, director of early childhood and youth programs for Providence Connections, said low wages are preventing programs from finding qualified early childhood educators. “They are doing some of the most important work in our society – nurturing the next generation. But the reality is that many teachers can find other jobs that require far less specialized skills and pay more an hour, often with benefits,” she said. “I’ve been doing this work for nearly 40 years and fighting for better pay. The time is now to invest in the child care teaching workforce.” During the event, Matt Brown, an early educator at Providence and participant in the Your Career, Our Future campaign, shared his passion for teaching young children and why more qualified educators matter for the field. The initiative shares the experiences of current early educators and the families they serve in the hopes that more people will answer the call to become early educators. Speakers said the foundational role child care plays is a critical part of the state’s economy and the bipartisan support that it has garnered to date. “The report shows this is not just an inconvenience for working parents – this is a major economic issue that affects every business, every community, and every family in Pennsylvania,” Trying Together Public Policy Director Emily Neff said. “It is no surprise that this impact is understood by Pennsylvanians and, as such, they want lawmakers to prioritize early learning in the budget.” Majestic Lane, chief opportunity officer for the Allegheny Conference, noted that the staffing crisis is a detriment to the economy, citing a recent economic analysis conducted by the Conference citing child care as one of the top barriers for employment in the region. “Child care is vital to the future of our economy and the quality of life in our region,” Lane said. “When families don’t have the resources they need and their ability to work is severely diminished, it has a measurable economic impact on our communities and our commonwealth.” At the press conference, participants encouraged state lawmakers to prioritize early learning in the 2025-26 budget by including Gov. Josh Shapiro’s proposal to invest $55 million in a new and recurring Child Care and Recruitment and Retention line item to grant licensed child care providers participating in the child care subsidy program an additional $1,000 per educator. “We’ve heard the problem, we’ve heard the solution, and we know the cost of inaction,” Trying Together Executive Director Cara Ciminillo said. “To grow our economy and support working families, we must invest in child care.” State Reps. Lindsay Powell (D-21st District) and La’Tasha Mayes (D-24th District) and representatives from other state legislators attended the press conference and expressed their support for the investment in the child care workforce.
May 15, 2025 Early Childhood Educators Share the Day-to-Day Realities of Working in Child Care Programs Pennsylvania early childhood educators joined Trying Together and partner organizations on May 13 in Harrisburg to advocate for investments in workforce recruitment and retention and share at a press conference a recently released photovoice story map that highlights the joys and challenges of working in the early childhood field. A Day in the Life The photovoice story map, titled “A Day in the Life,” shares a glimpse into the day-to-day reality of working in child care programs. During the event, participants used these stories to call attention to widespread challenges in the field and urged further investments in the state’s early childhood education system. Brie Rice and Aydan Roney met with state Rep. Eric Nelson. Brie Rice, of JB’s Bright Beginnings in North Huntingdon, discussed the often-overlooked dedication of early childhood educators who spend significant time outside of work hours and their own money to keep young learners engaged. “Let us draw you a picture of what happens in early education – gifted early childhood educators are making the heartbreaking decision to leave their passion behind in the classroom for higher-paying jobs in other sectors,” she said. “To raise wages, we would need to increase tuition. Parents can’t afford to pay more, and teachers can’t afford to make less. Without public investment in the workforce, the broken child care system is going to collapse.” State Sen. Lindsey Williams (D-38th District) said that the state should support educators by investing more in the early childhood education system. “Early childhood educators are the cornerstone of a family and child’s quality experience in a child care program, offering safe, nurturing, and responsive environments where children grow, learn, and thrive,” Williams said. “However, talented early educators are leaving the field due to abysmal pay and families’ access to quality child care is directly impacted. By investing funding proposed by Gov. (Josh) Shapiro’s 2025-26 budget in recruitment and retention bonuses for licensed child care providers, child care programs will be able to provide competitive wages to caregivers.” According to a March 2024 report from the state’s Independent Fiscal Office (IFO), the average child care teacher in Pennsylvania earns $15.15 per hour, less than $32,000 annually. Shapiro has proposed a $55 million investment in child care recruitment and retention. Data from a September 2024 Start Strong PA survey of 1,140 child care providers showed more than 3,000 open positions. If those positions were filled, an estimated 25,320 more children could be served. In partnership with the Start Strong PA and Pre-K for PA campaigns, Trying Together was joined by fellow campaign partners First Up, PennAEYC, Pennsylvania Child Care Association (PACCA), and Fight Crime: Invest in Kids/Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children. Alongside early childhood educators from across the state, they met with more than 30 state legislators to advocate for increased investments in early care and education. During their visits in Harrisburg, they urged the General Assembly to: Support the proposed investment of $55 million in a new and recurring Child Care Recruitment and Retention line item to grant licensed child care providers participating in the child care subsidy program an additional $1,000 per educator To more fully address the child care staffing crisis and its impact on working families, businesses, and the economy, consider an investment above the proposed $55 million “Classrooms are empty, centers are closing, teachers are fleeing, families are being stranded without care, and children are being left without educational resources,” said Hayley Butler, an educator at Crafton Children’s Center in Allegheny County. “Recruitment and retention desperately need to be taken seriously because when a teacher leaves, a domino effect occurs. A teacher leaving can result in a family losing access to quality care options. While we know that there are many industries in need of support, our sector is the workforce behind the workforce, and we will not solve the labor issues without investing directly in our early education professionals.” To better understand what is taking place in the early childhood education sector, view Trying Together’s “A Day in the Life” photovoice storytelling project. Ready to take action? Sign the petition urging the Pennsylvania General Assembly to invest, at minimum, the governor’s proposed $55 million in new and recurring state funding to implement a child care teacher recruitment and retention initiative to fix our child care staffing crisis.
November 25, 2024 Start Strong PA Urges Advocates to Add Their Name to Child Care Staffing Crisis Petition Start Strong PA is calling on Pennsylvania residents to add their names to a petition that calls on the state to take action regarding its ongoing child care staffing crisis. Currently, a total of 3,100 people have signed the petition. Start Strong PA is aiming to get 3,500 signatures before the petition closes on Friday, Nov. 29. Learn More As Gov. Josh Shapiro and state legislators begin to consider funding for the 2025-26 state budget, Start Strong PA is urging the governor’s administration to invest $284 million in new and recurring state funding for early child care. The organization is calling for funding to implement a child care teacher recruitment and retention initiative to fix the state’s child care staffing crisis. Pennsylvania currently has tens of thousands of parents struggling to find the care they need to work and support their families. As more child care classrooms close due to a lack of staffing, the number of families without reliable child care will increase. Start Strong PA argues that the crisis can be fixed by addressing the industry’s unlivable wages. Child care staff are so low that they do not meet the cost of living in any Pennsylvania county. Advocates are asked to add their names to a petition by filling out an online form. Start Strong PA is an advocacy campaign that is part of Early Learning Pennsylvania (ELPA), a statewide coalition of advocates focused on supporting young Pennsylvanians from birth to age five.
July 12, 2024 Pre-K for PA, Start Strong PA Respond to 2024-25 State Budget Pre-K for PA and Start Strong PA have issued statements that the state budget fails to address the crisis in the early childhood sector. The two advocacy campaigns – which are part of Early Learning Pennsylvania (ELPA), a statewide coalition of advocates focused on supporting young Pennsylvanians from birth to age five – have released reaction statements to Senate Bill 1001, which has been signed by Gov. Josh Shapiro and will be enacted in the 2024-25 Pennsylvania state budget. Below are statements from the advocacy campaigns and a breakdown of budget investments. Child Care $26.2 million in additional funding to maintain the status quo of payments in the subsidized child care system and the number of children. Additional federal child care funding to meet the federally recommended child care subsidy reimbursement rate. In a press release, Start Strong PA said, “With a child care sector that is collapsing with classrooms and programs closing across the commonwealth due to the historic child care teacher shortage, the Start Strong PA Campaign is deeply disappointed by the lack of direct investment to help child care providers recruit and retain their workforce as part of the state budget bill.” The Start Strong PA campaign noted that staffing shortages within the child-care sector are driven by low wages. According to the Independent Fiscal Office (IFO), the average child-care teacher in Pennsylvania only earns $15.15 per hour. This wage includes the impact of one-time federal child care stimulus funds. With the lack of direct state involvement, it is unclear whether these wages can be sustained, the campaign said. “Child care teachers are the workforce behind the workforce,” the statement said. “When families can’t get child care, their children suffer, their income drops, and the state’s economy is shortchanged. In a time of severe labor shortages and billions in state budget surplus, the commonwealth’s failure to help child care providers recruit and retain these teachers is a tragic outcome.” Recent estimates show that gaps in the child care sector cost the state’s economy $6.65 billion annually in lost wages, productivity, and tax receipts. Start Strong PA pointed out that more than 50 state chambers of commerce have called for investments that directly help child care providers attract and keep teachers. The budget deal includes a tax credit for businesses that help pay employees pay for child care. The credit is a demand-side solution that helps families afford care, but the state must invest in the supply side by stopping the exodus of teachers. “While we appreciate the continued support of existing programs in the state budget, the lack of investment in recruitment and retention initiatives will only continue the trend of short staffing in our programs and teachers leaving the field for higher-paying jobs,” said Karian Wise, the head of school for early learning at the Carlow University Early Learning Center and a Provider Advisory Board member. Pre-K $15 million in additional funding for the state’s Pre-K Counts program to increase rates from $10,000 per child for a full-day slot to $10,500. $2.7 million in additional funding for the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program. In a statement, Pre-K for PA said, “The Pre-K Campaign is relieved to see modest growth in the state’s publicly funded pre-k programs – PA Pre-K Counts and the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program.” Pre-K for PA noted that increases for both programs will make rate increases possible to pre-kindergarten providers to combat inflationary pressures and staffing shortages. However, the campaign noted, “We are disappointed that the increase to PA Pre-K Counts is half of what Gov. Shapiro proposed, and state support for Head Start continues to grow at a slower rate than Pre-K Counts.” Currently, more than 78,000 three- and four-year-olds in Pennsylvania are eligible but do not have access to publicly-funded pre-k programs. Pre-k access has been a top issue for state voters, of whom 95% believe that early education is important and nearly 70% support increasing state funding for pre-k access. “Once again, Pennsylvania has failed to adequately invest in young children and their families,” said Abigail Enz-Doerschner, assistant director of the Once Upon a Time Early Learning Center in Washington and a Provider Advisory Board member. “While the state has offered a $500 per slot increase in PA Pre-K Counts funding, this 5% increase does not keep pace with the rising costs of operating a program. Insurance, utilities, teacher compensation – all of our costs have risen sharply.” Early Intervention $9.1 million increase for the Early Intervention Part C (infant and toddler) through DHS. $32.9 million increase for the Part B Early Intervention program (age three to five) through PDE. The statement noted that while the increase for the Early Intervention Part C reflects the administration’s updated budget request, it does not address broader issues within the program, including worker shortages and a long-needed rate adjustment for providers. Read the full statement by Pre-K for PA and Start Strong PA.
June 11, 2024 Trying Together Webinar to Focus on Contacting State Legislators Regarding Early Care and Education Investments Trying Together will host a webinar in June that will instruct attendees on how to contact their state legislators regarding investments in early care and education in the state budget. Learn More State elected officials are in the final days of budget negotiations and are currently debating how much money to invest in early child care care and education. Trying Together’s Policy Team will host an upcoming workshop known as the ECE Advocacy Express that will provide information to participants on how they can: Find their state legislator Email their state legislator Call their state legislator The workshop will provide attendees with the tools and templates that are needed to make an impact in just a few minutes. The webinar will take place at 10 a.m. on June 17 on Zoom. Registration is now open. For more information on what early care and education advocates are calling for from state legislators, read these articles: Early Learning PA Coalition Advocates for 2024-25 State Budget Priorities ELPA Responds to Governor Shapiro’s 2024-25 Pennsylvania Budget Proposal
