Parents & Guardians! We need to rally for ALL states to require recorded surveillance in all licensed daycare centers! While some daycare centers across the country have recorded surveillance, I was shocked to learn most daycares do not. And are not required by the state. They may have a live surveillance feed but they are not recorded. Not only would having a recorded surveillance system help us parents make sense of injuries or incidents that may happen during the day, it will also hold teachers accountable for potentially not doing their job - or prove they were. This doesn't need to be a live feed. Sure, that's a great perk but absolutely not necessary.

When searching daycare centers for my two-year-old, recorded surveillance was a requirement for me. The center I ended up putting him in lied to me and told me they had recorded surveillance. My son had attended the daycare about five months before a SECOND major injury occurred and when I requested to watch the video, I was informed they indeed don't record. From then on, I began searching for a new facility but have yet been able to place him because of staffing shortages. At just over a year of attendance he was injured to the point he needed stitches. I do not believe what the teacher describes of the accident - and have pulled him completely out of school because I no longer trust this center, but still have no place to go. The safety of my child has been compromised more than I care to admit and will inadvertently lose childcare because I don't have any way to prove what is going on in that classroom.

It's our job as their caregivers to not only protect our children, but also be their advocate until they have a voice. You can get bits and pieces of a story from a two-year-old, but certainly not the entire picture. WE NEED MORE TRANSPARENCY. Please help me get this to each state's House of Representatives! We should feel comfortable sending our children off to be cared for by teachers - not full of anxiety because you are anticipating the next phone call. As taxing as it is on a single, full-time employed mother, there has to be many more of you dealing with this same issue.