The Utah Women & Leadership Project (UWLP) first published a research snapshot about childcare five years ago. Since then, because of continued market failures and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the status of childcare in the US and Utah reached a crisis level.  These circumstances exacerbated the financial challenges of childcare business owners and their employees and heightened the obstacles of parents trying to work. Federal agencies provided funding support during the pandemic, helping many childcare businesses stay open. However, it is predicted that by June 2024, Utah will deplete approximately $573 million of COVID-era support that has helped keep the childcare sector afloat. This “funding cliff” may result in childcare program closures, higher costs of childcare for families, and a dramatic workforce turnover because of lowered wages in the childcare sector. Addressing the ongoing childcare crisis in Utah is critical. Utah has the highest percentage of children of any state population—at about 30.0%—and an estimated 64.1% of Utah families have all available parents working.

Recently, the UWLP published an update on the status of childcare in Utah in 2023, which is the topic of this episode. Dr. Susan Madsen, Founding Director of the UWLP, is joined by Robyn Blackburn, a UWLP Research Fellow and an author of our most recent childcare research. Second, Jill Koziol, Co-Founder and CEO of Motherly, the leading digital destination empowering mothers to thrive.

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