Overlooked Too Long: Focusing on the Potential of Infant-Toddler Child Care

Child care appears to be emerging as a national issue. After decades of being relegated to the minor leagues of American policy, child care for working families has become front-page news. It has been almost 50 years since the passage of comprehensive child care reform. The Comprehensive Child Development Act of l971 would have provided for a network of child care programs, ensured federal standards, and provided funds to train caregivers, among other provisions. Unfortunately it was vetoed, setting back child care for decades.

It has been more than 15 years since I wrote Time to Care, a book calling for the country to redesign the child care system to promote education, support families, and build communities (Lombardi, 2003). Since then, my own children have grown up, yet the next generation faces the same issues. Parents continue to pay a substantial portion of their income for child care and the child care workforce remains grossly underpaid, affecting every aspect of quality care. In far too many American communities, the supply of care is limited, with child care deserts becoming part of the new lexicon.

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