Shaheen, Pappas, Acting Secretary of Labor Su Visit Child Care Facility, Host Roundtable on Child Care and Workforce Challenges

Today Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01), U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su, visited A Place to Grow and hosted a roundtable discussion at the facility to discuss the first U.S. Department of Labor approved apprenticeship program for early childhood education operations managers and a new report emphasizing the importance of care workers. Photos from the event can be found here. 

“The cost of child care remains among the most pressing issues that families are facing. That’s why providing every federal resource available to families and child care providers in New Hampshire is critical,” said Congressman Pappas. “I’ll keep fighting to cap the amount of money that families pay for child care, strengthen our child care and education workforce, and expand the Child Tax Credit, a middle-class tax cut that helps families keep more of their hard-earned money in their pockets. I was grateful to join Acting Secretary Su, Senator Shaheen, and A Place To Grow owner Jennifer Legere today to hear from folks on the ground doing this work.” 

“I’ve met with child care providers across New Hampshire and all of them have underscored the challenges they face with workforce recruitment and retention,” said Senator Shaheen. “Without affordable child care options, families, the workforce and the overall economic development of our communities suffer. That’s why I was so pleased to join Acting Secretary Su in visiting A Place to Grow where their innovative, new Registered Apprenticeship program for early childhood education administrators provides the training and pathways needed to get workers into the child care industry and keep them there.” 

“Paid care work is critical economic infrastructure in this country, because safe and dependable care allows working parents and other caregivers to get and keep their jobs while also ensuring safe, quality working conditions for workers who take care of our loved ones,” said Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su. “The Biden-Harris administration is making once-in-a-generation investments creating good jobs and know that without the care economy and all of the talented care workers we have in this country, our economy suffers. I am glad to be in New Hampshire today to highlight this forward-looking program.” 

Joining Shaheen, Pappas, and Su for the discussion were leaders and New Hampshire residents including: Nicole Heller, Senior Policy Analyst at the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute, MacKenzie Nicholson, Senior Director of New Hampshire MomsRising, Jen Legere, Owner and Founder of A Place to Grow and Kayte Kostinden, Director and Early Childhood Operations Apprentice at A Place to Grow Brentwood.