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"content": "\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12083617/newsom-touts-dominance-of-california-in-final-budget-proposal\"> spending plan\u003c/a> this week includes $2.4 billion in new ongoing investments for special education and paid pregnancy leave for teachers — issues teachers have brought front and center in the face of high living costs and staff retention struggles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While education advocates said the plan released Thursday and known as \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12083623/newsom-unveils-final-state-budget-proposal-amid-deep-federal-spending-cuts\">the “May Revise” \u003c/a>is a significant improvement from Newsom’s January proposal, they say the governor still owes schools money from the state’s general fund.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Gov. Gavin Newsom’s May Budget Revise contains welcome provisions that will benefit public schools,” California School Board Association President Debra Schade said in a statement. But, she continued, “the administration’s generosity in some areas is undercut by its inclusion of funding for one-time projects and one-size-fits-all mandates instead of investing those resources in base funding.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s spending plan includes a $6.4 billion boost to districts’ discretionary funding from January, driven by higher-than-expected income tax revenue related to the AI boom. The increase also comes after months of pressure from school districts across the state, many of which face record budget shortfalls due to the rising costs for competitive teacher salaries and benefits, insurance and energy, as well as enrollment declines that drive down total per-pupil funding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s clear the governor heard educators’ voices on several of our priorities in our fight to Fully Fund Schools,” California Teachers Association President David Goldberg said in a statement. “Aside from the proposed withholding of Prop. 98 funds, today’s newly announced May budget revision includes critical investments and huge victories for California schools and communities.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12051437\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12051437\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/GavinNewsomAISF1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/GavinNewsomAISF1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/GavinNewsomAISF1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/GavinNewsomAISF1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">On the rooftop of Google’s San Francisco offices on Aug. 7, 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a major statewide partnership with Google, Microsoft, IBM and Adobe to expand generative AI education — including training programs, certifications and internships — across California’s high schools, community colleges and Cal State universities. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the Office of the Governor)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The budget plan notes that the number of students in California public schools with disabilities is increasing, along with the costs for providing special education services. Newsom, who has been open about his \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12074892/newsom-promotes-new-memoir-as-he-ramps-up-national-spotlight\">experience with dyslexia\u003c/a>, increased funding for students with disabilities by 43% more than the 2025 budget.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12073306/sfusd-teachers-strike-no-end-in-sight-health-care-battle\">striking San Francisco \u003c/a>and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12066588/west-contra-costa-teachers-agree-to-end-strike-and-return-to-class-after-a-week\">West Contra Costa educators\u003c/a> bargained for better special education working conditions and wage boosts for specialized employees, positions that are notoriously hard to staff.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They also raised concerns about general teacher recruitment and retention, which Newsom aimed to address with additional investments into programs that ease credentialing, and another long-fought CTA request: paid pregnancy leave.[aside postID=news_12083494 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/250428-OUSD-OFFICE-FILE-MD-04_qed.jpg']In California, educators who take leave while pregnant or after giving birth must use their sick time to cover missed work days. If they’ve used up that time off, teachers then receive “differential pay” — their wage minus the cost of a substitute teacher.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom vetoed a past attempt to address pregnancy leave in 2019, and another bill that would have granted 14 weeks of paid leave, introduced by Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, D-Winters, in 2024, which died on the state Senate floor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Thousands of CTA members shared their story, signed petitions, showed up to the Capitol to fight for pregnancy leave — and now our sponsored legislation alongside Assemblymember Aguiar Curry is now in the May Revise,” said Erika Jones, CTA’s secretary-treasurer. “Fourteen weeks of paid pregnancy leave will be transformational for California educators and families.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to the targeted investments, May’s revision also includes billions in new discretionary dollars for districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Schools will benefit from an increased cost-of-living adjustment, up to 2.87% from 2.41% in Newsom’s January budget plan. They’ll also get a special boost thanks to what’s called a “super” cost-of-living adjustment, applied specifically to the local control funding formula, the system for how much of California’s education funding is allocated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Barrett Snider, a partner with education lobbying firm Capitol Advisors, said the governor deserves credit for trying to keep pace with rising costs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12077729\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12077729\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260326-SJSchoolClosures-23-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260326-SJSchoolClosures-23-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260326-SJSchoolClosures-23-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260326-SJSchoolClosures-23-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Empire Gardens Elementary School in San José on March 26, 2026. The school is among those proposed for closure as part of the San José Unified School District’s “Schools of Tomorrow” plan. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s all going up, and it’s going up more than 2.87%,” Snider said. “The ed[ucation] community for years has been saying we ought to find a new index to track for actual costs because what we see in the field doesn’t track.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Snider said Newsom might get pushback, though, for earmarking a portion of that adjustment to pay for the new paid pregnancy leave mandate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’d be like your boss saying, ‘We’re giving you a raise,’ but then telling you that a portion of that raise has to be spent on a company-mandated expense,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some advocates bemoaned a lack of funding for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12083461/california-advocates-want-newsom-to-fulfill-promise-to-fund-child-care-spaces\">subsidized child care spaces\u003c/a>, calling the cuts an “unfulfilled promise” from a governor who has long touted his expansion of transitional kindergarten.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Educators are also gearing up to fight a plan to defer paying $3.9 billion from the largest pool of education money, Proposition 98 funding, which Newsom could shift to other sectors of the budget. The state’s constitution requires an annual minimum guarantee equivalent to about 40% of the state’s general fund to be directed to K-12 schools and community colleges that can be spent however districts see fit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, Newsom withheld $1.9 billion of these funds, which will be repaid this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though less than the $5.6 billion deferral proposed in the January draft budget, school boards, district officials and unions across the state have said delaying any funding violates the state constitution and perpetuates a dangerous precedent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If they continue to sort of cleverly manipulate the Prop. 98 guarantee and underfund it, it ceases to have its intended effect that voters expected when they passed it in 1988,” Snider said. He said many school districts have already factored the proposed withholding into their budget planning, since they began months ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11958565\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11958565\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy.jpg\" alt='A white middle-aged man in a blue suit and blue tie speaks behind a dais that says \"Healthy Minds For California Kids\" surrounded by people.' width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gov. Gavin Newsom outlined new efforts to support the mental health of students at McLane High School in Fresno on Aug. 18, 2022. \u003ccite>(Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“You end up manipulating the school budgeting process because the January proposal is what schools use to build their budgets for the year,” Snider said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Goldberg said this week that more than 2,000 educators across the state who received preliminary layoff notices in March will find out if those are permanent. State law requires public school districts to issue pink slips for the coming year by May 15.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These are public school educators who have devoted their entire career to educating California students, and their future is in jeopardy with threats to withhold vital funds from our local school districts,” Goldberg said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Education advocates celebrate massive investments in special education and a plan for paid pregnancy leave, while closely watching where dollars for schools land.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12083617/newsom-touts-dominance-of-california-in-final-budget-proposal\"> spending plan\u003c/a> this week includes $2.4 billion in new ongoing investments for special education and paid pregnancy leave for teachers — issues teachers have brought front and center in the face of high living costs and staff retention struggles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While education advocates said the plan released Thursday and known as \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12083623/newsom-unveils-final-state-budget-proposal-amid-deep-federal-spending-cuts\">the “May Revise” \u003c/a>is a significant improvement from Newsom’s January proposal, they say the governor still owes schools money from the state’s general fund.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Gov. Gavin Newsom’s May Budget Revise contains welcome provisions that will benefit public schools,” California School Board Association President Debra Schade said in a statement. But, she continued, “the administration’s generosity in some areas is undercut by its inclusion of funding for one-time projects and one-size-fits-all mandates instead of investing those resources in base funding.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s spending plan includes a $6.4 billion boost to districts’ discretionary funding from January, driven by higher-than-expected income tax revenue related to the AI boom. The increase also comes after months of pressure from school districts across the state, many of which face record budget shortfalls due to the rising costs for competitive teacher salaries and benefits, insurance and energy, as well as enrollment declines that drive down total per-pupil funding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s clear the governor heard educators’ voices on several of our priorities in our fight to Fully Fund Schools,” California Teachers Association President David Goldberg said in a statement. “Aside from the proposed withholding of Prop. 98 funds, today’s newly announced May budget revision includes critical investments and huge victories for California schools and communities.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12051437\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12051437\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/GavinNewsomAISF1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/GavinNewsomAISF1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/GavinNewsomAISF1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/GavinNewsomAISF1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">On the rooftop of Google’s San Francisco offices on Aug. 7, 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a major statewide partnership with Google, Microsoft, IBM and Adobe to expand generative AI education — including training programs, certifications and internships — across California’s high schools, community colleges and Cal State universities. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the Office of the Governor)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The budget plan notes that the number of students in California public schools with disabilities is increasing, along with the costs for providing special education services. Newsom, who has been open about his \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12074892/newsom-promotes-new-memoir-as-he-ramps-up-national-spotlight\">experience with dyslexia\u003c/a>, increased funding for students with disabilities by 43% more than the 2025 budget.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12073306/sfusd-teachers-strike-no-end-in-sight-health-care-battle\">striking San Francisco \u003c/a>and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12066588/west-contra-costa-teachers-agree-to-end-strike-and-return-to-class-after-a-week\">West Contra Costa educators\u003c/a> bargained for better special education working conditions and wage boosts for specialized employees, positions that are notoriously hard to staff.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They also raised concerns about general teacher recruitment and retention, which Newsom aimed to address with additional investments into programs that ease credentialing, and another long-fought CTA request: paid pregnancy leave.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>In California, educators who take leave while pregnant or after giving birth must use their sick time to cover missed work days. If they’ve used up that time off, teachers then receive “differential pay” — their wage minus the cost of a substitute teacher.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom vetoed a past attempt to address pregnancy leave in 2019, and another bill that would have granted 14 weeks of paid leave, introduced by Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, D-Winters, in 2024, which died on the state Senate floor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Thousands of CTA members shared their story, signed petitions, showed up to the Capitol to fight for pregnancy leave — and now our sponsored legislation alongside Assemblymember Aguiar Curry is now in the May Revise,” said Erika Jones, CTA’s secretary-treasurer. “Fourteen weeks of paid pregnancy leave will be transformational for California educators and families.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to the targeted investments, May’s revision also includes billions in new discretionary dollars for districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Schools will benefit from an increased cost-of-living adjustment, up to 2.87% from 2.41% in Newsom’s January budget plan. They’ll also get a special boost thanks to what’s called a “super” cost-of-living adjustment, applied specifically to the local control funding formula, the system for how much of California’s education funding is allocated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Barrett Snider, a partner with education lobbying firm Capitol Advisors, said the governor deserves credit for trying to keep pace with rising costs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12077729\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12077729\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260326-SJSchoolClosures-23-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260326-SJSchoolClosures-23-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260326-SJSchoolClosures-23-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260326-SJSchoolClosures-23-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Empire Gardens Elementary School in San José on March 26, 2026. The school is among those proposed for closure as part of the San José Unified School District’s “Schools of Tomorrow” plan. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s all going up, and it’s going up more than 2.87%,” Snider said. “The ed[ucation] community for years has been saying we ought to find a new index to track for actual costs because what we see in the field doesn’t track.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Snider said Newsom might get pushback, though, for earmarking a portion of that adjustment to pay for the new paid pregnancy leave mandate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’d be like your boss saying, ‘We’re giving you a raise,’ but then telling you that a portion of that raise has to be spent on a company-mandated expense,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some advocates bemoaned a lack of funding for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12083461/california-advocates-want-newsom-to-fulfill-promise-to-fund-child-care-spaces\">subsidized child care spaces\u003c/a>, calling the cuts an “unfulfilled promise” from a governor who has long touted his expansion of transitional kindergarten.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Educators are also gearing up to fight a plan to defer paying $3.9 billion from the largest pool of education money, Proposition 98 funding, which Newsom could shift to other sectors of the budget. The state’s constitution requires an annual minimum guarantee equivalent to about 40% of the state’s general fund to be directed to K-12 schools and community colleges that can be spent however districts see fit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, Newsom withheld $1.9 billion of these funds, which will be repaid this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though less than the $5.6 billion deferral proposed in the January draft budget, school boards, district officials and unions across the state have said delaying any funding violates the state constitution and perpetuates a dangerous precedent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If they continue to sort of cleverly manipulate the Prop. 98 guarantee and underfund it, it ceases to have its intended effect that voters expected when they passed it in 1988,” Snider said. He said many school districts have already factored the proposed withholding into their budget planning, since they began months ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11958565\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11958565\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy.jpg\" alt='A white middle-aged man in a blue suit and blue tie speaks behind a dais that says \"Healthy Minds For California Kids\" surrounded by people.' width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/081822_NewsomFresno_LV_CM_006-copy-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gov. Gavin Newsom outlined new efforts to support the mental health of students at McLane High School in Fresno on Aug. 18, 2022. \u003ccite>(Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“You end up manipulating the school budgeting process because the January proposal is what schools use to build their budgets for the year,” Snider said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Goldberg said this week that more than 2,000 educators across the state who received preliminary layoff notices in March will find out if those are permanent. State law requires public school districts to issue pink slips for the coming year by May 15.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These are public school educators who have devoted their entire career to educating California students, and their future is in jeopardy with threats to withhold vital funds from our local school districts,” Goldberg said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "as-transitional-kindergarten-grows-hundreds-of-child-care-centers-close",
"title": "As Transitional Kindergarten Grows, Hundreds of Child Care Centers Close",
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"headTitle": "As Transitional Kindergarten Grows, Hundreds of Child Care Centers Close | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>As public school enrollment \u003ca href=\"https://edsource.org/2026/declining-school-enrollment-california/756174\">continues\u003c/a> to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12041122/california-public-school-enrollment-continues-post-pandemic-decline\">decline across California\u003c/a>, a remarkable thing is happening in districts: More \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12052609/as-transitional-kindergarten-opens-to-all-4-year-olds-sf-parents-compete-for-seats\">students are entering\u003c/a> transitional kindergarten. But that growth has come at a cost.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Community-based preschools across the state have struggled to compete with free TK, and many have shuttered — worsening the shortage of licensed child care spaces for children younger than 4 years old.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between 2019 and 2025, around 1,100 preschools have closed their doors across California, representing just under 10% of the total, according to research published Monday by UC Berkeley’s Equity and Excellence in Early Childhood. They were licensed to serve around 32,000 young children, and experts say their closures will likely increase prices in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12075761/when-child-care-costs-half-a-paycheck-bay-area-parents-must-choose-kids-or-career\">state where the average annual cost of infant care surpasses $20,000\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These centers are not coming back. We’re going to lose these places forever,” said Bruce Fuller, an education professor at UC Berkeley and co-author of the report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The closures were not what policymakers had in mind in 2021, when they decided to implement a four-year, multibillion-dollar plan to roll out the largest universal pre-kindergarten program in the nation. Enrollment grew from nearly 117,000 students in the 2022-23 school year to 213,000 students this year. State leaders had hoped the move would free up space in preschools for 3-year-olds and that centers would pivot to caring for more infants and toddlers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state is making progress, \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ca-universal-prek-expansion-enroll-brief\">though at a slower pace than TK\u003c/a>, in enrolling 3-year-olds into the California State Preschool Program, a subsidized program that can either be provided by school districts or community-based organizations for \u003ca href=\"https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/mb2603.asp\">income-eligible families\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Fuller said fewer than one-third of 3-year-olds are enrolled in preschool of any kind, and he’s worried about their shrinking access to early education. Research shows that \u003ca href=\"https://nieer.org/research-library/new-jersey-abbott-preschool-program-longitudinal-effects-study-through-grade-10\">two years of high-quality preschool\u003c/a> is especially beneficial to children from low-income households.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12083046\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12083046 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05194-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05194-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05194-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05194-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Heather Posner (center), executive director of Carquinez Garden School, does arts and crafts with children in the school yard of Carquinez Garden School in Crockett on May 8, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Assemblymember Corey Jackson, a Democrat from Riverside County who chairs a state subcommittee on human services, said legislators are aware that TK pulled children from community-based programs and are trying to address the issue as they negotiate next year’s state budget.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to recognize and learn from the lessons of the pandemic,” he said. “There may come a time where we might have to close our schools down again, so what happens when we have decimated our community infrastructure, when we still may need places for our children to go safely?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Community-based preschools \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11893791/why-californias-universal-transitional-kindergarten-plan-poses-a-threat-to-some-early-childhood-ed-providers\">had long warned they might not be able to survive financially\u003c/a> if they lose 4-year-olds to TK. Their business models are shaped by laws that mandate a ratio of one teacher for every four infants or toddlers, and one teacher for every dozen 4-year-olds. Tuition from the older children helps offset the more expensive care of children under 2.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A similar scenario bore out more than a dozen years ago in New York City, when it provided free preschool for 4-year-olds in a “mixed delivery system” that included public schools, private or community-based preschools. Many providers shifted to serving the older kids for the stable income it provided and \u003ca href=\"https://ideas.repec.org/p/pri/indrel/626.html\">cut back on infant and toddler care\u003c/a>.[aside postID=news_12070762 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/240911-CHILDCARE-REAX-MD-01_qed.jpg']“We have seen such large benefits of public pre-K that I think it should be a good investment, but you want to be aware of the unintended consequences on the ability to find care for those younger kids, and trying to make sure that the market can still sustain that and that it’s affordable for parents,” said Jessica H. Brown, an economist at the University of South Carolina who studied the impact of New York’s “Pre-K For All” initiative.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, community-based preschools or child care centers must reconfigure classrooms and meet higher fire safety standards, for example, to serve children younger than 2 years old. These \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12017819/huge-lack-of-communication-how-a-building-code-update-disrupted-child-care-centers-in-california\">regulatory and financial hurdles\u003c/a> often hinder their ability to shift to infant care, or even shift to providing after-school care, because the cost of transportation and insurance is often prohibitively expensive, said Erin Freschi, director of resource and referral at CoCo Kids, an agency that connects families to child care providers in Contra Costa County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of the response has been, ‘Oh, just serve infants and toddlers or just do after-school care,’ and it’s not that easy,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Researchers at UC Berkeley found that community-based preschools most vulnerable to closure were based in churches, were small programs serving 30 to 50 children, or ones that relied on state and federal funds to provide subsidized care to lower-income families. Only about 15% made the transition lawmakers had initially envisioned and switched to serving infants and toddlers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We had expected that a lot of the closures were tuition-charging places in middle or upper middle-class communities, and that is true. Three in five of the places that closed were charging tuition, but two in five were actually publicly financed,” Fuller said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12083053\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12083053 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05237-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05237-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05237-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05237-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A class schedule written on a white board at Carquinez Garden School in Crockett on May 8, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Transitional kindergarten isn’t the only contributor to these programs’ demise. The pandemic, followed by rising costs of living, destabilized their operations. Centers that provide subsidized care are competing with increased state funding for vouchers, which allow low-income families to choose between licensed care or unlicensed care at home by a family, friend or neighbor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An analysis by the California Budget & Policy Center found that between 2021 and 2024, families increasingly chose unlicensed care, which grew by 110%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“No single program tells the whole story,” said Patricia Lozano, director of the advocacy group Early Edge California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She suggested giving public funds to help more community-based programs pivot to serving babies and toddlers “to make sure no one is left behind.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As budget negotiations get underway in Sacramento, there’s talk of moving some $120 million in funding from Prop 98, which guarantees a minimum funding level for public schools each year, to support community-based organizations in the California State Preschool Program and permanently fund seats for 2-year-olds in that program.[aside postID=news_12069711 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260115-SFCHILDCARESUBSIDIES00057_TV-KQED.jpg']“We are serious about child care, and we know it’s expensive, but that also means that more and more families need relief, and it’s a part of making California affordable again,” Jackson said. “We have to provide these services in order to be able to make sure families are able to make it here and thrive here in California.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A combination of these forces are playing out in preschools like Carquinez Garden School, the only licensed child care center in Crockett, a Bay Area community of 3,600. The school will close on June 12 after enrollment dwindled from more than 30 children two years ago to just 10 this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve lost essentially a class of kids every year to TK,” said Heather Posner, the school’s director.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She said she expected to serve fewer 4-year-olds as TK rolled out, and that more 2-year-olds would take their spots. The preschool was in a so-called \u003ca href=\"https://www.americanprogress.org/feature/child-care-deserts/\">child care desert\u003c/a> with an insufficient supply of licensed care. The monthly cost for full-time care — $1,870 — didn’t seem to deter demand; the school had a waitlist and enrolled families who qualified for subsidies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But it seems like the low birth rate is causing a lot of schools to be underenrolled on both ends,” she said. “You’re not getting a lot of 2-year-olds and then you’re not getting any 4-year-olds … so with 10 kids, there’s just no way to really cover the overhead.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trying to keep the school open felt like performing CPR on a patient, she said, and she barely broke even.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I basically have not paid myself in two years. Literally, I cannot pay my own salary,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fuller said researchers took California’s declining child population into account when they calculated the effect of TK expansion on thousands of communities. They concluded that for every 200 students who enrolled in public TK, there would be a reduction of 38 seats at community-based programs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12083048\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12083048 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05201-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05201-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05201-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05201-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Grace Dare (center) supervises children digging in the dirt of a planter in the school yard of Carquinez Garden School in Crockett on May 8, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In Berkeley, a surge in public TK enrollment during the last four years caused The Berkeley School’s early childhood program to lose more than two-thirds of its students, dropping from 90 to about 25. It will close in July after serving local children for more than six decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a loss for our community, it’s a loss for our school as a whole,” said Mitch Bostian, head of the private school, which serves kids aged 4 to 14 and practices the Montessori philosophy of mixing children of different ages in the classroom so that younger children learn from observing older peers, and older students develop leadership skills by mentoring younger peers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That model unraveled when the local school district added more TK classrooms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Really what we saw was the bottom dropped out of our 4- and 5-year-olds,” Bostian said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said the school began enrolling younger children, including 2-year-olds, added year-round options and extended its hours to attract working families, but couldn’t bring enrollment up to a sustainable level.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12083052\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12083052 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05235-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05235-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05235-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05235-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The interior of a classroom at Carquinez Garden School in Crockett on May 8, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For Posner, the shuttering of Carquinez Garden School represents the loss of a tight-knit community she formed with families. Every Friday, parents hang out in the yard when they come to pick up their children. Once a month, they gather for a potluck.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school takes advantage of being right next to a regional park and lets children learn through playing outdoors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re running, they’re digging, they’re riding bikes, they’re hanging from the climbing structure, they’re being active, they’re using their brains and bodies and they’re with their friends,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Posner fears that when the kids enter TK, they’ll have less time to play outside and develop friendships.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everything’s truncated,” she said. “And I feel the gift that I can give them is just that languishing outside in the sunshine\u003cem>.\u003c/em>”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>Correction:\u003c/strong> An earlier version of this story misstated the date Carquinez Garden School will close. It is June 12, not July. The story has been updated.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>As public school enrollment \u003ca href=\"https://edsource.org/2026/declining-school-enrollment-california/756174\">continues\u003c/a> to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12041122/california-public-school-enrollment-continues-post-pandemic-decline\">decline across California\u003c/a>, a remarkable thing is happening in districts: More \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12052609/as-transitional-kindergarten-opens-to-all-4-year-olds-sf-parents-compete-for-seats\">students are entering\u003c/a> transitional kindergarten. But that growth has come at a cost.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Community-based preschools across the state have struggled to compete with free TK, and many have shuttered — worsening the shortage of licensed child care spaces for children younger than 4 years old.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between 2019 and 2025, around 1,100 preschools have closed their doors across California, representing just under 10% of the total, according to research published Monday by UC Berkeley’s Equity and Excellence in Early Childhood. They were licensed to serve around 32,000 young children, and experts say their closures will likely increase prices in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12075761/when-child-care-costs-half-a-paycheck-bay-area-parents-must-choose-kids-or-career\">state where the average annual cost of infant care surpasses $20,000\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These centers are not coming back. We’re going to lose these places forever,” said Bruce Fuller, an education professor at UC Berkeley and co-author of the report.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The closures were not what policymakers had in mind in 2021, when they decided to implement a four-year, multibillion-dollar plan to roll out the largest universal pre-kindergarten program in the nation. Enrollment grew from nearly 117,000 students in the 2022-23 school year to 213,000 students this year. State leaders had hoped the move would free up space in preschools for 3-year-olds and that centers would pivot to caring for more infants and toddlers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state is making progress, \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ca-universal-prek-expansion-enroll-brief\">though at a slower pace than TK\u003c/a>, in enrolling 3-year-olds into the California State Preschool Program, a subsidized program that can either be provided by school districts or community-based organizations for \u003ca href=\"https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/mb2603.asp\">income-eligible families\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Fuller said fewer than one-third of 3-year-olds are enrolled in preschool of any kind, and he’s worried about their shrinking access to early education. Research shows that \u003ca href=\"https://nieer.org/research-library/new-jersey-abbott-preschool-program-longitudinal-effects-study-through-grade-10\">two years of high-quality preschool\u003c/a> is especially beneficial to children from low-income households.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12083046\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12083046 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05194-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05194-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05194-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05194-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Heather Posner (center), executive director of Carquinez Garden School, does arts and crafts with children in the school yard of Carquinez Garden School in Crockett on May 8, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Assemblymember Corey Jackson, a Democrat from Riverside County who chairs a state subcommittee on human services, said legislators are aware that TK pulled children from community-based programs and are trying to address the issue as they negotiate next year’s state budget.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to recognize and learn from the lessons of the pandemic,” he said. “There may come a time where we might have to close our schools down again, so what happens when we have decimated our community infrastructure, when we still may need places for our children to go safely?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Community-based preschools \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11893791/why-californias-universal-transitional-kindergarten-plan-poses-a-threat-to-some-early-childhood-ed-providers\">had long warned they might not be able to survive financially\u003c/a> if they lose 4-year-olds to TK. Their business models are shaped by laws that mandate a ratio of one teacher for every four infants or toddlers, and one teacher for every dozen 4-year-olds. Tuition from the older children helps offset the more expensive care of children under 2.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A similar scenario bore out more than a dozen years ago in New York City, when it provided free preschool for 4-year-olds in a “mixed delivery system” that included public schools, private or community-based preschools. Many providers shifted to serving the older kids for the stable income it provided and \u003ca href=\"https://ideas.repec.org/p/pri/indrel/626.html\">cut back on infant and toddler care\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“We have seen such large benefits of public pre-K that I think it should be a good investment, but you want to be aware of the unintended consequences on the ability to find care for those younger kids, and trying to make sure that the market can still sustain that and that it’s affordable for parents,” said Jessica H. Brown, an economist at the University of South Carolina who studied the impact of New York’s “Pre-K For All” initiative.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, community-based preschools or child care centers must reconfigure classrooms and meet higher fire safety standards, for example, to serve children younger than 2 years old. These \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12017819/huge-lack-of-communication-how-a-building-code-update-disrupted-child-care-centers-in-california\">regulatory and financial hurdles\u003c/a> often hinder their ability to shift to infant care, or even shift to providing after-school care, because the cost of transportation and insurance is often prohibitively expensive, said Erin Freschi, director of resource and referral at CoCo Kids, an agency that connects families to child care providers in Contra Costa County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of the response has been, ‘Oh, just serve infants and toddlers or just do after-school care,’ and it’s not that easy,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Researchers at UC Berkeley found that community-based preschools most vulnerable to closure were based in churches, were small programs serving 30 to 50 children, or ones that relied on state and federal funds to provide subsidized care to lower-income families. Only about 15% made the transition lawmakers had initially envisioned and switched to serving infants and toddlers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We had expected that a lot of the closures were tuition-charging places in middle or upper middle-class communities, and that is true. Three in five of the places that closed were charging tuition, but two in five were actually publicly financed,” Fuller said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12083053\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12083053 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05237-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05237-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05237-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05237-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A class schedule written on a white board at Carquinez Garden School in Crockett on May 8, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Transitional kindergarten isn’t the only contributor to these programs’ demise. The pandemic, followed by rising costs of living, destabilized their operations. Centers that provide subsidized care are competing with increased state funding for vouchers, which allow low-income families to choose between licensed care or unlicensed care at home by a family, friend or neighbor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An analysis by the California Budget & Policy Center found that between 2021 and 2024, families increasingly chose unlicensed care, which grew by 110%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“No single program tells the whole story,” said Patricia Lozano, director of the advocacy group Early Edge California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She suggested giving public funds to help more community-based programs pivot to serving babies and toddlers “to make sure no one is left behind.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As budget negotiations get underway in Sacramento, there’s talk of moving some $120 million in funding from Prop 98, which guarantees a minimum funding level for public schools each year, to support community-based organizations in the California State Preschool Program and permanently fund seats for 2-year-olds in that program.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“We are serious about child care, and we know it’s expensive, but that also means that more and more families need relief, and it’s a part of making California affordable again,” Jackson said. “We have to provide these services in order to be able to make sure families are able to make it here and thrive here in California.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A combination of these forces are playing out in preschools like Carquinez Garden School, the only licensed child care center in Crockett, a Bay Area community of 3,600. The school will close on June 12 after enrollment dwindled from more than 30 children two years ago to just 10 this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve lost essentially a class of kids every year to TK,” said Heather Posner, the school’s director.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She said she expected to serve fewer 4-year-olds as TK rolled out, and that more 2-year-olds would take their spots. The preschool was in a so-called \u003ca href=\"https://www.americanprogress.org/feature/child-care-deserts/\">child care desert\u003c/a> with an insufficient supply of licensed care. The monthly cost for full-time care — $1,870 — didn’t seem to deter demand; the school had a waitlist and enrolled families who qualified for subsidies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But it seems like the low birth rate is causing a lot of schools to be underenrolled on both ends,” she said. “You’re not getting a lot of 2-year-olds and then you’re not getting any 4-year-olds … so with 10 kids, there’s just no way to really cover the overhead.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Trying to keep the school open felt like performing CPR on a patient, she said, and she barely broke even.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I basically have not paid myself in two years. Literally, I cannot pay my own salary,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fuller said researchers took California’s declining child population into account when they calculated the effect of TK expansion on thousands of communities. They concluded that for every 200 students who enrolled in public TK, there would be a reduction of 38 seats at community-based programs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12083048\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12083048 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05201-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05201-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05201-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05201-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Grace Dare (center) supervises children digging in the dirt of a planter in the school yard of Carquinez Garden School in Crockett on May 8, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In Berkeley, a surge in public TK enrollment during the last four years caused The Berkeley School’s early childhood program to lose more than two-thirds of its students, dropping from 90 to about 25. It will close in July after serving local children for more than six decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a loss for our community, it’s a loss for our school as a whole,” said Mitch Bostian, head of the private school, which serves kids aged 4 to 14 and practices the Montessori philosophy of mixing children of different ages in the classroom so that younger children learn from observing older peers, and older students develop leadership skills by mentoring younger peers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That model unraveled when the local school district added more TK classrooms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Really what we saw was the bottom dropped out of our 4- and 5-year-olds,” Bostian said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said the school began enrolling younger children, including 2-year-olds, added year-round options and extended its hours to attract working families, but couldn’t bring enrollment up to a sustainable level.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12083052\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12083052 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05235-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05235-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05235-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260508-EXPANSIONCONSEQUENCE-TV-05235-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The interior of a classroom at Carquinez Garden School in Crockett on May 8, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For Posner, the shuttering of Carquinez Garden School represents the loss of a tight-knit community she formed with families. Every Friday, parents hang out in the yard when they come to pick up their children. Once a month, they gather for a potluck.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school takes advantage of being right next to a regional park and lets children learn through playing outdoors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re running, they’re digging, they’re riding bikes, they’re hanging from the climbing structure, they’re being active, they’re using their brains and bodies and they’re with their friends,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Posner fears that when the kids enter TK, they’ll have less time to play outside and develop friendships.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everything’s truncated,” she said. “And I feel the gift that I can give them is just that languishing outside in the sunshine\u003cem>.\u003c/em>”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>Correction:\u003c/strong> An earlier version of this story misstated the date Carquinez Garden School will close. It is June 12, not July. The story has been updated.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Friday, May 10, 2024:\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Several state bills pending in Sacramento this week seek more guardrails on Artificial Intelligence in the workplace.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>A proposed state budget change could stall the program that sends behavioral health workers — instead of police — to respond to mental health emergencies.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>California’s newest grade — transitional kindergarten — has been lauded as a success, with enrollment doubling over the past few years. But that growth has come at a cost, as \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082904/as-transitional-kindergarten-grows-hundreds-of-child-care-centers-close\">community-based preschools struggle to compete\u003c/a>.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>A Make or Break Moment for AI Legislation\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Concern about AI replacing workers is leading labor unions and Democratic lawmakers to push for more protections. One bill demands humans remain the medical decision-makers in hospitals and clinics. Another bill would prevent employers from using workers’ data to train AI tools that end up replacing them. Industry groups are largely opposed, arguing the bills hinder innovation. Appropriations committees in the senate and assembly now decide which measures advance or die, in large part based on their fiscal impact.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2026/05/mental-health-crisis-response-budget/\">CA Budget threatens funding for Mobile Crisis Services\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Across California, demand for mobile crisis services – an alternative to badges and sirens for people in their darkest moments – is surging. But just as these services are proving their worth, federal funding that supercharged their growth is set to end. Lacking that boost, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/Budget/Documents/FY26-27/DHCS-FY-2026-27-Governors-Budget-Highlights.pdf\">budget blueprint\u003c/a> proposes changing the service from a required benefit to an optional one, meaning the state does not have to cover the funding gap.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Counties that choose to keep this service will have to pay for it themselves at a price tag of $150 million to $200 million a year. Where counties cannot afford it, crisis teams could decrease or disappear entirely, if the Legislature approves the governor’s budget proposal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2023, California made mobile crisis response a statewide benefit when a federal law offered a financial incentive to do so: the federal government would temporarily cover 85% of the costs, up from the usual 50%. At the time, people with mental health and substance use disorder \u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/CalAIM/Documents/Mobile-Crisis-Fact-Sheet.pdf\">made up one-fifth of all emergency department visits\u003c/a> in California – a pressure point the state said mobile behavioral health teams could help address.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>National research has shown that behavioral health professionals responding without police – like county crisis teams – do a better job than law enforcement of keeping people out of emergency rooms and connecting them to mental health care.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082904/as-transitional-kindergarten-grows-hundreds-of-child-care-centers-close\">As TK Grows, Preschools Close\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As public school enrollment \u003ca href=\"https://edsource.org/2026/declining-school-enrollment-california/756174\">continues\u003c/a> to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12041122/california-public-school-enrollment-continues-post-pandemic-decline\">decline across California\u003c/a>, a remarkable thing is happening in districts: More \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12052609/as-transitional-kindergarten-opens-to-all-4-year-olds-sf-parents-compete-for-seats\">students are entering\u003c/a> transitional kindergarten. But that growth has come at a cost.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Community-based preschools across the state have struggled to compete with free TK, and many have shuttered — worsening the shortage of licensed child care spaces for children younger than 4 years old.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between 2019 and 2025, around 1,100 preschools have closed their doors across California, representing just under 10% of the total, according to research published Monday by UC Berkeley’s Equity and Excellence in Early Childhood. They were licensed to serve around 32,000 young children, and experts say their closures will likely increase prices in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12075761/when-child-care-costs-half-a-paycheck-bay-area-parents-must-choose-kids-or-career\">state where the average annual cost of infant care surpasses $20,000\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Transitional kindergarten isn’t the only contributor to these programs’ demise. The pandemic, followed by rising costs of living, destabilized their operations. Centers that provide subsidized care are competing with increased state funding for vouchers, which allow low-income families to choose between licensed care or unlicensed care at home by a family, friend or neighbor.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Friday, May 10, 2024:\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Several state bills pending in Sacramento this week seek more guardrails on Artificial Intelligence in the workplace.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>A proposed state budget change could stall the program that sends behavioral health workers — instead of police — to respond to mental health emergencies.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>California’s newest grade — transitional kindergarten — has been lauded as a success, with enrollment doubling over the past few years. But that growth has come at a cost, as \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082904/as-transitional-kindergarten-grows-hundreds-of-child-care-centers-close\">community-based preschools struggle to compete\u003c/a>.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>A Make or Break Moment for AI Legislation\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Concern about AI replacing workers is leading labor unions and Democratic lawmakers to push for more protections. One bill demands humans remain the medical decision-makers in hospitals and clinics. Another bill would prevent employers from using workers’ data to train AI tools that end up replacing them. Industry groups are largely opposed, arguing the bills hinder innovation. Appropriations committees in the senate and assembly now decide which measures advance or die, in large part based on their fiscal impact.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2026/05/mental-health-crisis-response-budget/\">CA Budget threatens funding for Mobile Crisis Services\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Across California, demand for mobile crisis services – an alternative to badges and sirens for people in their darkest moments – is surging. But just as these services are proving their worth, federal funding that supercharged their growth is set to end. Lacking that boost, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/Budget/Documents/FY26-27/DHCS-FY-2026-27-Governors-Budget-Highlights.pdf\">budget blueprint\u003c/a> proposes changing the service from a required benefit to an optional one, meaning the state does not have to cover the funding gap.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Counties that choose to keep this service will have to pay for it themselves at a price tag of $150 million to $200 million a year. Where counties cannot afford it, crisis teams could decrease or disappear entirely, if the Legislature approves the governor’s budget proposal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2023, California made mobile crisis response a statewide benefit when a federal law offered a financial incentive to do so: the federal government would temporarily cover 85% of the costs, up from the usual 50%. At the time, people with mental health and substance use disorder \u003ca href=\"https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/CalAIM/Documents/Mobile-Crisis-Fact-Sheet.pdf\">made up one-fifth of all emergency department visits\u003c/a> in California – a pressure point the state said mobile behavioral health teams could help address.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>National research has shown that behavioral health professionals responding without police – like county crisis teams – do a better job than law enforcement of keeping people out of emergency rooms and connecting them to mental health care.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082904/as-transitional-kindergarten-grows-hundreds-of-child-care-centers-close\">As TK Grows, Preschools Close\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As public school enrollment \u003ca href=\"https://edsource.org/2026/declining-school-enrollment-california/756174\">continues\u003c/a> to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12041122/california-public-school-enrollment-continues-post-pandemic-decline\">decline across California\u003c/a>, a remarkable thing is happening in districts: More \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12052609/as-transitional-kindergarten-opens-to-all-4-year-olds-sf-parents-compete-for-seats\">students are entering\u003c/a> transitional kindergarten. But that growth has come at a cost.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Community-based preschools across the state have struggled to compete with free TK, and many have shuttered — worsening the shortage of licensed child care spaces for children younger than 4 years old.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between 2019 and 2025, around 1,100 preschools have closed their doors across California, representing just under 10% of the total, according to research published Monday by UC Berkeley’s Equity and Excellence in Early Childhood. They were licensed to serve around 32,000 young children, and experts say their closures will likely increase prices in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12075761/when-child-care-costs-half-a-paycheck-bay-area-parents-must-choose-kids-or-career\">state where the average annual cost of infant care surpasses $20,000\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Transitional kindergarten isn’t the only contributor to these programs’ demise. The pandemic, followed by rising costs of living, destabilized their operations. Centers that provide subsidized care are competing with increased state funding for vouchers, which allow low-income families to choose between licensed care or unlicensed care at home by a family, friend or neighbor.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "San Francisco to Expand Subsidized Childcare Spots Citywide",
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"content": "\u003cp>Over 700 additional spots for free and low-cost childcare will soon be available in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a>, Mayor Daniel Lurie announced Thursday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The seats were announced to meet increased demand for childcare, following an expansion in tuition subsidies that were rolled out earlier this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Now what we’re really focused on is ensuring that you don’t just have a subsidy with nowhere to go,” said Kunal Modi, chief of Health & Human Services, at Thursday’s press conference at Wah Mei School, a bilingual preschool in the city’s Sunset neighborhood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More than half of the spots will be reserved for infants and toddlers, which are currently some of the hardest to find, according to a \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-announces-major-expansion-of-free-and-low-cost-childcare-with-hundreds-of-new-spots-for-families-with-infants-and-toddlers\">press release\u003c/a> from the city.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the conference on Thursday, DEC’s executive director, Ingrid X. Mezquita, said that infant and toddler care is also “the most costly for families.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officials are focusing their efforts on key neighborhoods, including Sunset, Parkside, Richmond, Mission, Bayview, Portola, Mission Bay, Excelsior, Glen Park and SoMa, according to a press release.[aside postID=news_12081587 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-23-BL.jpg']In January, Lurie \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069711/san-francisco-expands-child-care-subsidies-to-tackle-affordability-issues\">expanded\u003c/a> free and reduced-cost options for early childhood education.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A family of four making less than $233,000 per year now qualifies for free childcare, and those making less than $311,000 per year now qualify for a 50% discount on their tuition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ben Wong, executive director of Wah Mei, said that with more families now eligible for this benefit, “more families are looking for care.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The expansion comes after families expressed \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12071760/lack-of-approved-child-care-providers-may-slow-rollout-of-san-franciscos-expanded-subsidies\">anxiety\u003c/a> about being able to stay with daycare providers that they’d already built relationships with, and after providers raised concerns about how long it would take to meet the eligibility criteria to join the Early Learning for All network.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the press conference, the city announced that they opened the application process early for new providers to join the ELFA.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Families who qualify for free childcare can begin applying now. Families who qualify for discounted childcare can apply online starting July 15.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The new seats will be available starting this summer, with locations in neighborhoods across San Francisco.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Over 700 additional spots for free and low-cost childcare will soon be available in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a>, Mayor Daniel Lurie announced Thursday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The seats were announced to meet increased demand for childcare, following an expansion in tuition subsidies that were rolled out earlier this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Now what we’re really focused on is ensuring that you don’t just have a subsidy with nowhere to go,” said Kunal Modi, chief of Health & Human Services, at Thursday’s press conference at Wah Mei School, a bilingual preschool in the city’s Sunset neighborhood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More than half of the spots will be reserved for infants and toddlers, which are currently some of the hardest to find, according to a \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-announces-major-expansion-of-free-and-low-cost-childcare-with-hundreds-of-new-spots-for-families-with-infants-and-toddlers\">press release\u003c/a> from the city.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the conference on Thursday, DEC’s executive director, Ingrid X. Mezquita, said that infant and toddler care is also “the most costly for families.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officials are focusing their efforts on key neighborhoods, including Sunset, Parkside, Richmond, Mission, Bayview, Portola, Mission Bay, Excelsior, Glen Park and SoMa, according to a press release.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>In January, Lurie \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069711/san-francisco-expands-child-care-subsidies-to-tackle-affordability-issues\">expanded\u003c/a> free and reduced-cost options for early childhood education.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A family of four making less than $233,000 per year now qualifies for free childcare, and those making less than $311,000 per year now qualify for a 50% discount on their tuition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ben Wong, executive director of Wah Mei, said that with more families now eligible for this benefit, “more families are looking for care.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The expansion comes after families expressed \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12071760/lack-of-approved-child-care-providers-may-slow-rollout-of-san-franciscos-expanded-subsidies\">anxiety\u003c/a> about being able to stay with daycare providers that they’d already built relationships with, and after providers raised concerns about how long it would take to meet the eligibility criteria to join the Early Learning for All network.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the press conference, the city announced that they opened the application process early for new providers to join the ELFA.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Families who qualify for free childcare can begin applying now. Families who qualify for discounted childcare can apply online starting July 15.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "struggling-bay-area-schools-get-new-life-as-badly-needed-child-care-centers",
"title": "Struggling Bay Area Schools Get New Life as Badly Needed Child Care Centers",
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"content": "\u003cp>Over the past six years, a shuttered Vallejo elementary school stood vacant, serving as a visual reminder of the Bay Area city’s declining student population.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Whenever a bell rings, residents around the former Beverly Hills Elementary School know that it isn’t the sound of classes starting, but of an alarm triggered by vandals breaking in.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But starting earlier this month, a new sound could be heard in the neighborhood: preschoolers playing in the yard. After undergoing a major overhaul, the campus reopened as an early learning center for up to 200 young kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new \u003ca href=\"https://www.risevallejo.com/\">Rise Vallejo Early Education center\u003c/a> is the latest example of a school repurposed to provide child care, following similar moves in San Jose and Hayward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As California school districts continue to grapple with rising expenses and falling enrollment — with \u003ca href=\"https://edsource.org/2026/declining-school-enrollment-california/756174\">the sharpest drop since the pandemic \u003c/a>recorded this year — education leaders and child care providers say this kind of conversion could help revitalize communities and create sorely-needed child care spaces.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s definitely a project that is scalable in all communities that really want to help meet the need of providing child care,” said Juan Cisneros, executive director of Child Start Inc., which operates Head Start classrooms in the center alongside four other early childhood education and care programs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We just have to have the resources and the community will to do something like that,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081808\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12081808\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-37-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-37-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-37-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-37-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Children play in an outdoor area at Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Across the Bay Area, other school districts facing declining enrollment, such as Alum Rock and Berryessa Union school districts in San Jose and Hayward Unified School District, are leasing underutilized classrooms to child care operators and family resource centers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This summer, the child care organization Kidango plans to open an early learning center in partnership with the Ravenswood City School District in East Palo Alto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And just last week, the education board of the\u003ca href=\"https://media.edlio.net/4e6ffa79/cb3c8c98/895cb4aa/fd33c949db26461d800dcfc3beb0d387?_=04-21-26RegBdOBpostRev.pdf\"> Los Angeles Unified School District approved\u003c/a> placing more preschool classrooms on elementary school campuses as part of an ambitious plan to open more space for infants and toddlers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The district saw the steepest decline in enrollment in California over the last year — 4.5% compared to 1.3% statewide — and is hoping that families who send their child to a publicly-subsidized preschool program will stay in the same campus when they begin elementary school.[aside postID=news_12075761 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00263_TV-KQED.jpg']But unlike these arrangements, Solano County transferred ownership of Vallejo Rise to Child Start, allowing the nonprofit to operate five classrooms and lease ten others to privately-owned child care providers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The $20 million project began in 2020, when Child Start needed to vacate a building it was leasing from the county. The agency had a tough time finding a facility in Vallejo that met the needs of its existing students, not to mention a space big enough to accommodate the long waitlist of families hoping to join.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Responding to the severe shortage of licensed child care spaces — which were only available for 23% of Solano County children, \u003ca href=\"https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/asr1451/viz/SolanoCountyCommunityIndicators/Home?publish=yes\">according to a 2023 study\u003c/a> — county leaders asked the Vallejo City Unified School District for a few spare rooms. As it happened, the district had an entire school available.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All over the state and nation, a declining birth rate and slowing immigration rates have contributed to enrollment loss. In Vallejo, \u003ca href=\"https://www.fcmat.org/PublicationsReports/Vallejo%20City%20FHRA%202025%20final.pdf#:~:text=Between%20the%202014%2D15%20and%202023%2D24%20school%20years%2C%20noncharter%20school%20enrollment%20decreased%20by%2031%25.\">school enrollment fell 30% \u003c/a>between the 2014-15 and 2023-24 school years. The plummeting enrollment fueled a fiscal crisis that has forced the district to downsize.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>First 5 Solano County, which distributes funds from a statewide tobacco tax to support local early childhood programs, worked with county leaders to buy the school for $2.8 million. Then, they pulled together county, state and federal dollars, along with private donations, to fund the rest of the redesign and renovation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Workers outfitted the classrooms with tiny toilets, sinks and kitchenettes, resurfaced the yards with artificial turf, and installed smaller-scale playgrounds and shade structures. In the hallways, new murals of animals greet the children at their eye level.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081819\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12081819\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-17-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-17-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-17-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-17-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A classroom at Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. The center recently opened, repurposing a former elementary school into a campus with classrooms, outdoor areas, and childcare space specifically designed for young children. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It really makes sense to take a public asset, make a one-time investment and turn it into something that you know isn’t just sitting empty but can really feed the community,” said Michele Harris, executive director of First 5 Solano.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The providers don’t pay facility fees. Instead, they share the costs of utilities and staff to manage the day-to-day operations of the center, allowing them to run their businesses at about half the cost, Cisneros said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>It helps them expand their business, but it also builds the workforce,” he said. “People who want to teach in this environment now have this space to be able to do it, and it’s going to bring a lot of new jobs into this community.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cisneros said Vallejo Rise is the only early learning center he knows of that houses multiple programs with their own early education philosophies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081818\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12081818\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-28-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-28-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-28-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-28-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A classroom at Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. The center recently opened, repurposing a former elementary school into a campus with classrooms, outdoor areas, and childcare space specifically designed for young children.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For Dionna Perkins, the new center is giving her a chance to grow her home-based Montessori preschool, Joyful Journeys, into something much bigger. She’s currently licensed to serve up to 14 children and often has a waitlist of seven to 10 families.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s crazy because I get a lot of parents that [sign up] when their child is in the womb,” Perkins said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, she’ll have three classrooms that can serve up to 48 kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I can happily say that we do have at least half available right now,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081809\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12081809\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-36-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-36-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-36-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-36-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Janet Walton, known as Ms. Janet, holds a child at Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. The center recently opened, repurposing a former elementary school into a campus with classrooms, outdoor areas, and childcare space specifically designed for young children. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The providers will share the cost of other resources, like the laundry machines, and save on big purchases, like cribs and classroom furniture.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a huge benefit because if you’re expanding, you have to find all of the funds for that by yourself,” Perkins said. “And in this economy, it’s hard, you know?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fundraising is underway to build a family resource center near the parking lot for anyone in the community seeking child care, a food pantry, and social services. The county’s Office of Education will also provide on-site coaching to early childhood educators who might need help supporting a child with special needs or developmental concerns, Harris said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To have that professional development on site where [the coaches] can respond right away, it’s just such a tremendous difference than being in isolation by yourself all day, every day,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081812\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12081812\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-43-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-43-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-43-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-43-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An aerial view of Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. The center recently opened, repurposing a former elementary school into a campus with classrooms, outdoor areas, and childcare space specifically designed for young children. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For Ruben Aurelio, the superintendent of Vallejo City Unified School District, the partnerships that were formed to create the center give him hope for the future of Vallejo. In its heyday, long before he led the district, more than 22,000 students were enrolled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re currently sitting around 9,000 students,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The closure of Mare Island Naval Shipyard in 1996 devastated the local economy, and the 2008 financial crisis led the city to declare bankruptcy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A high crime rate, police misconduct scandals and neglected infrastructure gave Vallejo a bad reputation. Declining enrollment and overspending also brought the school district to the brink of bankruptcy. After receiving a $60 million bailout from the state, it lost local control for 20 years and is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12046637/vallejo-city-unified-takes-back-local-control-of-schools-after-21-years\">emerging from state oversight\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081814\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12081814 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-12-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-12-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-12-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-12-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students play at Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Aurelio said the district will close three more elementary schools by the end of this school year as it seeks to “right-size” itself, and is looking at ways to reopen vacant or surplus facilities to benefit the community.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>We just don’t like seeing them sit empty,” he said. “That’s a blight on the community, and it diminishes that sort of pride that the community has.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After touring Rise Vallejo on its opening day celebration, Aurelio said he was heartened to see the school reimagined into something that brings value to the community.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But, there’s another benefit, he said, “Those preschoolers will hopefully feed my schools one day.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "As school districts across California grapple with falling enrollment and rising expenses, experts say this kind of conversion could help revitalize communities and increase access to child care.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Over the past six years, a shuttered Vallejo elementary school stood vacant, serving as a visual reminder of the Bay Area city’s declining student population.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Whenever a bell rings, residents around the former Beverly Hills Elementary School know that it isn’t the sound of classes starting, but of an alarm triggered by vandals breaking in.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But starting earlier this month, a new sound could be heard in the neighborhood: preschoolers playing in the yard. After undergoing a major overhaul, the campus reopened as an early learning center for up to 200 young kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new \u003ca href=\"https://www.risevallejo.com/\">Rise Vallejo Early Education center\u003c/a> is the latest example of a school repurposed to provide child care, following similar moves in San Jose and Hayward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As California school districts continue to grapple with rising expenses and falling enrollment — with \u003ca href=\"https://edsource.org/2026/declining-school-enrollment-california/756174\">the sharpest drop since the pandemic \u003c/a>recorded this year — education leaders and child care providers say this kind of conversion could help revitalize communities and create sorely-needed child care spaces.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s definitely a project that is scalable in all communities that really want to help meet the need of providing child care,” said Juan Cisneros, executive director of Child Start Inc., which operates Head Start classrooms in the center alongside four other early childhood education and care programs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We just have to have the resources and the community will to do something like that,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081808\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12081808\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-37-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-37-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-37-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-37-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Children play in an outdoor area at Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Across the Bay Area, other school districts facing declining enrollment, such as Alum Rock and Berryessa Union school districts in San Jose and Hayward Unified School District, are leasing underutilized classrooms to child care operators and family resource centers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This summer, the child care organization Kidango plans to open an early learning center in partnership with the Ravenswood City School District in East Palo Alto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And just last week, the education board of the\u003ca href=\"https://media.edlio.net/4e6ffa79/cb3c8c98/895cb4aa/fd33c949db26461d800dcfc3beb0d387?_=04-21-26RegBdOBpostRev.pdf\"> Los Angeles Unified School District approved\u003c/a> placing more preschool classrooms on elementary school campuses as part of an ambitious plan to open more space for infants and toddlers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The district saw the steepest decline in enrollment in California over the last year — 4.5% compared to 1.3% statewide — and is hoping that families who send their child to a publicly-subsidized preschool program will stay in the same campus when they begin elementary school.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>But unlike these arrangements, Solano County transferred ownership of Vallejo Rise to Child Start, allowing the nonprofit to operate five classrooms and lease ten others to privately-owned child care providers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The $20 million project began in 2020, when Child Start needed to vacate a building it was leasing from the county. The agency had a tough time finding a facility in Vallejo that met the needs of its existing students, not to mention a space big enough to accommodate the long waitlist of families hoping to join.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Responding to the severe shortage of licensed child care spaces — which were only available for 23% of Solano County children, \u003ca href=\"https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/asr1451/viz/SolanoCountyCommunityIndicators/Home?publish=yes\">according to a 2023 study\u003c/a> — county leaders asked the Vallejo City Unified School District for a few spare rooms. As it happened, the district had an entire school available.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All over the state and nation, a declining birth rate and slowing immigration rates have contributed to enrollment loss. In Vallejo, \u003ca href=\"https://www.fcmat.org/PublicationsReports/Vallejo%20City%20FHRA%202025%20final.pdf#:~:text=Between%20the%202014%2D15%20and%202023%2D24%20school%20years%2C%20noncharter%20school%20enrollment%20decreased%20by%2031%25.\">school enrollment fell 30% \u003c/a>between the 2014-15 and 2023-24 school years. The plummeting enrollment fueled a fiscal crisis that has forced the district to downsize.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>First 5 Solano County, which distributes funds from a statewide tobacco tax to support local early childhood programs, worked with county leaders to buy the school for $2.8 million. Then, they pulled together county, state and federal dollars, along with private donations, to fund the rest of the redesign and renovation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Workers outfitted the classrooms with tiny toilets, sinks and kitchenettes, resurfaced the yards with artificial turf, and installed smaller-scale playgrounds and shade structures. In the hallways, new murals of animals greet the children at their eye level.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081819\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12081819\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-17-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-17-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-17-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-17-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A classroom at Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. The center recently opened, repurposing a former elementary school into a campus with classrooms, outdoor areas, and childcare space specifically designed for young children. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It really makes sense to take a public asset, make a one-time investment and turn it into something that you know isn’t just sitting empty but can really feed the community,” said Michele Harris, executive director of First 5 Solano.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The providers don’t pay facility fees. Instead, they share the costs of utilities and staff to manage the day-to-day operations of the center, allowing them to run their businesses at about half the cost, Cisneros said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>It helps them expand their business, but it also builds the workforce,” he said. “People who want to teach in this environment now have this space to be able to do it, and it’s going to bring a lot of new jobs into this community.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cisneros said Vallejo Rise is the only early learning center he knows of that houses multiple programs with their own early education philosophies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081818\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12081818\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-28-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-28-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-28-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-28-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A classroom at Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. The center recently opened, repurposing a former elementary school into a campus with classrooms, outdoor areas, and childcare space specifically designed for young children.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For Dionna Perkins, the new center is giving her a chance to grow her home-based Montessori preschool, Joyful Journeys, into something much bigger. She’s currently licensed to serve up to 14 children and often has a waitlist of seven to 10 families.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s crazy because I get a lot of parents that [sign up] when their child is in the womb,” Perkins said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, she’ll have three classrooms that can serve up to 48 kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I can happily say that we do have at least half available right now,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081809\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12081809\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-36-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-36-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-36-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-36-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Janet Walton, known as Ms. Janet, holds a child at Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. The center recently opened, repurposing a former elementary school into a campus with classrooms, outdoor areas, and childcare space specifically designed for young children. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The providers will share the cost of other resources, like the laundry machines, and save on big purchases, like cribs and classroom furniture.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a huge benefit because if you’re expanding, you have to find all of the funds for that by yourself,” Perkins said. “And in this economy, it’s hard, you know?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fundraising is underway to build a family resource center near the parking lot for anyone in the community seeking child care, a food pantry, and social services. The county’s Office of Education will also provide on-site coaching to early childhood educators who might need help supporting a child with special needs or developmental concerns, Harris said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To have that professional development on site where [the coaches] can respond right away, it’s just such a tremendous difference than being in isolation by yourself all day, every day,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081812\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12081812\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-43-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-43-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-43-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-43-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An aerial view of Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. The center recently opened, repurposing a former elementary school into a campus with classrooms, outdoor areas, and childcare space specifically designed for young children. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For Ruben Aurelio, the superintendent of Vallejo City Unified School District, the partnerships that were formed to create the center give him hope for the future of Vallejo. In its heyday, long before he led the district, more than 22,000 students were enrolled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re currently sitting around 9,000 students,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The closure of Mare Island Naval Shipyard in 1996 devastated the local economy, and the 2008 financial crisis led the city to declare bankruptcy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A high crime rate, police misconduct scandals and neglected infrastructure gave Vallejo a bad reputation. Declining enrollment and overspending also brought the school district to the brink of bankruptcy. After receiving a $60 million bailout from the state, it lost local control for 20 years and is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12046637/vallejo-city-unified-takes-back-local-control-of-schools-after-21-years\">emerging from state oversight\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12081814\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12081814 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-12-BL.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-12-BL.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-12-BL-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260428-VallejoChildCare-12-BL-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students play at Rise Vallejo, an early education center, in Vallejo on April 28, 2026. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Aurelio said the district will close three more elementary schools by the end of this school year as it seeks to “right-size” itself, and is looking at ways to reopen vacant or surplus facilities to benefit the community.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>We just don’t like seeing them sit empty,” he said. “That’s a blight on the community, and it diminishes that sort of pride that the community has.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After touring Rise Vallejo on its opening day celebration, Aurelio said he was heartened to see the school reimagined into something that brings value to the community.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But, there’s another benefit, he said, “Those preschoolers will hopefully feed my schools one day.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "bay-area-nature-camp-fights-bureaucracy-and-nimbyism-ahead-of-key-vote",
"title": "Bay Area Nature Camp Wins Key Approval for New Home After Fighting ‘Bureaucracy and NIMBYism’",
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"content": "\u003cp>Alameda County Supervisors have approved an outdoor education program’s plan to build a permanent campsite for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/bay-area\">Bay Area\u003c/a> school children in the rolling hills of Castro Valley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For 25 years, the Mosaic Project has been bringing tens of thousands of fourth and fifth graders from different backgrounds together for a week of learning in nature, renting land in Napa and Santa Cruz counties — locations that require long bus rides for the kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The organization spent $3 million and 10 years developing plans for a permanent home in Alameda County and hopes to serve up to 100 students per week, for about 130 days out of the year. It applied for a conditional land use permit to replace a former car storage building with cabins, a dining hall and staff residence on a piece of land off Cull Canyon Road.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>School leaders and parents praise its mission of teaching the students to resolve conflicts peacefully, and numerous students inspired by the experience come back as youth leaders or counselors. But the Oakland-based nonprofit faced an uncertain future due to fierce opposition by a small, but influential group of Castro Valley residents over its plans to establish the camp near their rural properties. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We give kids the experience of living in a welcoming, inclusive and joyful community. We’re the only ones that we know of that are doing this, and we’re in danger of not existing because of bureaucracy and NIMBYism,” Lara Mendel, co-founder of the project, said ahead of Thursday’s vote. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Board members voted 3-1 to allow the project to move forward. The only ‘no’ vote came from Nate Miley, the longtime supervisor who represents Castro Valley, an unincorporated community of 66,000 wedged between suburban sprawl and picturesque open spaces. Supporters of the outdoor recreation facility had questioned whether he can vote independently given that he appointed members of a municipal advisory council that unanimously rejected county staff recommendations to approve the project last August. \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12080109\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 1014px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12080109\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1014\" height=\"657\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-02-KQED.jpg 1014w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-02-KQED-160x104.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1014px) 100vw, 1014px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Mosaic Project’s proposed new facility would replace a former car storage building with cabins, a dining hall and staff residence on a piece of land off Cull Canyon Road in Castro Valley. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the Mosaic Project)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“The MAC has, I would say, not very diverse appointments, and amplifies a Castro Valley that I don’t think is Castro Valley writ large,” said Michael Kusiak, a school board member who wants to provide local students convenient access to the program.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said the appointees overwhelmingly represent “legacy voices” in the community who want to preserve the status quo in Castro Valley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Those voices tend to get amplified a bit more than others, and that’s frustrating, particularly when you hear people make these comments that makes you go, ‘What are we really talking about here, people? Maybe you want to say what you really mean,’” he said. “I haven’t found the arguments against the project to be very credible.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Miley also nominated the majority of a five-member zoning board that voted against the proposal in December.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://alamedacounty.granicus.com/player/clip/9984?view_id=3&redirect=true\">At that meeting\u003c/a>, members of the governing board said they were worried the facility would increase traffic and wildfire danger in the boxed canyon, as well as strain the local water supply, which depends on wells.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At Thursday’s board meeting, Miley said he wasn’t convinced by expert assessments that the project met fire safety requirements. He also worried about putting children close to a winery where alcohol consumption is permitted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To me it’s important that I put authenticity on the people who have lived in the canyon, who have experienced these issues and concerns, not academically, not by study, but by everyday existence,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Teddy Seibert, vice-chair of the West County Board of Zoning Adjustments, recused herself from voting in the December meeting because she owns a winery that shares boundaries with the Mosaic Project’s property. But in a letter submitted to the board, she called the proposal “a thinly-veiled attempt at urban expansion.” Her husband, Keith Seibert, said in public comments that he feared losing the winery’s license to serve alcohol if a youth facility moved in next door.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12080113\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12080113\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-2000x1333.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">This rendering shows plans for the Mosaic Project’s proposed permanent home in Alameda County, which it hopes will serve up to 100 students per week, for about 130 days out of the year, at a proposed new permanent facility in Castro Valley. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the Mosaic Project)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Chuck Shipman, a resident of the Sequoians nudist club at the end of the road, said: “I would kind of feel concerned if somebody comes in there and says, ‘Well, I don’t want my kids around a nudist resort.’ That would affect our business also.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another resident worried about additional noise from “100 fourth and fifth graders at an evening campfire or tromping through the hills collecting forest products.” Several others sought to redefine the program as a school, which would violate Measure D, a 26-year-old initiative Miley championed to restrict urban development in rural parts of Alameda County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, the Mosaic Project’s land use attorney, David Smith, said an environmental review and scientific studies by outside consultants have addressed these concerns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said the facility, which would cover just two acres of the 37-acre property, will be built with fire-resistant materials that would create a break in the canyon in the event of a conflagration. Water tanks at the site would be reserved for fire suppression that everyone in the canyon can use.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have put in exhaustive modeling from fire experts of all possible scenarios,” Smith said. “It’s undisputed that the wildfire risk for the canyon as a whole is materially improved with the project than without it.”[aside postID=news_12078183 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/031626_PINNACLESFORTHEDAY-_GH_040-KQED.jpg']Hydrologists also discovered a plentiful and drinkable water source on the site. As for the winery’s concern, Smith pointed out that a state law that refuses alcohol licenses for businesses near youth facilities doesn’t apply to those seeking a renewal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They herald [the Mosaic Project] but say it’s the wrong place for it, because a winery is the right place for parties but not for kids next door? That’s just hard to accept,” Smith said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Email messages seeking comments from the Seiberts, owners of the TwiningVine Estate Winery, have not been returned.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Grace Russell, an eighth grade student at Oakland School of the Arts, said the long rides to the Santa Cruz Mountains created “a lot of anticipating” when she went on her first-ever overnight camp with the Mosaic Project four years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think having Mosaic closer to where most of the schools are [located] would make a big impact because not only is it easier to get there, but then on the first day there’s more time for doing ‘get to know you’ activities, and there’s time on the last day for people to say their goodbyes,” Russell said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Russell plans to return to Mosaic in the fall as a youth leader.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a little bit hard to understand why people don’t want Mosaic in their community, just because of how much it helps people,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mendel said the rental locations also create unsustainable commutes for the staff, who mostly live in the East Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We go away for six weeks, and people give up their life for this,” she said. “We’ve lost amazing staff because they fall in love and they want a family and they can’t be leaving for six, seven weeks a session.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A permanent location in Castro Valley would keep the program going in the long term, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The Alameda County Board of Supervisors voted 3-1 to allow the Mosaic Project to move forward with plans to build an outdoors education facility in Castro Valley, amid fierce opposition from a cohort of residents. \r\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Alameda County Supervisors have approved an outdoor education program’s plan to build a permanent campsite for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/bay-area\">Bay Area\u003c/a> school children in the rolling hills of Castro Valley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For 25 years, the Mosaic Project has been bringing tens of thousands of fourth and fifth graders from different backgrounds together for a week of learning in nature, renting land in Napa and Santa Cruz counties — locations that require long bus rides for the kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The organization spent $3 million and 10 years developing plans for a permanent home in Alameda County and hopes to serve up to 100 students per week, for about 130 days out of the year. It applied for a conditional land use permit to replace a former car storage building with cabins, a dining hall and staff residence on a piece of land off Cull Canyon Road.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>School leaders and parents praise its mission of teaching the students to resolve conflicts peacefully, and numerous students inspired by the experience come back as youth leaders or counselors. But the Oakland-based nonprofit faced an uncertain future due to fierce opposition by a small, but influential group of Castro Valley residents over its plans to establish the camp near their rural properties. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We give kids the experience of living in a welcoming, inclusive and joyful community. We’re the only ones that we know of that are doing this, and we’re in danger of not existing because of bureaucracy and NIMBYism,” Lara Mendel, co-founder of the project, said ahead of Thursday’s vote. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Board members voted 3-1 to allow the project to move forward. The only ‘no’ vote came from Nate Miley, the longtime supervisor who represents Castro Valley, an unincorporated community of 66,000 wedged between suburban sprawl and picturesque open spaces. Supporters of the outdoor recreation facility had questioned whether he can vote independently given that he appointed members of a municipal advisory council that unanimously rejected county staff recommendations to approve the project last August. \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12080109\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 1014px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12080109\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1014\" height=\"657\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-02-KQED.jpg 1014w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-02-KQED-160x104.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1014px) 100vw, 1014px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Mosaic Project’s proposed new facility would replace a former car storage building with cabins, a dining hall and staff residence on a piece of land off Cull Canyon Road in Castro Valley. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the Mosaic Project)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“The MAC has, I would say, not very diverse appointments, and amplifies a Castro Valley that I don’t think is Castro Valley writ large,” said Michael Kusiak, a school board member who wants to provide local students convenient access to the program.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said the appointees overwhelmingly represent “legacy voices” in the community who want to preserve the status quo in Castro Valley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Those voices tend to get amplified a bit more than others, and that’s frustrating, particularly when you hear people make these comments that makes you go, ‘What are we really talking about here, people? Maybe you want to say what you really mean,’” he said. “I haven’t found the arguments against the project to be very credible.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Miley also nominated the majority of a five-member zoning board that voted against the proposal in December.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://alamedacounty.granicus.com/player/clip/9984?view_id=3&redirect=true\">At that meeting\u003c/a>, members of the governing board said they were worried the facility would increase traffic and wildfire danger in the boxed canyon, as well as strain the local water supply, which depends on wells.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At Thursday’s board meeting, Miley said he wasn’t convinced by expert assessments that the project met fire safety requirements. He also worried about putting children close to a winery where alcohol consumption is permitted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To me it’s important that I put authenticity on the people who have lived in the canyon, who have experienced these issues and concerns, not academically, not by study, but by everyday existence,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Teddy Seibert, vice-chair of the West County Board of Zoning Adjustments, recused herself from voting in the December meeting because she owns a winery that shares boundaries with the Mosaic Project’s property. But in a letter submitted to the board, she called the proposal “a thinly-veiled attempt at urban expansion.” Her husband, Keith Seibert, said in public comments that he feared losing the winery’s license to serve alcohol if a youth facility moved in next door.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12080113\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12080113\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-2000x1333.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260415-Mosaic-Project-06-KQED-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">This rendering shows plans for the Mosaic Project’s proposed permanent home in Alameda County, which it hopes will serve up to 100 students per week, for about 130 days out of the year, at a proposed new permanent facility in Castro Valley. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the Mosaic Project)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Chuck Shipman, a resident of the Sequoians nudist club at the end of the road, said: “I would kind of feel concerned if somebody comes in there and says, ‘Well, I don’t want my kids around a nudist resort.’ That would affect our business also.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another resident worried about additional noise from “100 fourth and fifth graders at an evening campfire or tromping through the hills collecting forest products.” Several others sought to redefine the program as a school, which would violate Measure D, a 26-year-old initiative Miley championed to restrict urban development in rural parts of Alameda County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, the Mosaic Project’s land use attorney, David Smith, said an environmental review and scientific studies by outside consultants have addressed these concerns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said the facility, which would cover just two acres of the 37-acre property, will be built with fire-resistant materials that would create a break in the canyon in the event of a conflagration. Water tanks at the site would be reserved for fire suppression that everyone in the canyon can use.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have put in exhaustive modeling from fire experts of all possible scenarios,” Smith said. “It’s undisputed that the wildfire risk for the canyon as a whole is materially improved with the project than without it.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Hydrologists also discovered a plentiful and drinkable water source on the site. As for the winery’s concern, Smith pointed out that a state law that refuses alcohol licenses for businesses near youth facilities doesn’t apply to those seeking a renewal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They herald [the Mosaic Project] but say it’s the wrong place for it, because a winery is the right place for parties but not for kids next door? That’s just hard to accept,” Smith said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Email messages seeking comments from the Seiberts, owners of the TwiningVine Estate Winery, have not been returned.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Grace Russell, an eighth grade student at Oakland School of the Arts, said the long rides to the Santa Cruz Mountains created “a lot of anticipating” when she went on her first-ever overnight camp with the Mosaic Project four years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think having Mosaic closer to where most of the schools are [located] would make a big impact because not only is it easier to get there, but then on the first day there’s more time for doing ‘get to know you’ activities, and there’s time on the last day for people to say their goodbyes,” Russell said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Russell plans to return to Mosaic in the fall as a youth leader.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a little bit hard to understand why people don’t want Mosaic in their community, just because of how much it helps people,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mendel said the rental locations also create unsustainable commutes for the staff, who mostly live in the East Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We go away for six weeks, and people give up their life for this,” she said. “We’ve lost amazing staff because they fall in love and they want a family and they can’t be leaving for six, seven weeks a session.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A permanent location in Castro Valley would keep the program going in the long term, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "rising-child-care-costs-force-parents-to-choose-career-or-kids",
"title": "Rising Child Care Costs Force Parents to Choose: Career or Kids?",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cspan data-slate-node=\"text\">\u003cspan class=\"sc-hHOBiw iVhMEe\" data-slate-leaf=\"true\">Rising child care prices leave many Bay Area parents with little choice but to turn down career opportunities, cut back hours, or even quit. As part of \u003c/span>\u003c/span>\u003ca class=\"e-10223-text-link e-10223-overflow-wrap-anywhere encore-internal-color-text-announcement e-10223-text-link--use-focus sc-kzqdkY fnwgHd\" href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\" data-encore-id=\"textLink\" data-slate-node=\"element\" data-slate-inline=\"true\">\u003cspan data-slate-node=\"text\">\u003cspan class=\"sc-hHOBiw iVhMEe\" data-slate-leaf=\"true\">\u003cu>KQED’s new series on affordability,\u003c/u>\u003c/span>\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan data-slate-node=\"text\" data-slate-fragment=\"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\">\u003cspan class=\"sc-hHOBiw iVhMEe\" data-slate-leaf=\"true\"> early childhood education reporter Daisy Nguyen introduces us to one mother who left her job as a teacher after the birth of her third child.\u003c/span>\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https://playlist.megaphone.fm?e=KQINC3027698464&light=true\" width=\"100%\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Links:\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12075761/when-child-care-costs-half-a-paycheck-bay-area-parents-must-choose-kids-or-career\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">When Child Care Costs Half a Paycheck, Bay Area Parents Must Choose: Kids or Career | KQED\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">How We Get By | KQED\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by The Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, San Francisco-Northern California Local.\u003c/span>\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Episode transcript\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan class=\"\" title=\"\">\u003ci>This is a computer-generated transcript. While our team has reviewed it, there may be errors.\u003c/i>\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:00:00] I’m Alan Montecillo, in for Ericka Cruz Guevarra, and welcome to The Bay. Local news to keep you rooted. A few years ago, Annie Malekzadeh was shopping at a Joanne Fabrics in Concord.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:00:16] And I had my, I think I was pregnant with my second kiddo at that time and had my older son in the shopping cart.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:00:25] While she was waiting for her fabric to get cut, she struck up a conversation with an older woman who was also waiting. But then the woman said something to Annie that stung her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:00:36] She said something along the lines of, I don’t know why you would want more than two. It’s basically impossible in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:00:44] Annie and her husband now have three children, ages eight, six, and three.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:00:50] I think back on that a lot because at the time I was like, how dare she? But now I’m like, oh, that was right. It’s really hard.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:01:03] Child care in America has gotten even more expensive. Between 2020 and 2024, prices shot up almost 30%. Here in the Bay Area, child care costs are higher than almost anywhere else in the country. For families with multiple young kids, it can cost more than a parent’s entire salary, which means that many mothers, like Annie, have a painful choice to make. Keep pursuing your career or take care of your child.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:01:35] I never ever planned to be a stay-at-home mom. I thought coming into motherhood that you could do it all, and that hasn’t been my experience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:01:49] As part of KQED’s new series on affordability, we meet one mom in the East Bay who had to choose between her job and childcare.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:02:06] Next to housing, child care is one of the biggest expenses for families.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:02:11] Daisy Nguyen covers early childhood education for KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:02:15] Almost everywhere, but in the Bay Area, prices are just really high. And there are a couple of different reasons for that. Child care is labor-intensive. Little babies need constant care, and if you want good, high-quality care, you need to have trained workers. You need a safe space where children receive the care. Insurance, utilities, food, maybe supplies to, you know, to provide proper care. And that’s, and you know those costs have gone up too. So they’ve had to raise their tuition. What it means is that the cost to provide care is more than what parents can afford.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:03:09] So for this story, you talk to a few different parents who are navigating this world of expensive childcare, having to make trade-offs. One of them is a woman named Annie. Tell me a bit about her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:03:27] I went to Diablo Valley College and I met Annie Malekzadeh because I wanted to talk to her about how she, as a parent, is making things work with child care in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:03:39] Making friends with other moms is essential. If you’re going to be five minutes late to pick up, like you have to have someone else that you can text be like, can you grab my kid for me real quick? I’ll be a couple minutes late, but I’ll be there.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:03:53] She lives in Pleasant Hill and she’s a mom of three kids under the age of eight. They’re about two and a half years apart, her kids. She’s a part-time student at Diablo Valley College. She’s pursuing a master’s degree in math and before that she was a middle school math teacher.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:04:11] That was my plan and I didn’t ever expect to deviate from that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:04:16] She really enjoys being a teacher. She’s from a family of teachers. Her grandparents were teachers. She really saw that was her career. When she had two kids, child care costs were still manageable. She was still working part time. And with her husband’s income as a psychiatrist, child care cost were manageable. But when she had her third child, that’s when everything changed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:04:43] I feel very fortunate that I, you know, got through having our second kid and didn’t feel done. And instead of living with the potential of like regretting it for the rest of my life, I was able to say, hey, can we have another one? Can we like, work that into the budget?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:05:01] The total amount shot up to $56,000 a year. She was earning $32,000 dollars a year with her part-time job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:05:11] We wanted to find a child care location that was licensed. If your baby is going to spend the majority of their day with a caregiver, you want to make sure that that caregiver is trained and able to do a really great job and that unfortunately costs more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:05:32] And that was like double her part-time salary because she was only working like 25 hours per week. It was just particularly painful to see how much she was paying.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:05:42] When we ran the numbers for the child care for all three of them for before and after care and preschool and my youngest would have still been in infant care it was still $1,182 per week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:05:57] Yeah, and I imagine, I mean, it’s not like it was breaking news to her that child care is expensive, but with her first two children, it seems like she was able to make it work with working part-time and a career she’s passionate about, but it seems with this, even with her husband’s salary, it just didn’t seem sustainable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:06:14] Yeah, she said it was just causing them a lot of stress. So yeah, that led to her just deciding at the end of the school year to quit her job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:06:24] I loved it. I hate leaving. My grandparents were both educators. My grandfather was an art teacher and my grandma was an elementary school teacher in Ventura. They were beloved by their community and they were really excited when I chose to become a teacher.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:06:41] There are lots of trade-offs. I mean, besides the biggest one that Annie is making, other trade-off, she said that she’s just really had to take a close look at her budget.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:06:55] My husband was like really hanging on to the cable and I was like we don’t watch it we can’t.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:07:01] She shops at Costco because the grocery shopping is quite expensive. Buying in bulk is usually cheaper.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:07:09] I started tutoring on the side so that helps just a little bit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:07:13] And she’s cutting out whatever she can to trim her budget each month to make it work.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:07:41] How typical is a story like this? Have you heard similar things from other families?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:07:47] Yeah, like a couple of months ago, we did this survey, and we got at least 40 responses from many families. Usually these are couples who said that it’s one person in the partnership had to take a step back from the career, give up career opportunities, or just work less or quit so that they could afford child care. Statewide I think it’s also an issue like the Stanford Center on Early Childhood had conducted a survey of California parents with children under the age of six and they found that three and four families with young children reported difficulty meeting one or more basic needs so child care health care housing food utilities like three and four that’s a significant number.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:08:43] So it sounds like Annie’s story is part of a broader trend, but within a partnership, who tends to be the most impacted by this?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:08:52] In Annie’s situation, she made it clear that her husband made way more money than her. And so the default went to her, the mom, because she needed to have more flexibility to be there for her children.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:09:06] A lot of parenting default goes to mom a lot of the time. Not all the time, but a lot at the time!\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:09:15] In a lot of the partnerships, it’s the women who earn less. And so they’re usually the ones who have to make some sort of sacrifice with their career. Most experts say that when women take time away from the workforce, it means they’ll have to work longer into their retirement to make up for their time away. I cited in my story a study by KPMG, the financial firm, which found that after the pandemic. There was a spike in the number of college-educated women with young children who left the workforce. Whereas for dads of young children, their workforce participation continued to increase.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:10:05] And that accelerated post-COVID because of.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:10:07] A couple of reasons, there’s just an increasing shortage of available child care because the workforce has really suffered since the pandemic. The second reason is the return to office policy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:10:21] Less flexibility.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:10:22] Less flexibility, correct.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:10:24] I want to come back to Annie for a little bit, Daisy. So faced with the prospect of being $56,000 a year for childcare, she ultimately decides to leave her job as a teacher. So how did that decision affect her family?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:10:42] Right now it’s saving her $600 a month. As her kids have gotten older, like two of them are now in public elementary school. So that’s already as savings. And then her youngest is still in preschool. He’s now three. But having him in full-time preschool is giving her an opportunity to do something else. She decided to enroll in Diablo Valley College.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:11:11] I’m wanting to pursue a second master’s degree at this point. I’m hoping for a career in statistics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen\u003c/strong>[00:11:19] Hopefully she can find a higher paying job to make up for this time that she’s spending away from the labor market.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:11:28] Daisy, this KQED series is about affordability, about the trade-offs that people all across the region make every single day to make it work. But policy-wise, is there any help on the way for people like Annie?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:11:41] A lot of states are, you know, recognizing this is an issue. New Mexico is offering free child care that the governor there said it might save families an average of $12,000 annually. Vermont passed a payroll tax to raise money to provide some financial assistance for child care. And cities like New York and San Francisco are expanding access to free or subsidized child care to income-eligible families. So what’s next in California is really trying to figure out how can the state increase access for infant to three-year-old care, because that’s really what’s–\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:12:24] That’s Annie’s situation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:12:25] Yeah, it’s definitely Annie’s situation You know, when parents have to take a step back or walk away from the workforce to take care of children, it has a ripple effect on the broader economy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:12:45] Both parents to be in the workforce, you know, something needs to happen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:12:51] She left the classroom. There were students who were relying on her to learn their math. So I think that we can think about the ripple effects in so many ways.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:13:05] Daisy, thank you so much.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cspan data-slate-node=\"text\">\u003cspan class=\"sc-hHOBiw iVhMEe\" data-slate-leaf=\"true\">Rising child care prices leave many Bay Area parents with little choice but to turn down career opportunities, cut back hours, or even quit. As part of \u003c/span>\u003c/span>\u003ca class=\"e-10223-text-link e-10223-overflow-wrap-anywhere encore-internal-color-text-announcement e-10223-text-link--use-focus sc-kzqdkY fnwgHd\" href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\" data-encore-id=\"textLink\" data-slate-node=\"element\" data-slate-inline=\"true\">\u003cspan data-slate-node=\"text\">\u003cspan class=\"sc-hHOBiw iVhMEe\" data-slate-leaf=\"true\">\u003cu>KQED’s new series on affordability,\u003c/u>\u003c/span>\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan data-slate-node=\"text\" data-slate-fragment=\"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\">\u003cspan class=\"sc-hHOBiw iVhMEe\" data-slate-leaf=\"true\"> early childhood education reporter Daisy Nguyen introduces us to one mother who left her job as a teacher after the birth of her third child.\u003c/span>\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https://playlist.megaphone.fm?e=KQINC3027698464&light=true\" width=\"100%\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Links:\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12075761/when-child-care-costs-half-a-paycheck-bay-area-parents-must-choose-kids-or-career\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">When Child Care Costs Half a Paycheck, Bay Area Parents Must Choose: Kids or Career | KQED\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">How We Get By | KQED\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by The Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, San Francisco-Northern California Local.\u003c/span>\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Episode transcript\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan class=\"\" title=\"\">\u003ci>This is a computer-generated transcript. While our team has reviewed it, there may be errors.\u003c/i>\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:00:00] I’m Alan Montecillo, in for Ericka Cruz Guevarra, and welcome to The Bay. Local news to keep you rooted. A few years ago, Annie Malekzadeh was shopping at a Joanne Fabrics in Concord.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:00:16] And I had my, I think I was pregnant with my second kiddo at that time and had my older son in the shopping cart.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:00:25] While she was waiting for her fabric to get cut, she struck up a conversation with an older woman who was also waiting. But then the woman said something to Annie that stung her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:00:36] She said something along the lines of, I don’t know why you would want more than two. It’s basically impossible in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:00:44] Annie and her husband now have three children, ages eight, six, and three.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:00:50] I think back on that a lot because at the time I was like, how dare she? But now I’m like, oh, that was right. It’s really hard.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:01:03] Child care in America has gotten even more expensive. Between 2020 and 2024, prices shot up almost 30%. Here in the Bay Area, child care costs are higher than almost anywhere else in the country. For families with multiple young kids, it can cost more than a parent’s entire salary, which means that many mothers, like Annie, have a painful choice to make. Keep pursuing your career or take care of your child.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:01:35] I never ever planned to be a stay-at-home mom. I thought coming into motherhood that you could do it all, and that hasn’t been my experience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:01:49] As part of KQED’s new series on affordability, we meet one mom in the East Bay who had to choose between her job and childcare.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:02:06] Next to housing, child care is one of the biggest expenses for families.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:02:11] Daisy Nguyen covers early childhood education for KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:02:15] Almost everywhere, but in the Bay Area, prices are just really high. And there are a couple of different reasons for that. Child care is labor-intensive. Little babies need constant care, and if you want good, high-quality care, you need to have trained workers. You need a safe space where children receive the care. Insurance, utilities, food, maybe supplies to, you know, to provide proper care. And that’s, and you know those costs have gone up too. So they’ve had to raise their tuition. What it means is that the cost to provide care is more than what parents can afford.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:03:09] So for this story, you talk to a few different parents who are navigating this world of expensive childcare, having to make trade-offs. One of them is a woman named Annie. Tell me a bit about her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:03:27] I went to Diablo Valley College and I met Annie Malekzadeh because I wanted to talk to her about how she, as a parent, is making things work with child care in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:03:39] Making friends with other moms is essential. If you’re going to be five minutes late to pick up, like you have to have someone else that you can text be like, can you grab my kid for me real quick? I’ll be a couple minutes late, but I’ll be there.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:03:53] She lives in Pleasant Hill and she’s a mom of three kids under the age of eight. They’re about two and a half years apart, her kids. She’s a part-time student at Diablo Valley College. She’s pursuing a master’s degree in math and before that she was a middle school math teacher.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:04:11] That was my plan and I didn’t ever expect to deviate from that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:04:16] She really enjoys being a teacher. She’s from a family of teachers. Her grandparents were teachers. She really saw that was her career. When she had two kids, child care costs were still manageable. She was still working part time. And with her husband’s income as a psychiatrist, child care cost were manageable. But when she had her third child, that’s when everything changed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:04:43] I feel very fortunate that I, you know, got through having our second kid and didn’t feel done. And instead of living with the potential of like regretting it for the rest of my life, I was able to say, hey, can we have another one? Can we like, work that into the budget?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:05:01] The total amount shot up to $56,000 a year. She was earning $32,000 dollars a year with her part-time job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:05:11] We wanted to find a child care location that was licensed. If your baby is going to spend the majority of their day with a caregiver, you want to make sure that that caregiver is trained and able to do a really great job and that unfortunately costs more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:05:32] And that was like double her part-time salary because she was only working like 25 hours per week. It was just particularly painful to see how much she was paying.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:05:42] When we ran the numbers for the child care for all three of them for before and after care and preschool and my youngest would have still been in infant care it was still $1,182 per week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:05:57] Yeah, and I imagine, I mean, it’s not like it was breaking news to her that child care is expensive, but with her first two children, it seems like she was able to make it work with working part-time and a career she’s passionate about, but it seems with this, even with her husband’s salary, it just didn’t seem sustainable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:06:14] Yeah, she said it was just causing them a lot of stress. So yeah, that led to her just deciding at the end of the school year to quit her job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:06:24] I loved it. I hate leaving. My grandparents were both educators. My grandfather was an art teacher and my grandma was an elementary school teacher in Ventura. They were beloved by their community and they were really excited when I chose to become a teacher.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:06:41] There are lots of trade-offs. I mean, besides the biggest one that Annie is making, other trade-off, she said that she’s just really had to take a close look at her budget.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:06:55] My husband was like really hanging on to the cable and I was like we don’t watch it we can’t.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:07:01] She shops at Costco because the grocery shopping is quite expensive. Buying in bulk is usually cheaper.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:07:09] I started tutoring on the side so that helps just a little bit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:07:13] And she’s cutting out whatever she can to trim her budget each month to make it work.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:07:41] How typical is a story like this? Have you heard similar things from other families?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:07:47] Yeah, like a couple of months ago, we did this survey, and we got at least 40 responses from many families. Usually these are couples who said that it’s one person in the partnership had to take a step back from the career, give up career opportunities, or just work less or quit so that they could afford child care. Statewide I think it’s also an issue like the Stanford Center on Early Childhood had conducted a survey of California parents with children under the age of six and they found that three and four families with young children reported difficulty meeting one or more basic needs so child care health care housing food utilities like three and four that’s a significant number.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:08:43] So it sounds like Annie’s story is part of a broader trend, but within a partnership, who tends to be the most impacted by this?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:08:52] In Annie’s situation, she made it clear that her husband made way more money than her. And so the default went to her, the mom, because she needed to have more flexibility to be there for her children.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:09:06] A lot of parenting default goes to mom a lot of the time. Not all the time, but a lot at the time!\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:09:15] In a lot of the partnerships, it’s the women who earn less. And so they’re usually the ones who have to make some sort of sacrifice with their career. Most experts say that when women take time away from the workforce, it means they’ll have to work longer into their retirement to make up for their time away. I cited in my story a study by KPMG, the financial firm, which found that after the pandemic. There was a spike in the number of college-educated women with young children who left the workforce. Whereas for dads of young children, their workforce participation continued to increase.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:10:05] And that accelerated post-COVID because of.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:10:07] A couple of reasons, there’s just an increasing shortage of available child care because the workforce has really suffered since the pandemic. The second reason is the return to office policy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:10:21] Less flexibility.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:10:22] Less flexibility, correct.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:10:24] I want to come back to Annie for a little bit, Daisy. So faced with the prospect of being $56,000 a year for childcare, she ultimately decides to leave her job as a teacher. So how did that decision affect her family?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:10:42] Right now it’s saving her $600 a month. As her kids have gotten older, like two of them are now in public elementary school. So that’s already as savings. And then her youngest is still in preschool. He’s now three. But having him in full-time preschool is giving her an opportunity to do something else. She decided to enroll in Diablo Valley College.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:11:11] I’m wanting to pursue a second master’s degree at this point. I’m hoping for a career in statistics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen\u003c/strong>[00:11:19] Hopefully she can find a higher paying job to make up for this time that she’s spending away from the labor market.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:11:28] Daisy, this KQED series is about affordability, about the trade-offs that people all across the region make every single day to make it work. But policy-wise, is there any help on the way for people like Annie?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:11:41] A lot of states are, you know, recognizing this is an issue. New Mexico is offering free child care that the governor there said it might save families an average of $12,000 annually. Vermont passed a payroll tax to raise money to provide some financial assistance for child care. And cities like New York and San Francisco are expanding access to free or subsidized child care to income-eligible families. So what’s next in California is really trying to figure out how can the state increase access for infant to three-year-old care, because that’s really what’s–\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:12:24] That’s Annie’s situation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:12:25] Yeah, it’s definitely Annie’s situation You know, when parents have to take a step back or walk away from the workforce to take care of children, it has a ripple effect on the broader economy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Annie Malekzadeh \u003c/strong>[00:12:45] Both parents to be in the workforce, you know, something needs to happen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Daisy Nguyen \u003c/strong>[00:12:51] She left the classroom. There were students who were relying on her to learn their math. So I think that we can think about the ripple effects in so many ways.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Alan Montecillo \u003c/strong>[00:13:05] Daisy, thank you so much.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of \u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">How We Get By\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">full series here\u003c/a>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Annie Malekzadeh was shopping at a Joanne Fabrics store in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/concord\">Concord\u003c/a> a couple of years ago when she had an encounter that stung her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An older woman who saw her pregnant while pushing her toddler son in a shopping cart, told her: “I don’t know why you would want more than two [children]. It’s basically impossible in the Bay Area.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“At the time I was like, how dare she?” she said. “But now I’m like, oh, [she] was right. It’s really hard.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Malekzadeh wound up having another baby, and the decision to have three kids pushed her child care expenses to roughly $56,000 a year and ultimately changed the course of her career.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12061802/how-are-child-care-costs-affecting-the-lives-of-bay-area-families-you-told-us\">Rising child care costs in the Bay Area\u003c/a> are forcing parents to make painful tradeoffs, either by passing up career opportunities, cutting back work hours, or quitting altogether. For families with multiple young children, these expenses can surpass a parent’s entire salary, disproportionately affecting mothers and shaping their long-term economic security.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Malekzadeh’s story is just one example of how the gap between what families can afford and the actual cost of care is pushing parents to find creative solutions — and prompting calls for systemic change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Child care has long been expensive for parents, but recently it’s been even more so.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078461\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078461\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00035_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00035_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00035_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00035_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Annie Malekzadeh, a mom who quit her teaching job to save on child care and is now pursuing her master’s degree in mathematics, studies at Pleasant Hill Library in Pleasant Hill on April 1, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Prices shot up almost 30% between 2020 and 2024, outpacing inflation by 7 percentage points, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.childcareaware.org/price-landscape24/\">a survey of child care resource and referral organizations \u003c/a>around the country. In just the last year, 40% of child care programs in California \u003ca href=\"https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/user-174467/2026_survey_brief.pdf\">reported raising tuition \u003c/a>to offset rising operating costs like insurance and food.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Four years ago, Malekzadeh was a math teacher at a private middle school, earning roughly $32,000 annually and working 25 hours per week. At the time, her son was in kindergarten and her daughter in preschool. Her husband is a psychiatrist, she said, and because he earned more money and worked more hours, most of the parenting responsibilities went to her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With their joint income, the cost of preschool and before- and afterschool care was manageable for the Pleasant Hill couple. But when their baby boy came along in July 2022, and needed full-time infant care, the amount for all three kids’ care — about $4,700 per month — was almost double her teacher’s salary.[aside postID=news_12070762 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/240911-CHILDCARE-REAX-MD-01_qed.jpg']“It didn’t make sense,” she said. “My job wasn’t really making enough of a contribution to justify that kind of expense.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the time the school year ended, Malekzadeh decided to quit, even though she didn’t want to leave a profession she loved.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My grandparents were both educators,” she said. “They were beloved by their community, and they were really excited when I chose to become a teacher. So that was my plan, and I didn’t ever expect to deviate from that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The move is saving about $600 a week in child care. The older two are in public school, and the youngest is still in preschool. While he’s in care, Malekzadeh takes classes at Diablo Valley College as she pursues a master’s degree in math, which she hopes will ultimately lead to a higher-paying job to make up for time away from the labor market.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When you quit to stay home with your kids, it creates gaps in your resume that a lot of places don’t necessarily look nicely at,” Melakzadeh said. “You have to have some kind of explanation for that, which might translate into less pay.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Child care prices vary by region and depend on a child’s age and the type of provider. In California, full-time infant care in 2024 cost an average of $22,628, which is 16% of the average married couple’s income and 50% of a single parent’s. Bay Area families pay the highest child care prices \u003ca href=\"https://tootris.com/edu/blog/parents/cost-of-child-care-in-california-by-city-age-and-type-of-care-provider/?utm_source=chatgpt.com\">compared to other parts of California\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078462\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12078462 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00228_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00228_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00228_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00228_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Annie Malekzadeh plays a card game with her daughter as they wait for her older son to finish school at Valhalla Elementary School in Pleasant Hill on April 1, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The spike in prices came as companies began mandating employees return to work and \u003ca href=\"https://rapidsurveyproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/arpa-funding-factsheet-aug2023.pdf\">child care providers lost federal funds\u003c/a> meant to help them recover from the pandemic. Less flexibility and high costs led to a decline in labor force participation for moms of children under the age of 5, and college-educated moms in particular, according to\u003ca href=\"https://kpmg.com/us/en/articles/2025/october-2025-the-great-exit.html\"> an analysis by the financial firm KPMG.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Their labor force participation declined by 2.3 percentage points, while the number of college-educated dads of young children who were working or seeking a job continued to increase.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Families are facing child care prices that are higher than the price of rent or mortgage. So this is a huge problem. It’s one of the biggest expenses in a family’s budgets,” said Julie Kashen, a researcher at The Century Foundation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078476\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078476\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-04-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-04-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-04-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-04-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nolan Cruz eats oatmeal for breakfast in the morning on Oct. 27, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The progressive think tank conducted an October survey of 1,400 voters about their affordability concerns. Kashen said that while all families are facing rising costs, it’s women who experience a greater threat to their economic security.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Women are faring worse in terms of taking on debt to cover their basics, borrowing from friends and families to pay the bills,” she said. “So when you add child care on top of that, I think it’s incredibly challenging.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those challenges led Amy Cruz to walk away from a six-figure nursing job to freelance as a dance teacher and care for her 3-year-old son, Nolan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078474\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078474\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1346\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-02-KQED-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-02-KQED-1536x1034.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Brandon and Nolan Cruz cook oatmeal for breakfast on Oct. 27, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Until he was about two years old, Cruz paid $3,000 per month to share a nanny with another family for just four days a week of child care (on the fifth day, she leaned on family members to look after him). While child care wasn’t the only reason she left her job, it was a significant factor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Essentially, half of my monthly income was going to child care,” Cruz said. “Watching that much money leave our account every month was tough.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Once Nolan was old enough to start preschool, she enrolled him in a three-day program near her Berkeley home, which cut her child care costs in half. When he’s there, she teaches dance — something she did professionally before going to nursing school — to afford his tuition. With a second baby on the way, she also figured that it was “worth it to make a little less money but be able to be with my kids more.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078475\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078475\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-03-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-03-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-03-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Amy Cruz picks raspberries for her son Nolan’s breakfast in the morning on Oct. 27, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Economists call child care a broken market because the actual cost of providing care is a lot more than what families can afford to pay. In California, \u003ca href=\"https://rrnetwork.org/assets/general-files/California.pdf\">the demand for licensed infant care exceeds supply\u003c/a> because it’s the most expensive and labor-intensive. Babies need constant care, and California has strict rules limiting the number of children each adult can care for in a licensed child care home or center.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the same time, low pay and benefits have made it tough for child care providers to attract or retain early educators. In January, nearly half of providers said they didn’t have enough staff to enroll children at capacity, according to a survey by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For providers, energy costs, food, insurance have all gone up,” said Matthew Nestler, senior economist at KPMG. “They can’t necessarily raise their workers’ wages to the degree that they would like to.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078473\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078473\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-01-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">(From left) Brandon, Amy and Nolan Cruz prepare breakfast and pack a lunch for Nolan in the morning on Oct. 27, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The shortage can cause parents to weave in and out of the workforce. Malezadeh first left her job when her eldest child was born eight years ago, and she couldn’t find an open infant care slot when her maternity leave ended. She didn’t know she had to reserve months in advance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We didn’t actually find any kind of daycare spot for him until he was two, and by then, I was already expecting my second child,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Malekzadeh stayed out of teaching for four years and went back to work when her first two kids were a little older.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But after a year, the costs of infant care for her youngest, combined with her older children’s care, were too great, and she left her job again.[aside postID=news_12078480 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/AffordabilitySeriesIntro_Lede.jpg']Kashen, from The Century Foundation, said public investment can help close the gap between what parents like Malekzadeh and Cruz can afford and what it actually costs to provide child care. As an example, she pointed to New Mexico’s recent move to offer free child care for all residents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When governments invest in child care, that is the biggest thing that we can do because right now what we have is essentially a DIY, do-it-yourself, system for families where everyone’s on their own,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last month, Cruz gave birth to a daughter. During her pregnancy, she considered becoming a nanny so she could take care of her baby alongside someone else’s, allowing her to make some money. She also thought about continuing to teach dance part-time, and while she’s at work, trading child care responsibilities with other parents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’ve been thinking about it more and more, because I can make more money teaching dance than doing my own nanny share,” Cruz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Building a community with other parents has helped Malekzadeh get by when she’s in a child care pinch.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you’re gonna be five minutes late to pick up, you have to have someone else that you can text, and be like, ‘Can you grab my kid for me real quick?’” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078901\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078901\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-affordabilitychildcare00326_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-affordabilitychildcare00326_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-affordabilitychildcare00326_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-affordabilitychildcare00326_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Annie Malekzadeh walks her kids home after school in Pleasant Hill on April 1, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Malekzadeh tutors on the side to make some money and said she’s constantly revising the family budget as grocery and health insurance prices go up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m looking at where can we cut costs and what bundle can I use or coupon can I use to save money? I do most of our shopping at Costco now because buying in bulk is usually cheaper,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Her family is also taking fewer trips, but Malezadeh said, despite these compromises, she’s grateful she has been able to afford raising three kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I feel very fortunate that I got through having our second kid and didn’t feel done,” she said. “Instead of living with the potential of regretting it for the rest of my life, I was able to say, ‘Hey, can we have another one? Can we work that into the budget?’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of \u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">How We Get By\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">full series here\u003c/a>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Annie Malekzadeh was shopping at a Joanne Fabrics store in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/concord\">Concord\u003c/a> a couple of years ago when she had an encounter that stung her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An older woman who saw her pregnant while pushing her toddler son in a shopping cart, told her: “I don’t know why you would want more than two [children]. It’s basically impossible in the Bay Area.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“At the time I was like, how dare she?” she said. “But now I’m like, oh, [she] was right. It’s really hard.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Malekzadeh wound up having another baby, and the decision to have three kids pushed her child care expenses to roughly $56,000 a year and ultimately changed the course of her career.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12061802/how-are-child-care-costs-affecting-the-lives-of-bay-area-families-you-told-us\">Rising child care costs in the Bay Area\u003c/a> are forcing parents to make painful tradeoffs, either by passing up career opportunities, cutting back work hours, or quitting altogether. For families with multiple young children, these expenses can surpass a parent’s entire salary, disproportionately affecting mothers and shaping their long-term economic security.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Malekzadeh’s story is just one example of how the gap between what families can afford and the actual cost of care is pushing parents to find creative solutions — and prompting calls for systemic change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Child care has long been expensive for parents, but recently it’s been even more so.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078461\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078461\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00035_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00035_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00035_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00035_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Annie Malekzadeh, a mom who quit her teaching job to save on child care and is now pursuing her master’s degree in mathematics, studies at Pleasant Hill Library in Pleasant Hill on April 1, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Prices shot up almost 30% between 2020 and 2024, outpacing inflation by 7 percentage points, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.childcareaware.org/price-landscape24/\">a survey of child care resource and referral organizations \u003c/a>around the country. In just the last year, 40% of child care programs in California \u003ca href=\"https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/user-174467/2026_survey_brief.pdf\">reported raising tuition \u003c/a>to offset rising operating costs like insurance and food.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Four years ago, Malekzadeh was a math teacher at a private middle school, earning roughly $32,000 annually and working 25 hours per week. At the time, her son was in kindergarten and her daughter in preschool. Her husband is a psychiatrist, she said, and because he earned more money and worked more hours, most of the parenting responsibilities went to her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With their joint income, the cost of preschool and before- and afterschool care was manageable for the Pleasant Hill couple. But when their baby boy came along in July 2022, and needed full-time infant care, the amount for all three kids’ care — about $4,700 per month — was almost double her teacher’s salary.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“It didn’t make sense,” she said. “My job wasn’t really making enough of a contribution to justify that kind of expense.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the time the school year ended, Malekzadeh decided to quit, even though she didn’t want to leave a profession she loved.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My grandparents were both educators,” she said. “They were beloved by their community, and they were really excited when I chose to become a teacher. So that was my plan, and I didn’t ever expect to deviate from that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The move is saving about $600 a week in child care. The older two are in public school, and the youngest is still in preschool. While he’s in care, Malekzadeh takes classes at Diablo Valley College as she pursues a master’s degree in math, which she hopes will ultimately lead to a higher-paying job to make up for time away from the labor market.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When you quit to stay home with your kids, it creates gaps in your resume that a lot of places don’t necessarily look nicely at,” Melakzadeh said. “You have to have some kind of explanation for that, which might translate into less pay.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Child care prices vary by region and depend on a child’s age and the type of provider. In California, full-time infant care in 2024 cost an average of $22,628, which is 16% of the average married couple’s income and 50% of a single parent’s. Bay Area families pay the highest child care prices \u003ca href=\"https://tootris.com/edu/blog/parents/cost-of-child-care-in-california-by-city-age-and-type-of-care-provider/?utm_source=chatgpt.com\">compared to other parts of California\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078462\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12078462 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00228_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00228_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00228_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-AFFORDABILITYCHILDCARE00228_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Annie Malekzadeh plays a card game with her daughter as they wait for her older son to finish school at Valhalla Elementary School in Pleasant Hill on April 1, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The spike in prices came as companies began mandating employees return to work and \u003ca href=\"https://rapidsurveyproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/arpa-funding-factsheet-aug2023.pdf\">child care providers lost federal funds\u003c/a> meant to help them recover from the pandemic. Less flexibility and high costs led to a decline in labor force participation for moms of children under the age of 5, and college-educated moms in particular, according to\u003ca href=\"https://kpmg.com/us/en/articles/2025/october-2025-the-great-exit.html\"> an analysis by the financial firm KPMG.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Their labor force participation declined by 2.3 percentage points, while the number of college-educated dads of young children who were working or seeking a job continued to increase.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Families are facing child care prices that are higher than the price of rent or mortgage. So this is a huge problem. It’s one of the biggest expenses in a family’s budgets,” said Julie Kashen, a researcher at The Century Foundation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078476\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078476\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-04-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-04-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-04-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-04-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nolan Cruz eats oatmeal for breakfast in the morning on Oct. 27, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The progressive think tank conducted an October survey of 1,400 voters about their affordability concerns. Kashen said that while all families are facing rising costs, it’s women who experience a greater threat to their economic security.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Women are faring worse in terms of taking on debt to cover their basics, borrowing from friends and families to pay the bills,” she said. “So when you add child care on top of that, I think it’s incredibly challenging.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those challenges led Amy Cruz to walk away from a six-figure nursing job to freelance as a dance teacher and care for her 3-year-old son, Nolan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078474\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078474\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1346\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-02-KQED-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-02-KQED-1536x1034.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Brandon and Nolan Cruz cook oatmeal for breakfast on Oct. 27, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Until he was about two years old, Cruz paid $3,000 per month to share a nanny with another family for just four days a week of child care (on the fifth day, she leaned on family members to look after him). While child care wasn’t the only reason she left her job, it was a significant factor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Essentially, half of my monthly income was going to child care,” Cruz said. “Watching that much money leave our account every month was tough.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Once Nolan was old enough to start preschool, she enrolled him in a three-day program near her Berkeley home, which cut her child care costs in half. When he’s there, she teaches dance — something she did professionally before going to nursing school — to afford his tuition. With a second baby on the way, she also figured that it was “worth it to make a little less money but be able to be with my kids more.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078475\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078475\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-03-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-03-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-03-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Amy Cruz picks raspberries for her son Nolan’s breakfast in the morning on Oct. 27, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Economists call child care a broken market because the actual cost of providing care is a lot more than what families can afford to pay. In California, \u003ca href=\"https://rrnetwork.org/assets/general-files/California.pdf\">the demand for licensed infant care exceeds supply\u003c/a> because it’s the most expensive and labor-intensive. Babies need constant care, and California has strict rules limiting the number of children each adult can care for in a licensed child care home or center.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the same time, low pay and benefits have made it tough for child care providers to attract or retain early educators. In January, nearly half of providers said they didn’t have enough staff to enroll children at capacity, according to a survey by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For providers, energy costs, food, insurance have all gone up,” said Matthew Nestler, senior economist at KPMG. “They can’t necessarily raise their workers’ wages to the degree that they would like to.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078473\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078473\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/251027-CHILD-CARE-PRICES-MD-01-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">(From left) Brandon, Amy and Nolan Cruz prepare breakfast and pack a lunch for Nolan in the morning on Oct. 27, 2025. \u003ccite>(Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The shortage can cause parents to weave in and out of the workforce. Malezadeh first left her job when her eldest child was born eight years ago, and she couldn’t find an open infant care slot when her maternity leave ended. She didn’t know she had to reserve months in advance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We didn’t actually find any kind of daycare spot for him until he was two, and by then, I was already expecting my second child,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Malekzadeh stayed out of teaching for four years and went back to work when her first two kids were a little older.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But after a year, the costs of infant care for her youngest, combined with her older children’s care, were too great, and she left her job again.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Kashen, from The Century Foundation, said public investment can help close the gap between what parents like Malekzadeh and Cruz can afford and what it actually costs to provide child care. As an example, she pointed to New Mexico’s recent move to offer free child care for all residents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When governments invest in child care, that is the biggest thing that we can do because right now what we have is essentially a DIY, do-it-yourself, system for families where everyone’s on their own,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last month, Cruz gave birth to a daughter. During her pregnancy, she considered becoming a nanny so she could take care of her baby alongside someone else’s, allowing her to make some money. She also thought about continuing to teach dance part-time, and while she’s at work, trading child care responsibilities with other parents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’ve been thinking about it more and more, because I can make more money teaching dance than doing my own nanny share,” Cruz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Building a community with other parents has helped Malekzadeh get by when she’s in a child care pinch.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you’re gonna be five minutes late to pick up, you have to have someone else that you can text, and be like, ‘Can you grab my kid for me real quick?’” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12078901\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12078901\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-affordabilitychildcare00326_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-affordabilitychildcare00326_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-affordabilitychildcare00326_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/260401-affordabilitychildcare00326_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Annie Malekzadeh walks her kids home after school in Pleasant Hill on April 1, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Malekzadeh tutors on the side to make some money and said she’s constantly revising the family budget as grocery and health insurance prices go up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m looking at where can we cut costs and what bundle can I use or coupon can I use to save money? I do most of our shopping at Costco now because buying in bulk is usually cheaper,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Her family is also taking fewer trips, but Malezadeh said, despite these compromises, she’s grateful she has been able to afford raising three kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I feel very fortunate that I got through having our second kid and didn’t feel done,” she said. “Instead of living with the potential of regretting it for the rest of my life, I was able to say, ‘Hey, can we have another one? Can we work that into the budget?’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "lack-of-approved-child-care-providers-may-slow-rollout-of-san-franciscos-expanded-subsidies",
"title": "Lack of Approved Child Care Providers May Slow Rollout of San Francisco’s Expanded Subsidies",
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"headTitle": "Lack of Approved Child Care Providers May Slow Rollout of San Francisco’s Expanded Subsidies | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>When Daniel Zimmerman heard that \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> would offer free or low-cost child care to more families, he went online to make sure he and his wife qualify for a discount and started dreaming about having another baby.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the last few years, the couple has been paying about $3,500 per month to send their children, ages 2 and 5, to a Spanish immersion preschool. Zimmerman said even though they earn six figures — he’s a nurse, and she’s a dietician — keeping up with the high cost of child care leaves them “basically in the red every month.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re not saving money, but we figured, especially when they’re young, we’ll just weather the storm until they get into public school,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The prospect of getting financial aid made him think they could raise three kids in the city. But he may need to brace for some snags when he starts looking for child care.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Under guidelines set by the city Department of Early Childhood, income-eligible families can only select from nearly 600 child care programs within a pre-approved network. That might limit parents’ choices at a time when San Francisco is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069711/san-francisco-expands-child-care-subsidies-to-tackle-affordability-issues\">expanding child care subsidies\u003c/a> to middle-income earners as part of a broader push to make the city affordable for families.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last month, Mayor Daniel Lurie announced that a family of four making less than $234,000 a year can get free child care, and starting in July, those earning up to $312,000 annually will qualify for a \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/ELFA-Center-FCC-Rates-FY25-26.pdf\">50% discount\u003c/a>. The changes put San Francisco ahead of other major cities in offering nearly universal access to child care.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12071945\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12071945\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00075_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00075_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00075_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00075_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Children play at an in-home child care business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Up to 12,000 kids under age 5 will be eligible for the newly expanded subsidies — though fewer than half are expected to enroll — paid by \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948690/business-tax-provides-crucial-funding-for-early-childhood-education-and-care-in-san-francisco\">funds from Baby Prop C, a 3.5% tax on commercial property leases\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of people are excited and have a lot of questions,” said Mark Ryle, CEO of Wu Yee Children’s Services, an agency contracted by the city to refer families who qualify for subsidies to child care providers with available spaces. “We’ve seen a pretty significant uptick in inquiries around the tuition credit program.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some families are discovering, though, that getting public funding for child care comes with a catch.\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003cem>The early years matter. Tell us what you want to learn about early childhood education and care by \u003c/em>\u003c/strong>\u003ca href=\"https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8658266/ChildhoodAudience\">\u003cstrong>\u003cem>clicking here\u003c/em>\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003cstrong>\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>When Danielle Eichenbaum learned she qualified for the city’s subsidized child care, her toddler was already enrolled in Daycare Bumblebee in the West Portal neighborhood. She wanted him to stay — not only with the caregivers he already bonded with, but because they were teaching him Russian and exposing him to music, karate and other enriching activities.[aside postID=news_12069711 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260115-SFCHILDCARESUBSIDIES00057_TV-KQED.jpg']But the day care wasn’t part of the city-funded network, called Early Learning for All, or ELFA.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I cried when we left. It was such a wonderful program,” she said. “His program now is great, too, but I miss the other one.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bumblebee’s owner, Lyuba Schkolnik, decided to join ELFA to help Eichenbaum. But she soon discovered the process could take more than a year, requiring her to complete several early childhood education classes and undergo evaluations to determine if her program meets the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/Quality-Standard_Updated_052125.pdf\">quality standards\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Schkolnik, who left a marketing career to open her day care, didn’t mind taking the classes and hopes to get in. Joining the network comes with perks: Last year, in-home day care owners like her got $16,000 stipends to help them earn a living wage, and $12,000 to boost their assistants’ pay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But the fact it takes so long for someone to become a provider within the system is a little bit disheartening because the [expanded subsidies] are supposed to launch shortly, and we want to help families,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other parents expressed frustration over a policy that prohibits placing a deposit to hold space at their preferred day care, which is a standard practice in private-pay programs, where families often compete for scarce infant-care slots. Ryle said this assures fair access for everyone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Eichenbaum said that while she understood the system’s equitable goals, she worries the high standards to join ELFA are making it too hard for providers like Schkolnik to participate in the system and for parents like her to get the child care that works for them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12071946\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12071946\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00137_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00137_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00137_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00137_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lyuba Shkolnik teaches children how to bake muffins at her in-home child care business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Their goals are so lofty that they don’t look at the real-world impact,” she said. “They are letting the perfect be the enemy of the good.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Inside City Hall, two members of the Board of Supervisors want the early childhood department to speed things up for providers who want to join ELFA. They worry that when the subsidies expand, the waitlist for child care will grow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Do I want to go faster than they probably feel comfortable with? Of course I do,” Supervisor Stephen Sherrill said. “I think we can expand the system without sacrificing quality.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Supervisor Myrna Melgar said she’d like to see a simpler and more accessible system.[aside postID=news_12070762 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/240911-CHILDCARE-REAX-MD-01_qed.jpg']“There are multiple things that go into the decision to pick a provider. It’s how you feel. Sometimes it’s cultural and language competence, sometimes it is proximity to your home or work. And so on top of it, to layer a bunch of other things for eligibility, it makes it difficult and complicated,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ingrid Mezquita, director of the Department of Early Childhood, said the city is carefully building out the system, adding more ELFA sites and infant and toddler care slots in neighborhoods that need them most. Depending on their qualifications, she said, some providers can “easily whisk through in less than three months and some programs may take a little longer.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We need to have those kinds of quality assurances because, at the end of the day, our accountability and our responsibility is to that child and to that family and the programs that do come on board and do enroll in this public funding support also prescribe to that and have that shared accountability with us,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the past three years, the city used unspent funds that accrued when it was fighting a taxpayer group’s lawsuit over Baby Prop C to clear the waitlist for lower-income families who needed child care, boost wages for more than 3,000 early educators, who have historically been underpaid, and support their professional development. Those funds are expected to run out in six years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As a result, the city-funded child care programs are serving more than 9,000 kids, have a lower staff turnover rate than the state average, and children’s kindergarten readiness has gone up, Mezquita said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12071947\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12071947\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00152_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00152_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00152_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00152_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Shoes line a cubby at Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>About 700 children are currently on the wait list for care, though there are about 1,000 available spaces. One reason for the discrepancy is that there aren’t enough infant- and toddler-care slots to meet demand, or the open slots don’t match families’ preferred schedule, location or language, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have expanded access, but the only thing that is a little bit of an art and a science — mostly art — to pinpoint is the preferences of families,” she said at a recent Board of Supervisors hearing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Department of Early Childhood estimates that ongoing revenue from the commercial rent tax can pay for the expanded subsidies. But the department cautions that it may not cover the program’s full cost down the road if the commercial real estate market softens.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mezquita said she’s hopeful San Francisco’s experiment will demonstrate that it can be scaled up and funded with state dollars. The city was first to offer free preschool for 4-year-olds in 2005, and this year, California expanded transitional kindergarten for all children who turn 4 by Sept. 1.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are building a universal system. How we’re designing it is also taking into account that eventually, yes, we also need the partnership with the state to be able to not only expand it, but also make it widely available,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>When Daniel Zimmerman heard that \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> would offer free or low-cost child care to more families, he went online to make sure he and his wife qualify for a discount and started dreaming about having another baby.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the last few years, the couple has been paying about $3,500 per month to send their children, ages 2 and 5, to a Spanish immersion preschool. Zimmerman said even though they earn six figures — he’s a nurse, and she’s a dietician — keeping up with the high cost of child care leaves them “basically in the red every month.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re not saving money, but we figured, especially when they’re young, we’ll just weather the storm until they get into public school,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The prospect of getting financial aid made him think they could raise three kids in the city. But he may need to brace for some snags when he starts looking for child care.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Under guidelines set by the city Department of Early Childhood, income-eligible families can only select from nearly 600 child care programs within a pre-approved network. That might limit parents’ choices at a time when San Francisco is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069711/san-francisco-expands-child-care-subsidies-to-tackle-affordability-issues\">expanding child care subsidies\u003c/a> to middle-income earners as part of a broader push to make the city affordable for families.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last month, Mayor Daniel Lurie announced that a family of four making less than $234,000 a year can get free child care, and starting in July, those earning up to $312,000 annually will qualify for a \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/ELFA-Center-FCC-Rates-FY25-26.pdf\">50% discount\u003c/a>. The changes put San Francisco ahead of other major cities in offering nearly universal access to child care.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12071945\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12071945\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00075_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00075_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00075_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00075_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Children play at an in-home child care business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Up to 12,000 kids under age 5 will be eligible for the newly expanded subsidies — though fewer than half are expected to enroll — paid by \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948690/business-tax-provides-crucial-funding-for-early-childhood-education-and-care-in-san-francisco\">funds from Baby Prop C, a 3.5% tax on commercial property leases\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of people are excited and have a lot of questions,” said Mark Ryle, CEO of Wu Yee Children’s Services, an agency contracted by the city to refer families who qualify for subsidies to child care providers with available spaces. “We’ve seen a pretty significant uptick in inquiries around the tuition credit program.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some families are discovering, though, that getting public funding for child care comes with a catch.\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003cem>The early years matter. Tell us what you want to learn about early childhood education and care by \u003c/em>\u003c/strong>\u003ca href=\"https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8658266/ChildhoodAudience\">\u003cstrong>\u003cem>clicking here\u003c/em>\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003cstrong>\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>When Danielle Eichenbaum learned she qualified for the city’s subsidized child care, her toddler was already enrolled in Daycare Bumblebee in the West Portal neighborhood. She wanted him to stay — not only with the caregivers he already bonded with, but because they were teaching him Russian and exposing him to music, karate and other enriching activities.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>But the day care wasn’t part of the city-funded network, called Early Learning for All, or ELFA.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I cried when we left. It was such a wonderful program,” she said. “His program now is great, too, but I miss the other one.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bumblebee’s owner, Lyuba Schkolnik, decided to join ELFA to help Eichenbaum. But she soon discovered the process could take more than a year, requiring her to complete several early childhood education classes and undergo evaluations to determine if her program meets the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/Quality-Standard_Updated_052125.pdf\">quality standards\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Schkolnik, who left a marketing career to open her day care, didn’t mind taking the classes and hopes to get in. Joining the network comes with perks: Last year, in-home day care owners like her got $16,000 stipends to help them earn a living wage, and $12,000 to boost their assistants’ pay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But the fact it takes so long for someone to become a provider within the system is a little bit disheartening because the [expanded subsidies] are supposed to launch shortly, and we want to help families,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other parents expressed frustration over a policy that prohibits placing a deposit to hold space at their preferred day care, which is a standard practice in private-pay programs, where families often compete for scarce infant-care slots. Ryle said this assures fair access for everyone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Eichenbaum said that while she understood the system’s equitable goals, she worries the high standards to join ELFA are making it too hard for providers like Schkolnik to participate in the system and for parents like her to get the child care that works for them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12071946\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12071946\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00137_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00137_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00137_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00137_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lyuba Shkolnik teaches children how to bake muffins at her in-home child care business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Their goals are so lofty that they don’t look at the real-world impact,” she said. “They are letting the perfect be the enemy of the good.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Inside City Hall, two members of the Board of Supervisors want the early childhood department to speed things up for providers who want to join ELFA. They worry that when the subsidies expand, the waitlist for child care will grow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Do I want to go faster than they probably feel comfortable with? Of course I do,” Supervisor Stephen Sherrill said. “I think we can expand the system without sacrificing quality.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Supervisor Myrna Melgar said she’d like to see a simpler and more accessible system.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“There are multiple things that go into the decision to pick a provider. It’s how you feel. Sometimes it’s cultural and language competence, sometimes it is proximity to your home or work. And so on top of it, to layer a bunch of other things for eligibility, it makes it difficult and complicated,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ingrid Mezquita, director of the Department of Early Childhood, said the city is carefully building out the system, adding more ELFA sites and infant and toddler care slots in neighborhoods that need them most. Depending on their qualifications, she said, some providers can “easily whisk through in less than three months and some programs may take a little longer.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We need to have those kinds of quality assurances because, at the end of the day, our accountability and our responsibility is to that child and to that family and the programs that do come on board and do enroll in this public funding support also prescribe to that and have that shared accountability with us,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the past three years, the city used unspent funds that accrued when it was fighting a taxpayer group’s lawsuit over Baby Prop C to clear the waitlist for lower-income families who needed child care, boost wages for more than 3,000 early educators, who have historically been underpaid, and support their professional development. Those funds are expected to run out in six years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As a result, the city-funded child care programs are serving more than 9,000 kids, have a lower staff turnover rate than the state average, and children’s kindergarten readiness has gone up, Mezquita said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12071947\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12071947\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00152_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00152_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00152_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/02/260130-SFCHILDCAREACCESS00152_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Shoes line a cubby at Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>About 700 children are currently on the wait list for care, though there are about 1,000 available spaces. One reason for the discrepancy is that there aren’t enough infant- and toddler-care slots to meet demand, or the open slots don’t match families’ preferred schedule, location or language, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have expanded access, but the only thing that is a little bit of an art and a science — mostly art — to pinpoint is the preferences of families,” she said at a recent Board of Supervisors hearing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Department of Early Childhood estimates that ongoing revenue from the commercial rent tax can pay for the expanded subsidies. But the department cautions that it may not cover the program’s full cost down the road if the commercial real estate market softens.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mezquita said she’s hopeful San Francisco’s experiment will demonstrate that it can be scaled up and funded with state dollars. The city was first to offer free preschool for 4-year-olds in 2005, and this year, California expanded transitional kindergarten for all children who turn 4 by Sept. 1.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are building a universal system. How we’re designing it is also taking into account that eventually, yes, we also need the partnership with the state to be able to not only expand it, but also make it widely available,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/global-news-podcast/id135067274?mt=2",
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"rss": "https://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/p02nq0gn.rss"
}
},
"californiareport": {
"id": "californiareport",
"title": "The California Report",
"tagline": "California, day by day",
"info": "KQED’s statewide radio news program providing daily coverage of issues, trends and public policy decisions.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-California-Report-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareport",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 8
},
"link": "/californiareport",
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"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/26099305-72af-4542-9dde-ac1807fe36d5/kqed-s-the-california-report",
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}
},
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"id": "californiareportmagazine",
"title": "The California Report Magazine",
"tagline": "Your state, your stories",
"info": "Every week, The California Report Magazine takes you on a road trip for the ears: to visit the places and meet the people who make California unique. The in-depth storytelling podcast from the California Report.",
"airtime": "FRI 4:30pm-5pm, 6:30pm-7pm, 11pm-11:30pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-California-Report-Magazine-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareportmagazine",
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"order": 10
},
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM3NjkwNjk1OTAz",
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}
},
"city-arts": {
"id": "city-arts",
"title": "City Arts & Lectures",
"info": "A one-hour radio program to hear celebrated writers, artists and thinkers address contemporary ideas and values, often discussing the creative process. Please note: tapes or transcripts are not available",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/cityartsandlecture-300x300.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.cityarts.net/",
"airtime": "SUN 1pm-2pm, TUE 10pm, WED 1am",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "City Arts & Lectures"
},
"link": "https://www.cityarts.net",
"subscribe": {
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"rss": "https://www.cityarts.net/feed/"
}
},
"closealltabs": {
"id": "closealltabs",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/closealltabs",
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"order": 1
},
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"title": "Code Switch / Life Kit",
"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
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"meta": {
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"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
"airtime": "THU 10pm, FRI 1am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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"meta": {
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"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
"link": "/radio/program/commonwealth-club",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
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}
},
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"id": "forum",
"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9am-11am, 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Forum with Mina Kim and Alexis Madrigal",
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"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 9
},
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5NTU3MzgxNjMz",
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"id": "freakonomics-radio",
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"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/freakonomicsRadio.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://freakonomics.com/",
"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/4s8b",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/",
"rss": "https://feeds.feedburner.com/freakonomicsradio"
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},
"fresh-air": {
"id": "fresh-air",
"title": "Fresh Air",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=214089682&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/381444908/podcast.xml"
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"here-and-now": {
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"info": "A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.",
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},
"hidden-brain": {
"id": "hidden-brain",
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"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
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"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "NPR"
},
"link": "/radio/program/hidden-brain",
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},
"how-i-built-this": {
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"title": "How I Built This with Guy Raz",
"info": "Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/howIBuiltThis.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this",
"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/how-i-built-this",
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"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/3zxy",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297?mt=2",
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},
"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
"title": "Hyphenación",
"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hyphenacion_FinalAssets_PodcastTile.png",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
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"order": 15
},
"link": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
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},
"jerrybrown": {
"id": "jerrybrown",
"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Political-Mind-of-Jerry-Brown-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"meta": {
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"order": 18
},
"link": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1492194549",
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}
},
"latino-usa": {
"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
"meta": {
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},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
}
},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
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"rss": "https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"
}
},
"masters-of-scale": {
"id": "masters-of-scale",
"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
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"source": "WaitWhat"
},
"link": "/radio/program/masters-of-scale",
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"apple": "http://mastersofscale.app.link/",
"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
"tagline": "A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids",
"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mindshift-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/mindshift/",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
"subscribe": {
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
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}
},
"morning-edition": {
"id": "morning-edition",
"title": "Morning Edition",
"info": "\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3am-9am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Morning-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/",
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"link": "/radio/program/morning-edition"
},
"onourwatch": {
"id": "onourwatch",
"title": "On Our Watch",
"tagline": "Deeply-reported investigative journalism",
"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/On-Our-Watch-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "On Our Watch from NPR and KQED",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 11
},
"link": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"subscribe": {
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM2MC9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbD9zYz1nb29nbGVwb2RjYXN0cw",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510360/podcast.xml"
}
},
"on-the-media": {
"id": "on-the-media",
"title": "On The Media",
"info": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
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"info": "One of public radio's most dynamic voices, Sam Sanders helped launch The NPR Politics Podcast and hosted NPR's hit show It's Been A Minute. Now, the award-winning host returns with something brand new, The Sam Sanders Show. Every week, Sam Sanders and friends dig into the culture that shapes our lives: what's driving the biggest trends, how artists really think, and even the memes you can't stop scrolling past. Sam is beloved for his way of unpacking the world and bringing you up close to fresh currents and engaging conversations. The Sam Sanders Show is smart, funny and always a good time.",
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