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Flagstaff leaders, nonprofits and NAU outline steps after recent childcare center closures amid wider regional shortage
Summary
City staff, United Way and NAU presenters described a regional shortage of infant and toddler slots, high costs, workforce shortages and possible next steps including a feasibility-based strategy, visits to the Elevate Pre K pilot and convening the community alliance to plan funding and infrastructure.
City of Flagstaff officials, early-childhood providers and nonprofit partners told the City Council on May 13 that Flagstaff and Greater Coconino County face a severe shortage of child care, especially for infants and toddlers, and described next steps to identify funding and scale local programs.
Rebecca Serzian, director of the Northern Arizona University Early Learning and Development Center, told council members, “what is the child care crisis? It is defined as diminished access to childcare due to high costs, poor quality, mixed regulations across the state and federal landscape, and no common funding stream.” She said two locally licensed centers, The Arc and Kingdom Kids, recently closed, removing about 50 child-care slots from the community and prompting immediate family relocation and employment disruptions for parents.
The shortage is concentrated among the youngest children. Serzian and city staff said the number of licensed slots for 1‑year‑olds in Flagstaff is very small — “less than 10%” of providers accept 1‑year‑olds — and infant/toddler care is the hardest to find. United Way of Northern Arizona President and CEO Liz Archuleta said the Elevate Pre K pilot showed measurable benefits for families and employers: families kept jobs, pursued education and improved financial stability; “people were able to put a down payment on a house or they’re able to seek higher quality housing,” she said.
Why it matters: city Economic Development staff said childcare access was a top workforce constraint in a recent study. United Way, NAU and the city outlined a community-led approach rather than a one-off subsidy: review the Institute for Child Success feasibility study for scaling Elevate Pre K, convene a cross‑sector working group, schedule council and alliance briefings and host site visits to the Elevate Pre K classroom in June.
City Community Investment Director Dave McIntyre described a proposed next step: use modest city workforce‑development funds together with partner contributions to hire a coordinator or contractor to synthesize existing studies, lay out an implementation pathway and present options to the regional alliance (the informal city‑county‑NAU‑CCC‑FUSD‑Mountain Line grouping). McIntyre said the intent is “not for us to do the work ourselves but to convene providers and partners and determine what those best outcomes could be.”
Speakers emphasized the scale of the problem and key constraints. Serzian said workforce shortages within child‑care programs — driven in part by low pay — force some centers to close classrooms even when families remain on wait lists. Archuleta and Serzian noted that federal and state supports are limited and often do not reach moderate‑income families: Serzian cited Department of Economic Security (DES) rules that exclude many working single parents from DES child‑care subsidies; McIntyre and Archuleta said federal pandemic (ARPA) funds had provided temporary relief but were not a sustainable long‑term solution.
City and nonprofit presenters listed specific proposals under discussion: expand scholarships for families, provide targeted infrastructure grants for centers (for example to equip new classrooms), develop a sustainable financing model for scaled preschool (using the feasibility report’s funding options), and broaden business‑community engagement to explore employer‑based programs. Archuleta said United Way will invite business leaders to Elevate Pre K visits and convenings to explore employer roles in expanding capacity.
No formal city action was taken at the meeting. Staff said they will return with a proposed path to convene partners, present the feasibility analysis to the regional alliance and offer council opportunities to review pilot or implementation proposals. Council members asked for a time‑bound strategic plan; McIntyre and participants suggested a focused planning phase in the coming months to outline options.
Ending: Serzian invited council members to tour NAU’s Early Learning and Development Center and said the center already serves as a training pipeline for early‑childhood professionals and a place to test program models. United Way said visits and continued convenings would be scheduled in June so council and community members can see the Elevate Pre K model and the feasibility study in detail.
