Three new programs are promising to make child care more accessible, helping not only parents and families but also providers and business owners.

Mississippi recently received $30 million from the  Preschool Development Grant Birth Through Five. It’s using that money to create ELEVATE: A Quality Support System meant to improve early childhood care and education by supporting child care workers and parents.

The two other programs were developed to help employers understand how much child care issues are costing their businesses, and to take advantage of a tax credit incentive to help their employees meet that need.

ELEVATE is meant to address quality issues in early childhood education by providing resources to child care providers and helping parents make informed decisions about their child care options. “Our goal is to help families and child care providers understand and promote high-quality early learning experiences for our youngest learners,” reads the announcement.

The program has been in development for almost two years. The Mississippi Department of Human Services held town halls across the state to get input from child care providers and parents.

Lesia Daniel-Hollingshead, owner of Funtime Preschool in Clinton, attended one of the town halls and said she is hopeful the program will increase the quality of Mississippi’s child care offerings. She is grateful that providers were given input. 

“Our child care providers are entrusted with our state’s most valuable resource and should have the knowledge and training to provide children the best environment possible to grow and develop,” said Daniel-Hollingshead.

She added that “parent involvement is critical for every child’s education. We need families to value high quality early education so their children are set up for success when they enter kindergarten.”

MDHS plans to implement ELEVATE over the next three years, starting with child care centers that participate in the Child Care Payment Program. Providers will have access to educational resources on improving teaching and curricula. This includes group training, professional development, and more. They can receive up to 12 special badges that display their training in a particular area. 

Jamie Anderson, a mother of two who works at Funtime Preschool, applauds ELEVATE’s concept of ” helping families by ensuring child care providers are well trained in best practices and knowledgeable about what is considered best practices to meet the developmental needs of their children while families are working.”

“Our child care programs work very hard to educate and care for Mississippi’s children, and they are a great resource for Mississippi’s working families,” said Chad Allgood, director of the MSDH’s Division of Early Childhood Care & Development. “They need our support, but more than that, they deserve recognition for what they do. ELEVATE will give them both.”

Early childhood is a crucial period of brain development. Access to quality early childhood education has a significant impact on a child’s future from K-12 and beyond. 

Child care is an economic issue as well. Mississippi Early Learning Alliance released a report last year that showed that 7% of Mississippi’s labor force was not working full time due to family responsibilities, including child care. That 7% would add $8 billion to the state’s GDP. Most of those staying home are women.

Child care costs are a major reason many women stay home. A 2024 childcare market survey from Mississippi State found that depending on several factors, families pay around $100 to $200 a week on child care.

One solution is the Mississippi Business Child Care Tax Credit, a 50% income tax credit to employers who either provide their employees with child care during work hours or provide at least $6,000 in a stipend to a licensed child care provider for their employees. However, a survey from the Mississippi Economic Council found that less than 3% of businesses in Mississippi are taking advantage of it and other child care incentives. 

The Mississippi Early Learning Alliance recently launched two resources to encourage businesses to take advantage of this tax credit. The Economic Impact Calculator allows employers to calculate annual financial losses due to their employee’s problems with child care. The Mississippi Business Child Care Tax Credit and Employee Stipend Resource Guide  informs businesses about the Mississippi Business Child Care Tax Credit.

The Mississippi Economic Council, which helped develop these tools,t said in a statement, “This toolkit/resource guide will greatly help HR departments and CFOs for companies that want to take advantage of this opportunity to offset the high cost of childcare for their employees!”

MELA’s executive director Biz Harris stated in a press release, “These tools give businesses real data on how child care instability affects them and show how they can use an existing tax credit to benefit both their company and their employees.”

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