Child care is an essential part of our city’s infrastructure, allowing countless families to contribute to the economy within vital roles in healthcare, business, education, service industries, and more. But despite the value of child care within a healthy and vibrant city, the child care profession is largely still an undervalued and underpaid occupation, and one that has been in crisis before and even more so since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Within the Department of Education and Early Learning, a team of CCAP Education Specialists support child care providers partnering with the City of Seattle as part of the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP). Many of Seattle’s child care businesses, including both home-based and center-based care, are owned and operated by Black, Indigenous, immigrant, or refugee women of color, and DEEL’s CCAP Education Specialists work closely with these providers to improve their experience contracting with the City. Education Specialists (or Ed Specs, as they are sometimes referred to) work closely with DEEL’s Change Team, part of the City’s Race and Social Justice Initiative, to advance equity in child care by providing resources and technical assistance to navigate systemic barriers and building greater access to high-quality, affordable childcare for Seattle families.

Today, King County Executive Dow Constantine and Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell joined child care partners to announce the opening of applications for the 2022 Child Care Retention Payments, a one-time retention bonus payment to child care workers across the county, as well as a new round of stabilization grants for Seattle providers provided by the Seattle Department of Education and Early Learning (DEEL). A total of $7.4 million in joint funding will be available for eligible providers through both opportunities, including $5 million from the King County Best Starts for Kids levy and $2.4 million from the Seattle JumpStart Payroll Expense Tax. Payments are expected to reach more than 9,000 child care workers across the county.

This represents the third round of funding DEEL has provided in support of child care providers during the COVID-19 pandemic. In early 2021, DEEL provided more than 500 grants totaling $2.3 million to help stabilize child care businesses in Seattle, many of which had remained open from the earliest days of the pandemic. In September 2021, a second round of supports was opened, providing $2.9 million in recognition payments to more than 3,500 child care workers.