By Bridget Manley, publisher
In the hopes of addressing a shortage of affordable childcare in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, Valley Interfaith Action announced a new childcare model on Monday.
Called Valley Early Education Reimagined, or VEER, the new model will recruit and harness civic, corporate and elected leaders to raise capital and leverage tax dollars so as to expand the number of employers that subsidize or cover childcare costs for their workers. Monday’s event attracted area leaders, including the mayor, city schools superintendent and the state delegate who represents Harrisonburg.
Leaders with Valley Interfaith Action have been working on a sustainable childcare model for some time, said Lori Friesen, associate pastor at Zion Mennonite Church in Broadway and a member of the strategy team.
VEER opened its first early education childcare center inside Park View Mennonite Church in early January, with plans for a second location to open later this year.
Another part of the multi-part strategy is to use funding to convert underused spaces for new childcare facilities.
“We are not building new buildings,” Friesen said. “We are looking for places that already exist, that we can cost-effectively retrofit to put the centers there.”
The model will help attract and develop more early education teachers. VEER will collaborate with Blue Ridge Community College and Eastern Mennonite University to support childcare center staff in earning their degrees while working.
The model also is based on providing a livable wage, benefits and retirement plans for childcare staff, along with opportunities for career growth. Teacher aides can train while working to become teachers, and teachers can eventually advance to become directors of their own centers.
The Virginia Mercury reported that Virginia employers said the lack of affordable healthcare hurt business, leading to employee tardiness, absences, and reduced work hours. In 2022, VIA conducted a listening campaign across the city and county to identify community needs and identified childcare as a major issue.
Both Harrisonburg City Schools and Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community have agreed to partner with VEER and offer employee subsidies for childcare centers to attract and retain employees.
Michael Richards, the city schools’ superintendent, said the partnership will not only benefit students by providing quality early childhood education, but it will also help retain quality teachers in city schools.
“Sometimes we get these great candidates who come to the city, and they want to teach for us,” Richards said. “And they look around, and they say, ‘Well, where is the housing, and where is the childcare?’”
VEER hopes to get more employers on board to help their employees manage the costs.
Both Harrisonburg City Mayor Deanna Reed and Del. Tony Wilt attended to discuss their shared goal of improving childcare centers across the area.
Wilt said the Virginia General Assembly passed two bills—one in the House and one in the Senate—that would establish the Employee Childcare Assistance Program, which aims to provide funds for shared childcare costs among parents, employers, and the Commonwealth. That has gone to Gov. Abigail Spanberger for her signature.
Wilt said he had concerns that the bills were too narrowly drawn and that the funding the General Assembly has allotted for the program could limit its uses. But he said he still believes it’s a start.
“Sometimes success is in baby steps, pardon the pun,” Wilt said.
Reed said the announcement was a powerful example of what happens when a community comes together with a shared purpose.
“The work happening through VEER is exactly the kind of bold, collaborative blueprint we need to help close the childcare gap in our city,” Reed said. “Because let’s be clear, childcare is not just a family issue, it’s a workforce issue, it’s an economic issue, and it’s a community issue.”
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