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Jennifer Webber wasn't surprised when a recent study found women are more worried about their economic security than men. The single mother checks her bank balance every morning and constantly frets over her mortgage and costs for health insurance and gas.
But there is one area where she won't scrimp&emdash;child care for her 1-year-old son, Josiah. It costs a pretty penny to send him to a home day-care center in Calumet City, but she wouldn't leave him anywhere else. He's already counting, and he recently went on trips to the state fair and a children's museum.
"Child care is at the top of the list when I get paid&emdash;it's not optional," she said. "Then I pay my bills, and I try to see what's left after that."
She pays $160 for child care each week, or more than $8,000 a year&emdash;a huge expense for the Lynwood woman, who makes about $40,000 a year in sales.
A report to be released Monday confirms parents across the Chicago region are struggling to find quality child care that is affordable. Infant care can cost more than college tuition and swallows one-fifth of a family's income on average, according to Illinois Action for Children, a non-profit group that administers financial assistance for child care in Cook County.
The group's annual survey found that Chicago parents pay about $190 a week for an infant's care at a licensed center, or $9,510 per year&emdash;more than tuition and fees at a public university, which costs $7,875 on average. Infant care runs about $269 a week at centers in the north and northwest suburbs and $188 in the south and southwest suburbs.
Another study released this month found that women across the country said child care was one of the most important issues they face, and 75 percent of those surveyed favor increasing government funding for child care and early education, according to the National Women's Law Center.
The agency Action for Children wants more people to know financial help is available from the state if they qualify, officials said. Assistance is available to families in Illinois that earn at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level, or a little more than $42,000 for a family of four.
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Jennifer Webber used to receive state aid, but with a new job and a pay raise, she no longer qualified. She feels lucky that Patricia Twymon, the owner of her son's Wee Are the World center, charges less than many comparable programs.
"Being a parent, I understand that money can be tight," Twymon said. "I try to keep costs affordable in creative ways."
That means asking parents to bring in supplies such as paper towels and wipes twice a year, for instance. Her center is so popular, she always has a waiting list.
"Parents are looking for quality," she said. "They don't want their children watching television all day."
- reprinted from the Chicago Tribune