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Nichole Johnson Higgins is the owner of Golden Sun Childcare in Sedgwick and Blue Hill.
As one of thousands of early childhood educators and small business owners in Maine’s child care sector, I appreciate the recent vote by the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee to support our industry. I truly hope their legislative colleagues follow their lead.
We are currently facing an almost untenable duality: The child care sector is in crisis with programs barely keeping our doors open, yet without child care, parents cannot work.
The world can change into a better place with the touch of a hand, especially one that is kind, caring, and compassionate during the early years of life. It can also change with a touch of a hand into a place where darkness only grows. Which hand in early education is Maine going to choose?
For these reasons, more than 350 child care educators took a day off of work recently, some closing programs for the day, to travel to Augusta and make our case directly to policymakers who hold our fate in their hands. We oppose the governor’s proposed budget cuts to child care wages and programs and feel this would drastically hurt Maine communities, workforce, families, education, and businesses.
If enacted, these proposed cuts will only increase poverty, subpar education, while hindering Maine’s economic plans and increasing the casework for children’s welfare.
As a preschool teacher, my goal is to provide a safe, nurturing environment where children can thrive, and help families break cycles of hardship with resources and support. Having been born in Maine, taken into the foster system, and adopted at age nine, I’ve personally experienced the value of our safety net and early education systems.
Early education is more than just child care, it’s a foundation for growth, and the Governor’s cuts will be devastating on multiple levels.
Golden Sun Childcare created a survey to reach out to residents, providers and parents in Maine on Feb. 3. The survey quickly showed that over 4,500 families would be negatively impacted, and more than 100 providers reported that the cuts would harm their businesses leading to possible closure. This survey has now garnered over 6,100 signatures opposing Gov. Janet Mills’ proposed cuts to child care, which has been shared with state policymakers.
As an early educator, I’m frustrated that despite being a part of the backbone of the economy, we’re underpaid and overworked. We’re expected to handle the ins and outs of running a business, comply with numerous state and federal regulations, and provide quality care and education to children, all while earning an average statewide wage of about $16.40 an hour. If Mills’ proposed cuts prevail, the wage will revert to $15.15 an hour. This is unsustainable and will have drastic consequences for Maine’s economy.
Why is child care not valued and invested in like other essential professions?
Because child care is a necessity for working parents, unlike discretionary purchases, we can’t raise our prices like other businesses in response to economic inflation, as this would harm families who rely on child care to maintain their livelihoods and jobs. Taking advantage of teachers’ kind hearts has been a longstanding issue, but COVID has brought our importance to the forefront, and we shouldn’t let that be exploited again.
I understand that budget cuts need to happen, but this is not where to do it. I understand funding issues and the need to find money at the least cost to the citizens of Maine, but this is not the correct way to go about it.
If the governor’s proposed cuts to child care are adopted, these cuts could impact businesses already on the brink of collapsing because we lack the public funding support afforded to our public schools. Again, which hand is Maine going to choose? Will Maine’s policymakers be a positive light for child care and all the workforces we support, or will policymakers allow our youth and early childhood education to fall into the shadows of a dark cycle breaking our great state?
