Provides an overview of the child care industry for community-based organizations (CBOs) seeking to address child care issues in their own communities. Child care presents a substantial challenge in low-income communities, making access to affordable, quality care particularly important. CBOs learn about (1) the many types of child care programs that exist, including in-home care, kith and kin care, family child care, nonprofit and for-profit centers, before- and after-school care, and Head Start and Early Start programs; (2) child care costs and subsidies, private grants, child care vouchers, and tax benefits; (3) the regulatory system governing child care programs and facilities; (4) models of CBO involvement, including empowering parents to be advocates for child care issues and offering referral-and-resource services to providers; and (5) aligning the goals and capacities of the CBO with community child care needs. Both opportunities and challenges exist for CBOs interested in pursuing a childcare project. Benefits include building new relationships with community members and assisting individuals in contributing to their community’s economic health. Because such a project may stretch a CBO’s expertise, pre-planning efforts become essential.
