Still, some view it as wrongheaded, arguing that child care “should never be a job-linked benefit.” Many see this move as the Biden administration’s way of keeping child care in the conversation, despite a reshuffling of the politics in Washington and the outcome of last year’s legislative negotiations. Then in late February, the Commerce Department announced that, for semiconductor companies to access these federal funds, they’ll need to make high-quality, affordable child care available to all employees. In August, Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act, which invests in research and manufacturing of semiconductors in the U.S. Michelle Kang, CEO of the National Association for the Education of Young Children, noted that employer-sponsored child care has been getting “renewed focus” since the pandemic began and, most especially, in recent weeks. The full discussion is available to watch below. So, what is possible? In the absence of public investment and system-wide change, what are the next-best options - the viable alternatives? With split chambers in Congress, this avenue is no longer politically feasible, and it may not be for some time. But after a close call last year, when child care relief - at one point central to President Biden’s signature legislation - was removed altogether ahead of the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the window of opportunity to address this issue in the legislative branch has effectively closed. Significant federal investment that values the first five years of life as much as the next 13 would go a long way toward solving the crisis that exists in the early care and education sector today. The most obvious answer is federal investment and lots of it - far more than is available in the U.S.

The setting for our conversation was a featured panel at the SXSW EDU Conference and Festival in Austin, Texas. That was the question I posed to leaders from the field who came together on March 8 - coincidentally, International Women's Day - to weigh in on the issue, sharing solutions they're seeing that seem promising, innovative and scalable.

What will it take to build a sustainable early care and education system in the United States?

No copy right song