SSTC Leading State-Wide FFN Advocacy Coalition in NC
One of the most utilized forms of child care in the U.S. is not currently recognized in North Carolina at a legislative level and is not eligible for public state funding. Family, Friend, and Neighbor (FFN) care is a form of home-based child care where a child is cared for in the home of a relative or family friend and it is estimated that 6.4 million American children ages 0-5 are currently served in an FFN environment. Despite this, many people, including a large number of families and providers who participate in FFN care, are unaware of the important role it plays in early childhood education (ECE) in both our state and in the U.S. To address this, Smart Start of Transylvania County (SSTC) has recently formed a statewide FFN Care Advocacy Coalition, with the goal of legitimizing and uplifting home-based child care in North Carolina.
FFN care has historically been a prevalent form of child care, with the number of families relying on it growing in recent years. In the wake of child care centers closing during and after the pandemic, along with a sharp decline in the recruitment and retention of early childhood educators, we have seen an overall reduction in child care capacity, leaving many working class families in need. To address this need, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and trusted friends have stepped into full-time provider roles, caring for and educating children in their home. These caregivers play a vital role in sustaining ECE, along with the livelihood of many working families, who require care for their young children in order to maintain employment. .
Although their work is a crucial necessity for many working class families, FFN providers are frequently overlooked and underfunded. Consequently, they may struggle to secure basic necessities for themselves and investing money in professional development and teaching resources and materials can be extremely difficult for caregivers who do not garner enough wages to afford things like basic healthcare. With limited funds, the children cared for in home-based settings do not always have access to the same educational opportunities as those enrolled in center-based care. With an awareness of these challenges, SSTC has worked in recent years to build a comprehensive network of FFN caregivers in the community, in order to create a system of support and increase resources available to FFN providers, both old and new, and the children in their care.
Local FFN providers have been able to utilize our care network for financial assistance, educational resources, and community connection. Additionally, providers in our network have partnered with SSTC as FFN advocate leaders, helping to form key messages in support of FFN care, sharing their stories and experiences across a variety of media outlets, and contacting legislators and policy influencers to ask for support. SSTC is extremely proud of the growth of our FFN network and the active role that our providers have played in advocacy development over the past year. However, we know that there are families and providers across our state utilizing FFN care who are in immediate need of resources and support.
With our newly formed NC FFN Advocacy Coalition, SSTC is now aiming to build upon the success of our local FFN care network in order to advocate for home-based care providers in all NC regions and counties. At the coalition’s first meeting, held virtually on January 29th, SSTC team members and providers who serve as advocacy leaders for the Transylvania FFN network were joined by passionate early childhood advocates from various organizations and networks, all eager to rally for greater support for NC FFN providers and families of young children.
Collaboratively, coalition team members will work to establish home-based FFN care as a recognized and legitimate form of child care in NC that is regularly included in conversations surrounding early child care public policy and funding, as well as conversations surrounding other forms of early child care support within organizations and communities. Over the next year, participants will assist SSTC in developing a statewide policy advocacy plan and will utilize established advocacy language surrounding FFN care to spread key messages and ensure that FFN care is being recognized statewide in a consistent and effective manner.
With this coalition, we want to ensure that all children and providers in our state have equal access to all the resources they need to thrive. If FFN care is not being acknowledged and appropriately supported in NC, far too many children, families, and hard-working providers will fall through the cracks and be unable to access vital resources. To keep this from happening, it is important that legislators, ECE organizations, and education advocates are willing to extend funding and support to include FFN care. SSTC invites any interested parties to visit smartstarttransylvania.org to learn more about our mission to advocate for home-based child care and ways you can help us to elevate our message.
As we develop and grow this coalition, we are hoping to be joined by passionate advocates in all regions of NC. If you are a staff member of an ECE-serving organization and are interested in joining other providers, educators, and childcare advocates as a member of the NC FFN Advocacy Coalition, in order to ensure that all children in our state enter kindergarten happy, healthy, and prepared to succeed, reach out to Aiyanna Lollis at aiyanna@smartstarttransylvania.org
Written by: Aiyanna Lollis and Published by WNC Business
