Michigan Business Beat | Carrie Rosingana, CAMW!, Discusses CACCC Their Services and New Website!

Chris Holman welcomes back Carrie Rosingana, CEO of CAMW! Capital Area Michigan Works!, Lansing, MI, but serving Ingham Eaton and Clinton Counties. Their theme for February 2025: Capital Area Michigan Works! CEO Carrie Rosingana discusses the Capital Area Child Care Coalition and their new website, which now includes functions to connect businesses and families with important child care resources. Question: Why is accessible and affordable child care important to families, employees and employers? ● Access to quality, affordable childcare is a barrier for many working adults and families today. ● Research shows unaffordable and non-available child care causes a decrease in employment retainment, increased stress on working parents and decreased workforce efficiency. ○ According to American Progress, child care is the work that supports all other work by enabling parents to participate in the workforce. Among parents who are not working full-time, 3 in 5 say they would choose to do so if they had access to affordable child care. ● From 2020 to 2021, 13% of children from birth to age 5 lived in families in which someone quit, changed or refused a job because of problems with child care. ● Women are five to eight times more likely than men to experience negative employment consequences related to caregiving according to the Annie E. Cassey Foundation. ○ Oftentimes one parent is forced to stay home for extended periods of time to watch their children because there are no alternatives. ● Accessible and affordable child care opens the door to reduced stress, increased productivity, and enhanced job satisfaction for employees. ● It is important to address child care disparities in order to support families and grow happier and more productive working communities. Question: What is the Capital Area Child Care Coalition and how do they impact the Capital Area community? ● Supported by Lansing Economic Area Partnership (LEAP), the Capital Area Child Care Coalition (CACCC) is a group of 70 community leaders in Eaton, Clinton and Ingham Counties who want to increase the supply of high-quality child care. ○ Capital Area Michigan Works! is proud to be co-leading the CACCC with LEAP and the United Way of South Central Michigan since its creation. ● The CACCC has two key goals: to support local child care providers and connect them to available business resources; and to assist employers as they strive to make child care more accessible and affordable for their employees. ○ The CACCC seeks input from a number of voices to identify the best strategies to accomplish this. Aside from coalition meetings, we regularly: ■ Complete analyses of public data, like cataloging existing providers and conducting parent focus groups. ■ Survey local families, child care staff, business leadership and more to understand how the current state of childcare impacts individuals, businesses and the region’s economy. ■ Host events to help stakeholders learn more about the benefits of child care. ● The Coalition values consistent community involvement in their meetings and discussions. ○ Over 348 community members engaged with the Coalition last year through meetings, surveys and discussion groups. ○ 17 child care providers received support through CACCC and its partners. ● Furthermore, the Coalition secured $340,400 in funding to make child care more accessible through their continued efforts to raise awareness. Question: The Child Care Coalition launched a new website late last year that features some new functions. Can you tell me more about what this website does and why it’s important? ○ The goals of the plan include advocating for state-level policy change, providing business development support, promoting the talent pipeline, and engaging employers to support their employees’ child care needs. Final Question: How can people learn more about the Capital Area Child Care Coalition? puremichigan.com