Advocacy groups are looking for answers as the child care crisis mounts. A chronic shortage of child care across the U.S. had curbed the economy’s growth even before COVID-19 swept the country in 2020—and the pandemic just worsened the problem. That’s the message that Robin Phillips, CEO at Child Care Aware of Missouri, passed on to child care providers, business leaders and advocates last month at the first Child Care Task Force Town Hall meeting in Joplin, MO.
“Access to child care has always been an issue,” Phillips said. “COVID just exposed it, pulled back the curtain and said, ‘Looky here, this is how fragmented and messed up this system is in the sense of sustainability and breaking-in points for these child care businesses.’” Early childhood teachers are fleeing the field, forcing many centers to shutter their doors—a deep source of concern for moms and dads since child care allows them to work.
It’s an essential part of life, like that morning cup of Joe for most of us. So, America needs to wake up and smell the coffee: our early childhood teachers play a key role in boosting prosperity and the GNP. When families can access high-quality child care, they earn higher wages and are less likely to drop out of the workforce. So, the ongoing crisis has sent shock waves through the economy of our country. Since the start of the pandemic, millions of people have left their jobs because they lack child care, and the search for solutions goes on.
In Wisconsin, for example, “we have seen increasing numbers of state organizations, parents, economic and community leaders who recognize the critical importance of high-quality and affordable child care for healthy children and a healthy Wisconsin economy,” said Ruth Schmidt, executive director of the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association. Recently, WECA launched a new initiative and website, RaisingWisconsin.org, to provide research, resources and recommended first steps for employers, community leaders, parents and child care providers who want to organize and advocate for long-term child care solutions.
We must address several key issues to confront the workforce crisis in our field, as the National Head Start Association pointed out this year. Chronic low compensation, challenging work conditions and better opportunities for employment are factors that call for immediate action, according to a poll of attendees at Head Start’s 2022 annual conference. The 900-plus respondents to the survey also had a chance to give feedback and tell their story in their own words.
And the comments they made underline just how much our early childhood teachers are struggling. “We need livable wages,” as one respondent pleaded. “We are losing young people with great potential who are at the start of their careers, as well as seasoned people who love Head Start’s vision and the people who they work with but are forced to leave because they can’t support their families on the wages we are currently paid.” And their departures make it even harder for teachers who do remain. “All our managers have worked daily in the classrooms since Thanksgiving so that we can keep the classrooms open,” said another respondent. And “the constant need to close programs,” yet another respondent wrote, “has highly affected the development of our children and our hardworking families.”
These were issues that also came up at a recent National Head Start rally on Capitol Hill. It brought together senators, reps and early childhood leaders from around the country to urge Congress to boost support for young children and America’s future. Council staff members were there to give their support, and we also made our own case for the early childhood profession when we held a Virtual Capitol Hill Day this year. As part of the event, the members of our CDA® community had a chance to talk with members of Congress about the trials and triumphs of their work, as well as make a case for supporting the CDA.
The Council is not new to the advocacy arena. We’ve been fighting for the ECE profession since our nonprofit began in 1985. What has changed is that we’re now using our own voice to tell our own story and advocate for the CDA. We believe the CDA can be a solution to the teacher shortage while maintaining the quality of care. The CDA provides rising teachers with the training and tools they need to help children reach their potential. And earning a CDA also helps early childhood teachers fulfill their promise. Holding the credential often results in the higher wages teachers so desperately need. And even more important, it’s the first rung on a longer career ladder in the ECE field—all reasons why we’re urging Congress to embed the CDA into federal regulations as the preferred entry level credential for professionals in ECE.
As we reach into the lofty halls of Congress, we’re also being careful to keep our ear to the ground and continue listening to our early childhood teachers. We want to give voice to the more than 800,000 teachers who have earned the CDA since the Council’s inception. We want to advocate for the things our CDAs can’t advocate for themselves, such as making sure that CDA coursework counts toward credits for other degrees. We’re working to find out what our teachers want from lawmakers at the state and federal level. We’re eager to find out their hopes and dreams for the future of our field. We want to explore the issues that concern our ECE professionals most. And we want to provide them with answers to the challenges they face.
The bottom line is that we need to make our teachers’ work conditions and wages better because they keep our families working. And we need to listen to what our teachers have to say. They’re the ones who are in the trenches every day and actually see what’s happening in our field. Their opinion counts as lawmakers, parents and business leaders look for solutions. Many of them now realize that our country’s economy runs on child care. So, the Council is committed to advocating for our teachers and advancing their professional goals. Our CDAs deserve a seat at the national table as we all confront the continuing child care crisis.
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Vice President of People and Culture
Janie Payne is the Vice President of People and Culture for the Council for Professional Recognition. Janie is responsible for envisioning, developing, and executing initiatives that strategically manage talent and culture to align people strategies with the overarching business vision of the Council. Janie is responsible for driving organizational excellence through strategic talent practices, orchestrating workforce planning, talent acquisition, performance management as well as a myriad of other Human Resources Programs. She is accountable for driving effectiveness by shaping organizational structure for optimal efficiency. Janie oversees strategies that foster a healthy culture to include embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion into all aspects of the organization.
In Janie’s prior role, she was the Vice President of Administration at Equal Justice Works, where she was responsible for leading human resources, financial operations, facilities management, and information technology. She was also accountable for developing and implementing Equal Justice Works Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion strategy focused on attracting diverse, mission-oriented talent and creating an inclusive and equitable workplace environment. With more than fifteen years of private, federal, and not-for-profit experience, Janie is known for her intuitive skill in administration management, human resources management, designing and leading complex system change, diversity and inclusion, and social justice reform efforts.
Before joining Equal Justice Works, Janie was the Vice President of Human Resources and Chief Diversity Officer for Global Communities, where she was responsible for the design, implementation, and management of integrated HR and diversity strategies. Her work impacted employees in over twenty-two countries. She was responsible for the effective management of different cultural, legal, regulatory, and economic systems for both domestic and international employees. Prior to Global Communities, Janie enjoyed a ten-year career with the federal government. As a member of the Senior Executive Service, she held key strategic human resources positions with multiple cabinet-level agencies and served as an advisor and senior coach to leaders across the federal sector. In these roles, she received recognition from management, industry publications, peers, and staff for driving the creation and execution of programs that created an engaged and productive workforce.
Janie began her career with Verizon Communications (formerly Bell Atlantic), where she held numerous roles of increasing responsibility, where she directed a diversity program that resulted in significant improvement in diversity profile measures. Janie was also a faculty member for the company’s Black Managers Workshop, a training program designed to provide managers of color with the skills needed to overcome barriers to their success that were encountered because of race. She initiated a company-wide effort to establish team-based systems and structures to impact corporate bottom line results which was recognized by the Department of Labor. Janie was one of the first African American women to be featured on the cover of Human Resources Executive magazine.
Janie received her M.A. in Organization Development from American University. She holds numerous professional development certificates in Human Capital Management and Change Management, including a Diversity and Inclusion in Human Resources certificate from Cornell University. She completed the year-long Maryland Equity and Inclusion Leadership Program sponsored by The Schaefer Center for Public Policy and The Maryland Commission on Civil Rights. She is a trained mediator and Certified Professional Coach. She is a graduate of Leadership America, former board chair of the NTL Institute and currently co-steward of the organization’s social justice community of practice, and a member of The Society for Human Resource Management. Additionally, Janie is the Board Chairperson for the Special Education Citizens Advisory Council for Prince Georges County where she is active in developing partnerships that facilitate discussion between parents, families, educators, community leaders, and the PG County school administration to enhance services for students with disabilities which is her passion. She and her husband Randolph reside in Fort Washington Maryland.
Chief Operations Officer
Andrew Davis serves as Chief Operating Officer at the Council. In this role, Andrew oversees the Programs Division, which includes the following operational functions: credentialing, growth and business development, marketing and communications, public policy and advocacy, research, innovation, and customer relations.
Andrew has over 20 years of experience in the early care and education field. Most recently, Andrew served as Senior Vice President of Partnership and Engagement with Acelero Learning and Shine Early Learning, where he led the expansion of state and community-based partnerships to produce more equitable systems of service delivery, improved programmatic quality, and greater outcomes for communities, children and families. Prior to that, he served as Director of Early Learning at Follett School Solutions.
Andrew earned his MBA from the University of Baltimore and Towson University and his bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland – University College.
Chief Financial Officer
Jan Bigelow serves as Chief Financial Officer at the Council and has been with the organization since February of 2022.
Jan has more than 30 years in accounting and finance experience, including public accounting, for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. She has held management-level positions with BDO Seidman, Kiplinger Washington Editors, Pew Center for Global Climate Change, Communities In Schools, B’nai B’rith Youth Organization and American Humane. Since 2003, Jan has worked exclusively in the non-profit sector where she has been a passionate advocate in improving business operations in order to further the mission of her employers.
Jan holds a CPA from the State of Virginia and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lycoming College. She resides in Alexandria VA with her husband and dog.
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