Pensacola mayor creates new position & program focused on quality, affordable child care
Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves is launching a child care access program to expand child care options across the city.
Reeves made the announcement May 8 as the city is preparing to host a child care summit on May 28 to develop policies to improve child care access.
"Access to affordable, quality childcare is not just a family issue – it's an economic issue,' Reeves said. 'By aligning city resources and targeting available funding from the Escambia Children's Trust, we will build the kind of infrastructure to allow Pensacola families to thrive and our economy to grow.'
Reeves said the city would seek to use funding from the Community Redevelopment Agency as well as the Escambia Children's Trust to tackle the issue.
Improving child care access: Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves to host a child care summit to find ways to expand access
The program, which is officially called the "Mayor's Childcare Access Program" will prioritize:
Supporting and expanding existing childcare centers in underserved areas, particularly within the CRA district.
Providing direct grants and technical assistance to childcare providers to improve capacity, quality and workforce development.
Partnering with local employers to incentivize on-site or subsidized childcare solutions.
Connecting families with trusted childcare resources and streamlining access to available subsidies and scholarships
Reeves has also created a new city position called the education and youth program officer and has hired Theresa Cserep for the role. Cserep has previously worked at the University of West Florida and the Florida Department of Children and Families.
"Theresa's passion and expertise make her the ideal person to help us build a more supportive environment for Pensacola's youngest residents,' Reeves said. 'This is about investing in our future – starting with the very first years of life.'
Reeves said that beyond the summit on May 28, the city can bring physical infrastructure to expand child care, like the Alice S. Williams Library, which the city is in the process of restoring, the old Baptist Hospital campus, and a commercial revitalization project planned in Brownsville.
Reeves said he believes it's an important issue for the city to tackle because education and childcare are among the biggest reasons people decide where to live.
"I grew up in this community with the understanding of why people live in other counties because of education, and this is something that doesn't have to just be, 'How we've always done it,'" Reeves said. "... We don't have to accept that. We can do the best that we can, and if increasing child care access makes it easier and more accessible for people to live in our city and to stay in our city, that's what we're looking at doing."
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves launches child care access program
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