Variations in the Impact of COVID-19 on the Early Care and Education Sector: Community-Level Disparities in California

• In Event: Child and Family Experience in Early Learning Settings

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of COVID-19 on the early care and education (ECE) sector, focusing on variations across communities. The study shows that both child care centers and family child care (FCC) homes in lower-income neighborhoods and communities of color were more likely to have stayed open throughout the pandemic. FCCs in under-resourced communities were more likely than those in affluent neighborhoods to experience financial hardship and business challenges. The greater presence of Head Start and state-contracted programs in lower-income communities partly mitigated negative impacts of COVID-19. Implications for policy are discussed in light of disparities in COVID-19 impact across program types and communities and the role of stable public funding in building an effective and equitable ECE system.

Authors

• Yoonjeon Kim, University of California - Berkeley

• Elena Montoya, University of California - Berkeley

• Sean Doocy

• Lea J.E. Austin, University of California - Berkeley

• Marcy Whitebook, University of California - Berkeley