Braun crafting early childhood education plan ahead of budget-writing session
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Gov. Mike Braun toured St. Mary's Early Childhood Center. Photo: Arika Herron/Axios
A group of children crowds around a water table, splashing and blowing bubbles, as Gov. Mike Braun toured the St. Mary's Early Childhood Center looking for ideas to shape next year's legislative agenda.
Why it matters: Indiana's child care crisis is expected to be a priority issue for Braun and lawmakers during the session as they write the next state budget.
The big picture: Nearly half of American families with young children live in a "child care desert" — a region with a shortage of licensed day care providers, according to an analysis from the liberal Center for American Progress.
- Large swaths of the Indianapolis metro area — particularly the west and south sides — are affected.
Driving the news: Last month, Braun released $200 million in state funding to bolster Child Care and Development Fund vouchers, a program that helps low-income families afford child care and return to work.
- The vouchers had been frozen due to funding constraints, and tens of thousands of Hoosier kids were on waiting lists.
- The new funding will cover vouchers for about 14,000 students.
The latest: While touring St. Mary's, Braun said he's looking for best practices in early childhood education to inform policy.
- "I'm looking at where we need to do better as a state," Braun said during his visit of the Indianapolis facility.
- He acknowledged that while high-quality early childhood education can be expensive, it's an investment worth making.
Between the lines: While it's unclear exactly what Braun's child care plan will be, it's likely to include the business community.
- He's said he expects businesses to participate in a robust child care system that allows more adults to enter the workforce.
- He's also stressed about making sure the state is funding educational programs that go beyond basic child care.
What they're saying: Executive director Michelle Radomsky says St. Mary's was able to weather the storm of child care funding shortages, but many providers weren't so lucky.
- The silver lining, she said, is the statewide conversation that the challenge prompted.
- "We want all children in Indiana to be able to have affordable, accessible early childhood education," she said, "and we want to be a part of that conversation."