Stay-at-home mom Sarah Neilan wouldn't mind going back to work some days, but her paycheck would go almost entirely to child care expenses.
"I like work and I want to go back to work, but the job has to pay enough to support day care," she said.
The mother of four worked outside the home until she had her youngest daughter, but then the expenses became too much. For three children to attend day care, it would have cost her family about $350 a week, Neilan said.
Day cares across Sioux Falls have seen parents such as Neilan keep their kids at home or find alternatives to center care. The economy has contributed to that trend, providers say, but new assistance programs paid for by the stimulus package could help bring some children back.
Karen Fogas, chief executive officer of Youth Enrichment Services, said her centers and after-school programs have seen numbers decline in certain programs. Parents are relying on relatives for child care and children are switching to part-time care because parents have had their hours cut. Some parents are allowing children to stay home alone at younger ages than in usual financial times, she said.
"Some people are patching together their child care the best they can," she said.
Fogas said she has seen more need for scholarships and more families using state aid to help cover child care costs. Some parents aren't paying their bills.
"I absolutely think it's tied to the economy," she said.
At Care A Lot Children's Center, the situation is similar. Some parents lost their jobs and other parents changed their schedules so that one parent always is home to watch the kids. At one point, the center's clientele dropped from 65 families to 30, said Michele Mitchell, the center's assistant director.
"We've both lost a lot of clients and gained clients on the TANF program," Mitchell said.
Program moves families to work
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families is a federal program that helps families move themselves from welfare to work. According to South Dakota Department of Social Services data, 347 families in Minnehaha County received TANF assistance, with an average of $390.38 paid per family in May. That's an increase from May 2008 when 321 Minnehaha families received an average of $389.20.
The Care A Lot Children's Center has not laid off employees, but it has cut some employees' hours because of decreased family numbers, Mitchell said. At YES, Fogas said no one has been laid off, but their centers didn't hire as many summer helpers as usual.
Conditions might improve for day care providers as families begin taking advantage of new programs paid for by the stimulus package.
Help provided for unemployed
The Child Care Assistance for Dislocated Workers program helps recently unemployed South Dakotans pay child care costs while they search for jobs. The program began June 1 and is expected to last until September 2010, said Tarah Jahnig, communications director for the South Dakota Department of Social Services.
"This will ease some of the financial strain on families and allow parents to focus on their job search," Jahnig said. "This program could be a saving grace for a parent who has recently lost their job and otherwise could not afford child care."
Since the program began, the Department of Social Services has received 21 applications, Jahnig said. Anyone who has lost a job and needs child care assistance should apply, she said. Some families could be eligible for this program even if don't qualify for other assistance.
Eligible families will receive a certificate from the Social Services' Division of Child Care redeemable for up to two months of child care. To apply, contact a Department of Labor Field Office. The Sioux Falls office can be reached at 367-5300.
South Dakota will receive $5.4 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act money for temporary child care assistance. In addition to the dislocated workers program, that money will reduce co-payments for families receiving child care assistance and create grant opportunities for child care providers and rural school-age programs.
Lori Maunu of Sioux Falls never has placed her 2-year-old son in day care. She and her husband arrange their schedules so that someone always can be with their son.