“writing to get word out about the city’s plans to cut DC’s Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund”

“Dear PoPville,

I’m writing to get word out about the city’s plans to cut DC’s Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund from the new budget, and to ask anyone interested to urge Mayor Bowser and the DC Council to protect it. A brief summary:

for the last year and a half, the city has been providing early childhood educators employed by OSSE-licensed childcare facilities with supplemental pay, with the goal of bringing pay in line with what DCPS early childhood educators receive. Early childhood educators have, historically, received very low wages and few benefits, (and of course were some of the first folks back to work in 2020), and this program is what brought many educators into the realm of fair pay for the first time. This program is now expected to be cut from the 2025 budget, though a hearing is taking place this Thursday in front of the DC Council to allow for testimony.

If the program is cut, it will lead to a significant pay cut for these educators (to the tune of about 20% for many), many of whom are Black and brown women, many of whom are District residents with children themselves. In the absence of the pay equity subsidy, the vast majority of early childhood centers, which rely on tuition as their primary source of revenue, will not be able to maintain these wages without extreme hikes in tuition rates. Practically speaking, a hike in tuition rates will make these centers unaffordable to many families, who are already struggling to afford childcare. Cutting this program will also inevitably lead to many educators leaving the field entirely in search of better wages. This loss of expertise would be catastrophic for our city, particularly families with young children.

If you would like to urge Mayor Bowser and the DC Council to protect the pay equity fund, you can submit a written or verbal testimony, either in person or over Zoom, at the DC Council hearing this Thursday, April 4th. You don’t need to be present for the full hearing– just your allotted four minutes! Detailed instructions about registering to testify and submitting testimony can be found HERE. The deadline to sign up for the hearing is 5:00PM today, Tuesday, April 2nd.“