Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Vouchers And Access topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Child-care providers tell EEC board voucher delays are sidelining teachers and families
Summary
Multiple public commenters — center directors and community leaders — told the EEC board that slow voucher processing has left staff and families unable to access care, preventing teachers from working and blocking center openings; commenters urged prioritizing vouchers for early-education staff and faster processing.
Several providers spoke during public comment about the immediate effects of delayed childcare vouchers on staff, center operations and families.
Robin Myertz, director of Maimonides Early Childhood Center (Brookline), gave multiple examples of teachers and assistants who could not place their own children because voucher approvals were delayed. "She can't send her child to school because she's waiting and waiting and waiting for vouchers," Myertz said of one assistant; she later read a personal note from an assistant who applied in July and remained unpaid for childcare months later. Myertz described recruits who remain unpaid and families on continuous waiting lists, and urged the board to consider these families when setting priorities.
Rabbi Mermelstein (Torah Academy) said that prioritizing vouchers for EEC teachers would allow a planned expansion to open on schedule and avoid losing classroom capacity. Multiple other speakers — Donna Dannett (Children First Center), Patty Sinclair (MACI), Kat Horian (Children's Center of Brookline) and Siobhan Drayton (Horizons for Homeless Children) — emphasized workforce strain, director burnout, and access barriers for families experiencing homelessness or with limited options.
Why it matters: Witnesses described concrete workforce and capacity harms attributable to voucher delays: teachers unable to work, centers unable to use hired staff, and families with no alternative care. Several asked for targeted solutions (prioritizing EEC teachers in voucher processing, improving call-center capacity, or temporary local flexibility) to unblock openings quickly.
Board response: Commissioners and board members acknowledged the testimony and discussed next steps, including dedicating time at a future meeting to review the friends-and-family (FFN) program, departmental staffing capacity, and how CCFA and CPPI investments could be prioritized to reduce wait lists.
Next steps: The board asked staff to add an item at a future meeting to review voucher administration, FFN program capacity, and department infrastructure to implement expanded access.
