Originally Posted by Semillas:
Hello,
I am new to this site and from what I have been reading, you all are a great resource. I am assisting my partner with her new family daycare (now in its 7th month) and I had a question that I was hoping you can give some guidance on. It's no secret that day cares can be costly to most families and one thing that is important to us is the opportunity to provide care to all families, no matter what your financial situation is. That being said, so any of you offer scholarships for low income families? Is there another avenue apart from offering scholarships to help these families receive the same care as those that can afford it? Obviously, we are a young daycare and this might not be feasible in the near future but we would definitely like to start planning. I look forward to hearing back from you. Thanks!
I simply cannot offer scholarships. For one thing, every state has programs to pay for daycare for those who truly cannot afford it. All the parent has to do is go sign up, and choose a provider from the list of those who have agreed to accept state subsidy.
The other problem is that in a home daycare, you only have so many slots for children. Each child takes up at least one slot. Some take more depending on the state and how the ratios work in age groups. Each slot also comes at a cost to the provider. The provider must pay licensing, liability insurance, buy supplies and toys. Food is perhaps my biggest expense as a provider. If you take the kids anywhere there is cost with that.
So, offering free or discounted slots actually costs the provider money. And lets face it, most of us are operating our business (and yes it is a business), to make money not for it to cost us money.
If you are concerned about costs to parents, look into your state subsidy program for daycare. Licensing can tell you who to contact, usually it is DFS or whatever agency handles things like food stamps.