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Higher Standards Will Demand Higher Pay: Child-Care Workers Struggle to Meet Rising Expectations.

Posted on: Sunday, 26 March 2006, 12:00 CST

By Ginnie Graham, Tulsa World, Okla.

Mar. 26--The emphasis on higher education means a demand for higher salaries within the child-care industry. Child-care provider Andrea Fields said workers struggle with providing their services and finding time and money to meet the rising expectations. "An education is important and worth it for the kids and the provider," Fields said. "But if you keep the same pay, that's going to be hard. Time does not allow a person to work a 12- to 15-hour day then turn around and go to school and take care of your family." For child-care providers of children younger than 4 or in private or nonprofit facilities, paying teachers higher wages may result in higher tuition for parents. More staff is required, as adult-to-child ratios are smaller for young children. Darnell Williams, dean of Langston University's education department, said the pay for early education teachers has not kept up with the educational expectations. "Usually a teacher with a child development degree won't teach very long because they generally become an administrator," Williams said. "That's the problem with education in general. We take the better-trained teachers out of the classrooms because they are not being compensated to the degree that they should be." Some efforts are being made to give child-care providers greater access to higher education. Tulsa Community College and many other universities offer courses at nontraditional times and online for working students. TCC has transfer agreements with four universities to encourage completion of four-year degrees. The REWARD program funded by the state Department of Education offers education-based salary supplements up to $2,000 annually for child-care teachers and $1,200 for directors. It is administered by the Center for Early Childhood Professional Development through the University of Oklahoma's College of Continuing Education. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education offer the Scholars for Excellence in Child Care program, which provides scholarships for providers attending a two-year college. ------------ Ginnie Graham 581-8376 ginnie.graham@tulsaworld.com

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Copyright (c) 2006, Tulsa World, Okla.

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Source: Tulsa World

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