Director says TLC childcare program must be self‑sustaining amid staffing and budget shortfalls

The district director told the board the employee‑childcare program (TLC) cannot be subsidized from general funds or TISA and must operate on its own revenues, a constraint driving recommendations to reduce or reconfigure sites.

A board member asked how many staff are required at the Watertown TLC site; a staff member summarized state ratios, saying, "Infants, I can have 1 to 4," and describing higher ratios for older age groups. Board members and staff agreed that open slots do not automatically make a site self‑sustaining because salary levels, space and other costs matter.

Director commentary framed the recommendation as a reluctant but necessary step after attempts to grow enrollment and use reserves. "These are tough decisions because I get it," the director said, arguing that if the fund can be made to "sustain itself and then we have more requests, we can always look at adding staff." The director said the district has used savings to bridge deficits but cannot rely on that indefinitely.

Staff told the board they had not calculated a specific break‑even enrollment for the Watertown site during the meeting; follow‑up analysis was suggested. The discussion included questions about whether staff at reduced sites could be reassigned; HR and staffing staff said tenured employees will be placed on a priority list for openings, while non‑tenured staff may receive nonrenewal letters but are eligible to apply for vacancies.

The board set the next session to reconvene and vote on the budget at the following meeting; no formal action on TLC closures or consolidations was taken during this session.