Childcare Plan Comes To The Aid Of Hillsborough's Homeless Kids

Published: Dec 18, 2007

The Children's Board of Hillsborough County will have an opportunity next month to attack two problems with one smart initiative: a proposal to use nearly $1 million to provide childcare for homeless families.

Rather than create a new program, this plan would add targeted funding to existing programs operated by the board's Early Learning Coalition, the Hillsborough County School district and the county's social services department.

This approach, spearheaded by County Commissioner Mark Sharpe and schools Superintendent MaryEllen Elia, gets help to needy families immediately.

Children represent 16 percent of the estimated 9,500 homeless persons in the county.

They are among the most vulnerable among us, and it is heartening to see Sharpe and Elia carry the banner for this overlooked group of children.

Hillsborough's poorest families face a daunting Catch-22: They can't afford childcare unless they have decent jobs, and they can't get those jobs unless they have reliable, safe childcare.

Children's advocates say the sole state program that does subsidize childcare has income limits so low most working parents can't qualify. This is ridiculous. Despite popular belief, most homeless parents do have jobs of some sort.

Sharpe, who is eager to get the program started, thinks the county could begin providing immediate assistance to as many as 300 homeless families within weeks of a thumbs-up.

Sharpe is right: There is no need to study the issue of homeless children or design a complicated solution.

But the board, which will give final approval to the plan at its January meeting, does need to show the tax dollars will be put to good use. It should define which families would be eligible to participate - those on the verge of homelessness should be included - and identify which childcare providers are best to work with this particular group of children.

While homeless children desperately need the structured environment of an early learning center, it must be recognized that they often need special attention. Their teachers should be equipped to deal with children who have been denied the stability of a regular home, proper nutrition and the security of a stable family life - which can dramatically affect their behavior and their ability to learn.

Transportation issues also need to be addressed, and the subsidy must be contingent on a child actually attending the program.

Local efforts also should be linked as much as possible with Florida's Voluntary Prekindergarten Program, which enrolls only about half of the eligible 4-year-olds in the county.

Hillsborough County - through the Early Learning Coalition, the county and the school district - helps thousands of needy families connect with quality childcare. But still, waiting lists for child care subsidies or Head Start range from 3,000 to 5,000 children long.

Homeless children don't have time to wait. The chaos of their lives demands a swift response, which this effort, properly managed, should provide.