April 7, 2022 Ticonderoga, NY – The Ticonderoga Revitalization Alliance has released a report on the state of childcare in the Ticonderoga Area. The report is the result of a childcare survey conducted over the past few months and sent to people who live and work in the Ticonderoga Area, including Ticonderoga, Hague, Putnam, Crown Point, and Moriah. The survey was distributed through the towns, schools, and local employers, and widely promoted in local news and social media channels.
The data from the survey will be used to help guide a new initiative to create new childcare resources in the Ticonderoga Area through a partnership of employers, schools, and agencies. The responses of 103 families capture a picture of local childcare that shows a vivid picture of dwindling childcare resources in an area that has already been deemed a “childcare desert” by federal, state, and regional measures.
The most striking result of the survey was the quantification of this critical challenge to this area’s economy. The report identified 87 children in our immediate community that would attend a public childcare center if it was available. Those children were almost evenly divided between three age groups: infant to 18 months, 18 months to 3 years, and 3 years to 5 years. More than 70% of parents said their child or children would attend a public childcare center 4 or 5 days a week.
A lack of childcare is preventing people in our community from working. 42% of respondents indicated that a lack of childcare availability prevents someone in their household from working full or part-time and 50% of childcare for young children relies on a stay-at-home parent or family member. That means a lot of people aren’t working that would like to.
Childcare is a challenge shared by both families and employers. According to the report, more than 75% of the respondents are currently working full time, but 73% of respondents report that unreliable or unavailable childcare causes them to lose some work time every month. 29% of respondents indicated that they lose work 3 or more times per month because of childcare issues. When people lose work it has a large effect on the productivity and profitability of our employers as well as the workers.
The childcare challenge is one that needs to be addressed in a community-wide effort and one is underway exploring how a public childcare facility could be created in Ticonderoga. A partnership of several local organizations, including Ti-Alliance, Ticonderoga Central Schools, the Town of Ticonderoga, the Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce, Silver Bay YMCA, Sylvamo, Fort Ticonderoga, Hudson Headwaters Health Network, and other employers are investigating potential locations, funding resources, and management options for a community-supported facility.
In addition to a public facility, the Childcare Coordinating Council of the North Country (CCCCNC) and Adirondack Community Action Programs (ACAP) are promoting excellent programs to help individuals create new home-based childcare resources. The results of the survey clearly indicate that it will take both public and home-based providers to generate enough capacity to support the Ticonderoga Area families and employers.
For more information on this project, contact Ti-Alliance and read the full Ticonderoga Area Childcare Survey Report at www.ticonderoga-alliance.org/challenge-of-childcare. For information regarding resources for childcare providers, contact ACAP at https://www.acapinc.org/programs1/child-and-family-services/.
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