YWCA Kalamazoo urges county support for child-care relief, warns funding cuts risk provider retention
Summary
DJ Perry of YWCA Kalamazoo described affordability, staff retention, licensing barriers and paused federal funding as drivers of a local child-care crisis and asked the county to collaborate on local solutions.
DJ Perry, public policy manager for maternal and child health at YWCA Kalamazoo, used the public-comment slot on Nov. 5 to urge county collaboration on child-care challenges affecting local families and providers.
Perry said YWCA Kalamazoo served more than 140 families and 180 children in 2024 and described the sector’s problems: affordability, low and inequitable pay for early-childhood staff, licensing and accreditation barriers that prevent providers from accessing funding, limited overnight/third-shift care options, provider burnout and threatened federal funding streams. Perry said paused or defunded federal supports are straining local providers and families and asked the board to work with community partners to create “innovative local solutions” where state or federal support falls short.
“No family should be left behind regardless of race, religion, income, or family structure,” Perry said, and asked the board to collaborate with providers and community stakeholders on strategies that stabilize the local child-care infrastructure.
Commissioners received the comment and expressed willingness to collaborate; no formal motion or county funding decision was made at the Nov. 5 meeting.
