Early Childhood Professionals call Governor Lamont to action

As the COVID-19 pandemic began in Connecticut, schools, business, and other organizations were provided precise dates of closure in the best interest of public health. Schools in particular will remain closed through the remainder of the school year as "social distancing in these circumstances is not possible," noted Department of Education Commissioner Miguel Cardona. Concerns for the health and safety of students, teachers, and school personnel is paramount.

Early childhood programs, on the other hand, were never mandated to close and were encouraged to remain open for essential workers. In preschools and childcare programs, social distancing is even more impossible due to the age of the children. Infants need to be held, fed, have their nose and faces wiped, and have their diapers changed, unlike school-age children. Toddlers and preschoolers are too young to grasp the concept of social distancing. Babies and toddlers are unable to wear masks. Yet, there has been little mention of concerns for these early childhood educators and children and their health and safety. About 75% of the childcare programs in the state made the independent decision to close to protect staff, children and families.

Due to a grassroots effort, childcare providers are speaking out against the many challenges they are facing. The message from Early Childhood providers across the state is clear - they are looking for definitive guidance for reopening, including objective measures required in order to move to the next reopening phase and a recommended safe reopening date, as has been provided for camps and schools. "We have no guidance on how or when to reopen because we are just told that we were never told to close." Kristy DeConti, Director of Natural Learning Community Children's School in Weatogue.

While most programs in the state closed, some remained open to provide care for essential workers. While healthcare employees and first responders care for COVID-19 patients on the front lines, early childhood teachers have been expected to care for their children without personal protective equipment, despite the high probability of exposure to the virus through children who tend to be asymptomatic. Family childcare providers face the challenge of caring for these children in their homes, thus potentially exposing members of their household. "Being a home provider, we were strongly urged to stay open and enroll first responders' children, putting members of our household at risk. There's absolutely no way to keep yourself protected despite frequent disinfecting," stated Angela Calandra Griffis, owner of Little Miracles Home Day Care in Southington.

Salons were ordered to close. Malls were ordered to close. Casinos and tattoo parlors were ordered to close. Movie Theaters and gyms were ordered to close. Restaurants were ordered to close their dining rooms. Schools were ordered to close. Yet early childhood programs were encouraged to remain open, despite being the least able environment to practice social distancing. Rosalie Witt, an Early Childhood Consultant, Trainer and Adjunct Professor, questions these decisions. "Why is it that childcare needs to be open to support parents and guardians need to return to work but somehow K-12 is not part of that equation?" The question remains unanswered - why without question it is deemed unsafe for schools to remain open so essential workers can work, but early childhood providers are expected to put themselves in these high-risk situations with insufficient protection and safety measures. The historic divide between the value society holds for school-age teachers in comparison to their early childhood educator counterparts has never been more prevalent then now.

As the state heads towards reopening businesses and organizations, we cannot forget that much of the workforce is composed of parents, who cannot return to work if childcare programs do not open. "Several members of my teaching staff have shared with me that they are uncomfortable returning to work if they are are not provided with proper ppe, including N-95 masks," shared Carly Adames, an Early Childhood Education Director in Greenwich. "Several of our teachers are over the age of 60 and/or have underlying health conditions. Young children are coughing, sneezing and breathing in close proximity to educators and cloth masks do not filter out the virus. It is impossible to socially distance in early childhood settings."

If teachers do not feel safe returning to work, programs cannot open, and parents cannot return to work. Professionals in the Early Childhood field are advocating for ppe for providers. About 3,000 supporters have signed a petition entitled "Protect Early Childhood Professionals and Children in Connecticut." The petition also calls on the Office of Early Childhood to provide clearer guidance and policy changes relative to COVID-19 as well as the need to advocate for additional funding. Many providers rely on full or partial tuition fees to support their programs, and with reduced group sizes and lower enrollment, early learning centers and home childcare providers may not be able to sustain their programs. The state is in danger of losing potentially dozens or even hundreds of childcare programs.

"Providers are scrambling for answers. During remote meetings hosted by various ECE organizations, we hear hundreds of directors and providers asking the same questions and sharing the same concerns," stated Martha Wylie, Director of Knight Hill School in West Hartford. "It's utterly chaotic, and quite frankly, many providers are scared - both for their safety and their livelihood."

On Wednesday May 19th, supporters of the petition will hold a peaceful, socially distanced protest at the Capitol Building in Hartford. A similar rally was held by childcare providers last week in Vermont. Providers hope that through these efforts, Governor Lamont will address the aforementioned concerns and take action to protect these young children and educators.