Daycare days may be numbered
Lamar Salter REPORTER
Issue date: 6/25/09 Section: News
The Beeghly College of Education's community daycare program could be shut down if a proposal from the Governor to cut funding is approved.
Established in 2006, the daycare center falls under the Early Learning Initiative (ELI), a statewide program designed to help provide childcare assistance to low income families. The program is now at risk of being cut from the state due to budget problems.
According to Lenal Morello, the supervisor of Family services for the Mahoning County Educational Family Service center (MSCESC), the program's budget of about $125 million was originally planned to shrink to 85 million. However, this past Friday Gov. Ted Strickland proposed to cut the program completely.
The State of Ohio's budget is currently at a 3.2 billion dollar budget gap according to Allison Kolodzeij, the Deputy Communications Director for the governor's office.
"The governor is making tough decisions," Kolodzeij said. She also said that the children already enrolled in ELI would continue to stay until they reach kindergarten and that the governor was working on ways to "open up talks" for early childcare programs with the Ohio Legislature.
Morello said that about 600 children in the Mahoning County alone would be affected and about 300 in Trumbull County
Patty Dragovich a childcare provider for ELI addressed the need for the program saying that if passed, over "30,000 children in Ohio would be affected."
"If we lose this program, families all over the county would lose out," Dragovich said, adding that the program could be saved if the Ohio Legislature is persuaded in keeping it.
ELI is not the only program facing budget cuts. Services such as the Department of Mental Health and the Department of Job and Family Services are also facing budget shrinks if the governor's budget is approved.
The proposal will be turned into the Ohio Legislature by June 30 at which a final ruling will be made, according to Kolodzeij.
Established in 2006, the daycare center falls under the Early Learning Initiative (ELI), a statewide program designed to help provide childcare assistance to low income families. The program is now at risk of being cut from the state due to budget problems.
According to Lenal Morello, the supervisor of Family services for the Mahoning County Educational Family Service center (MSCESC), the program's budget of about $125 million was originally planned to shrink to 85 million. However, this past Friday Gov. Ted Strickland proposed to cut the program completely.
The State of Ohio's budget is currently at a 3.2 billion dollar budget gap according to Allison Kolodzeij, the Deputy Communications Director for the governor's office.
"The governor is making tough decisions," Kolodzeij said. She also said that the children already enrolled in ELI would continue to stay until they reach kindergarten and that the governor was working on ways to "open up talks" for early childcare programs with the Ohio Legislature.
Morello said that about 600 children in the Mahoning County alone would be affected and about 300 in Trumbull County
Patty Dragovich a childcare provider for ELI addressed the need for the program saying that if passed, over "30,000 children in Ohio would be affected."
"If we lose this program, families all over the county would lose out," Dragovich said, adding that the program could be saved if the Ohio Legislature is persuaded in keeping it.
ELI is not the only program facing budget cuts. Services such as the Department of Mental Health and the Department of Job and Family Services are also facing budget shrinks if the governor's budget is approved.
The proposal will be turned into the Ohio Legislature by June 30 at which a final ruling will be made, according to Kolodzeij.
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