How Kids Care Finder can help ease the childcare crisis in America
It is well established by years of research and hundreds of studies that early childhood education—high quality daycare, preschool, and Transitional Kindergarten—provides a foundation for future success in school and in life. Play and exploring are key to the development of a child’s sense of self. Interacting with peers, very young children learn to make decisions, develop empathy, and control their emotions and impulses.
Unfortunately, this acknowledgement of the importance of early childhood education comes at a time when the field is suffering a crisis. There is no shortage of families that are
seeking childcare. The crisis lies in preschools’ and daycares’ inability to hire qualified staff. There are not enough spots in preschools, daycares, in-home daycares, and after care and extracurricular activities to fill the demand. Additionally, with fewer staff, childcare providers are swamped by paperwork—wait-lists, applications, and managing enrollment documents. Parents are desperate. The task of finding care and activities is all-consuming and ex-the best fit for their families. Preschool? In- home daycare? Nannies? Private school? They then have to call dozens of providers to see which program might meet their family’s needs. Do they offer meals and snacks? What are their hours? What’s the teacher-to-child ratio? Do they allow drop- ins, weekends, irregular schedules? And most importantly, is space available?
Luckily, a new Carlsbad-based business is coming to the rescue. Kids Care Finder is a startup that connects families to all types of childcare, programs, extracurricular activi- ties, and service providers for kids of all ages in ONE place. It’s a true one-stop-shop that parents can leverage throughout the course of their children’s lifetime. There is something for everyone, at every stage of parent-leaders of our region. At our annual CBAD Awards luncheon we had the opportunity to thank these remarkable individuals who dedicate their life to our young people. This year’s Teacher Of The Year Awards were given to the following well deserving men- tors: Candace Wright – Mission Estancia Elementary; Dave Pier – Aviara Oaks Middle School; and Aimee Nava – Carlsbad High School.
It is also important to have support for education from the community as well. It is people like Rosemary Eshelman who ex- emplify what it means to be a partner to our education system, and we are proud to say she was recognized as this year’s recipient of the Educational Excellence Award.
We also honor our students who contin- ue to amaze us with their accomplishments and innovation. The Carlsbad Chamber Community Foundation, which is the foundation arms of the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, honors these students who overcome hardship and continue the excel- lence at our monthly Rising Star Breakfast. At the conclusion of the school year, we award several students college scholarships so they can continue their journey.
Education is the heart and soul of our wonderful Carlsbad community and we at the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce are proud to be doing our part to recognize, promote, and encourage academic excellence.
Founder and CEO Olivia Rutman and her team have created a robust, functional website, and soon-to-be-app, that connects families with many different child related providers, and allows families to filter those providers to see just those who meet their unique needs.
Free for families, Kids Care Finder allows families to search for the type of childcare they want—preschool, in-home daycare, nanny, babysitter, summer camp—and the specific services or experience that they find important, such as infant experience, CPR/ First Aid certifications, meals and snacks, early / late drop-off or pick-up, etc. Parents will also be able to read reviews of providers from other parents and see if the provider has cleared a license verification or back- ground check. Additionally, the site allows parents to message providers, apply online, and even enroll electronically in just minutes. But don’t think Kids Care Finder is solely focused on childcare. They will soon have dozens of different categories on their site covering a broad range of needs. They will have categories such as mommy and me and toddler fun activities, special needs pro- grams, sports and rec, summer camps, birth- day parties, pediatricians, mental health support, and so many more. Parents often spend as much or more time hunting for extracurricular activities and service provid- ers over the years as they do for childcare during the early childhood years.
HOW IS KIDS CARE FINDER DIFFERENT?
- Kids Care Finder never charges families
to use the site to find and message providers. Visit kidscarefinder.com
- The site covers far more than just childcare. They will have 30+ categories covering a broad range of programs and
- The unique actions of the site such as waitlist, online applications, and online enrollment help move the process forward quickly and efficiently once a provider that meets the family’s needs is
Parents and providers can breathe a huge sigh of relief. Kids Care Finder has arrived to simplify the agony of finding many child related programs. They will be there for you, for all your child’s needs, from birth to grown.