Philly’s day-care system is on the verge of a coronavirus collapse. Emergency cash is coming. Will it be enough?
Posted: Monday, March 30, 2020
Source:
Philadelphia Inquirer
Mary Graham is like thousands of child-care providers and workers in the region: teetering on the edge, terrified that the day-care center she runs, one of the many small engines that power the larger economy, may be unable to survive the coronavirus pandemic.
"Nobody is sleeping,” said Graham, executive director of Children’s Village, which cares for 425 children at Eighth and Arch Streets. “Can we survive a couple of weeks? Yes. But we can’t do this for months. The system couldn’t survive that.”
Pennsylvania child-care facilities have been closed since March 16. New Jersey day cares must close by Wednesday. In both states, officials have made exceptions for in-home day cares and centers that obtain waivers to care for the children of essential workers. Still, even those centers are in a tough position, with enrollment plunging.