Dear Editor: I have owned and operated a child care center for the past 19 years. I didn’t go into this profession to line my pockets with money. But everyone in my field deserves a living wage and to know they are supported in their community.
During previous budget cycles, I sat through a lot of hearings and meetings. It wasn’t easy in the 2023-25 budget cycle to get anyone at the Capitol to take providers seriously. In that budget cycle, child care was not put in the Wisconsin budget.
Because advocates and parents kept showing up and talking about the lack of accessible and affordable child care, ideas at the Capitol started to shift…