We Are the Care Initiative

• Overview
• Task Forces
• Resources

Resources and Useful Links

A list of resources and articles to better identify the need and cultivate ideas and solutions for San Luis Obispo County.

CHILD CARE CHALLENGE & COVID-19

• COVID-19 Has Nearly Destroyed the Childcare Industry—and It Might Be Too Late to Save It (September 8, 2020)
• The big factor holding back the U.S. economic recovery: Child care (July 3, 2020)
• The Coming Child Care Crisis (June 30, 2020)
• The Child Care Industry Is About To Collapse. There’s No Bailout Coming. (May 15, 2020)
• California child care providers struggle to stay in business (May 11, 2020)
• After Coronavirus, Nearly Half Of The Day Care Centers In The U.S. Could Be Gone (April 24, 2020)
• Coronavirus Pandemic Could Lead to Permanent Loss of Nearly 4.5 Million Child Care Slots (April 24, 2020)
• If America Doesn't Invest in Childcare, Who Will Watch Our Kids When We Go Back to Work? (April 23, 2020)

THE CHILD CARE CHALLENGE

• San Luis Obispo County Child Care Planning Council: Needs Assessment (2018-2022)
• San Luis Obispo County Child & Family Data 2019 California Child Care Portfolio
• The US and the High Cost of Child Care, A Review of Prices and Proposed Solutions for a Broken System (2018)
• When child care costs more than a mortgage (2019)
• A majority of child care workers in California paid so little they qualify for public assistance programs (2018)

WE ARE THE CARE IN THE LOCAL NEWS

• KSBY New: The Price of Paradise February 11, 2020
• KSBY News: Businesses look to solve childcare crisis for their employees December 10, 2019
• Atascadero News: ‘We Are The Care’ Coalition Forms to Tackle Child Care Crisis November 27, 2019
• KSBY News: SLO Co. supervisors approve study on affordable childcare November 5, 2019
• New Times: SLO County agencies team up on child care study October 31, 2019
• Central Coast Voices: We are the Care: A community initiative to address the local child care crisis September 5, 2019
• KSBY News: Where's The Care? Town Hall May 29, 2019
• New Times: Where's the care? Local families confront high costs, limited options for child care March 28, 2019

EMPOWERED BUSINESSES

• Patagonia’s CEO Explains How To Make On-Site Child Care Pay For Itself (2016)
• How Some Companies Are Making Child Care Less Stressful for Their Employees (2017)
• Want to Grow the Economy? Fix the Child Care Crisis (2019)

SUPPORTIVE LOCAL GOVERNMENTS

• City of Gonzales, CA: Community adds health and wellness changes to its General Plan (2018)
• San Carlos, CA: Making way for child care in San Carlos: Officials peg developer fees, streamlined permits to increase facilities (2017)
• Colorado: SB19-063 Infant And Family Child Care Action Plan (2019)