Increasing local awareness of state childcare assistance programs and educating legislators about the need for childcare programs are the current priorities of Minot’s Committee on Childcare.

The committee met Thursday for the first time since submitting a report to the Minot City Council last spring.

Mayor Tom Ross, joining the committee in an ad hoc capacity, reconvened the group after attending a national conference on childcare with other North Dakota representatives in September.

“I think it’s important enough to have that discussion by the standing committee to continue this,” he said.

He listed a number of takeaways from the conference regarding the importance of early childhood education and investment in daycare, including the need for competitive salaries to create career opportunities in the field. He added the investments could take years to fully show returns, but early childhood care will add to the quality of life and workforce development.

“We need to bring educators to the table when we’re making decisions when it comes to childhood,” Ross said. “We need to trust providers, bring them to the table, and we need to listen to parents.”

Examples of what can be done were illustrated at the conference, he said.

“What some of the states are doing is incredible,” he said, mentioning free daycare for many families. “There are states that are finding ways, and they’re doing it, and they’re succeeding, and they’re finding out that investing early is providing a more available workforce.”

The work of the childcare committee so far has caught the attention of the state, putting Minot in the position of potentially playing a leading role in pushing the narrative about childcare in the state, Ross said.

“To me, that sends a message we’re on the right track here in Minot, but we just can’t stop,” he said. “It kind of sat idle for a while, but I’d like to see it continue, and I know we can do some positive things. We can drive the conversation here.”

Committee members indicated a need to visit with local legislators to keep them informed about childcare issues as the Legislature takes up funding issues starting in January.

One concern is lack of utilization of certain state programs created in the last legislative session to assist the childcare industry, including subsidizing some costs for eligible families.

Committee member Amy Jenkins, who works in childcare licensing, said the North Dakota mindset against taking a handout may be part of the reason behind low usage. She added the process also can be overwhelming, particularly dealing with all the hoops of online applications. With many state human services employees working from home, the communication among state programs and the ability for providers and families to connect with the people they need to speak with is becoming lost, she said.

“You can’t walk in and talk to somebody. Everything is online. That’s a barrier,” Jenkins said. “I have providers that literally don’t take some of the state benefits because they don’t want to go online and deal with all of that.”

Daycare provider Stacey Boyko also spoke about the cumbersome processes and the difficulty in getting information. Boyko said the majority of families her daycare serves are interested in the state’s childcare assistance program but not all are eligible.

“The one thing I am seeing is I have a lot of middle income families that would like to utilize it, and the income limits are still not set high enough. There are middle income families that I know could use it, and they are being denied,” she said. “Having more people qualify is, I think, the best place to start.”

Additionally, because the number of their families on assistance is a factor for providers in determining program benefits, the hassle in going after state aid often isn’t worth it for a home daycare, Boyko said.

The childcare committee plans to continue meeting quarterly, or more often when needed. The committee has a vacancy to be filled by mayoral appointment with an individual who operates a daycare.