New Statewide Child Care Campaign Launches to Increase Access to Affordable, Quality Child Care Across Nebraska
Child Care Can brings together parents, providers, businesses, and communities to advance practical child care policy solutions that strengthen families, communities, and Nebraska’s competitiveness
LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska parents, child care providers, business leaders, and community partners today launched Child Care Can, a statewide, multi-year campaign to strengthen Nebraska through public investment in affordable, quality child care.
The campaign has one long-term policy goal: secure robust, recurring public investment that increases access to affordable, quality child care throughout Nebraska. Along the way, Child Care Can will work to establish child care as an important part of Nebraska’s long-term strategy for economic competitiveness and community vitality.
“For too many Nebraska families, quality child care has become harder to find, harder to afford and harder to keep,” said Elizabeth Everett, campaign manager. “At the same time, child care providers are working long hours in businesses that can be difficult to sustain. Child Care Can is about bringing Nebraskans together around practical policy solutions that can make a meaningful difference for families and providers while strengthening our state.”
The campaign is grounded in four shared beliefs:
Nebraska’s competitiveness depends on affordable, quality child care.
Child care helps Nebraska attract and retain families, workers and businesses.
Child care is part of the foundation of Nebraska’s future.
When child care works … Nebraska thrives.
Child care makes much of Nebraska’s daily life and economy possible. It allows parents to go to work, gives children a safe place to learn and grow, helps employers attract and retain workers, supports communities and provides the foundation families need to build their lives here.
When child care is unavailable, unaffordable, or unsustainable, the effects extend beyond individual families to employers, communities, child care providers and Nebraska’s economy. Child care is economic infrastructure, like schools, roads and hospitals.
The campaign will advocate for practical, bipartisan policy solutions that put more resources in the hands of families and child care providers while building toward long-term public investment in Nebraska’s child care system.
Child Care Can looks forward to working with members of the Nebraska Legislature and the Governor’s Office to explore practical opportunities for public investment, including tax credits that can help make child care more affordable for families and help child care providers build more sustainable businesses.
“Nebraska has a role to play in building a stronger, more sustainable child care system, but this is work we have to do together,” State Senator Eliot Bostar of Lincoln said. “By partnering with parents, child care providers, businesses, and communities, we can find practical solutions that help families afford quality care, help providers build sustainable businesses, and help employers maintain the workforce they need. That’s a win for Nebraska,” Bostar said.
The campaign launches as Nebraska competes with other states for families, workers, entrepreneurs and businesses. States including Montana, Iowa, New Mexico, and Louisiana are making intentional investments in child care as a strategy to support families, strengthen their workforces and grow their economies.
Child Care Can believes Nebraska has an opportunity to lead by making affordable, quality child care part of its long-term strategy for growth and competitiveness. Strengthening Nebraska’s child care system will require multiple strategies, coordinated action and sustained work over several years. Child Care Can brings those efforts together in one comprehensive campaign with a shared vision, consistent communications, a broad statewide coalition and coordinated policy strategies.
Families, child care providers, businesses, philanthropy and communities already invest significantly in child care. New significant, recurring public investment can provide the scale and stability needed to increase access to affordable, quality child care across Nebraska and strengthen the system over time. Child Care Can is bringing together parents, child care providers, businesses, community organizations, educators, economic development leaders, chambers of commerce, nonprofits and citizens from across Nebraska. The campaign is intentionally broad because child care affects Nebraska’s families, workforce, businesses, communities and economy.
Child Care Can is funded by Voices for Healthy Kids, an initiative of the American Heart Association, and the Alliance for Early Success. Early Futures Partnership is the organizational backbone for Child Care Can.
To learn more about Child Care Can and join the coalition, visit ChildCareCan.org.