Support Michigan’s Child Care Workers and Invest in our Youngest Kids
Support Michigan’s Child Care Workers and Invest in our Youngest Kids
The Issue
Every morning, Carla Brown shows up early at Above and Beyond Learning Childcare Center in Detroit. She cuts sponges into shapes, prepares alphabet games in labeled Tupperware, and builds motor-skill tools from Q-tips—all for a classroom of two-year-olds. She’s not just caring for kids. She’s shaping minds at the most critical point of brain development.
For this, she earns $15 an hour.
Carla’s story isn’t unique. Across Michigan, early childhood educators—especially those who care for infants and toddlers—are drastically underpaid, overworked, and undervalued. These teachers help babies speak their first words, potty train, count to 10, and learn empathy. They are educators, not babysitters.
Yet Michigan’s investment in children under the age of 4 doesn’t reflect that reality. While the state has made preschool (age 4) a priority—funding the Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) so teachers can earn up to $30/hour—educators working with infants and toddlers are left behind. These classrooms receive just $6–$7 per hour in state reimbursements, forcing centers to rely on underpaid staff, most of whom qualify for Medicaid and lack basic benefits.
It’s a broken system, and it’s costing Michigan dearly—through teacher turnover, classroom closures, and families left without care. Without urgent state action, the educators who pour their hearts into our youngest children may leave the field altogether.
We’re calling on Governor Gretchen Whitmer, the Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP), and the State Legislature to:
- Raise the Child Development and Care (CDC) subsidy reimbursement rates to reflect the true cost of high-quality infant and toddler care
- Fund programs that offer livable wages, health benefits, and training support for early educators—especially those outside of GSRP
- Prioritize children from birth to age 3 in early education policy, not just 4-year-olds
Our youngest kids and their caretakers and educators deserve investment and fair pay.
Photo: Mandi Wright, Detroit Free Press
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The Issue
Every morning, Carla Brown shows up early at Above and Beyond Learning Childcare Center in Detroit. She cuts sponges into shapes, prepares alphabet games in labeled Tupperware, and builds motor-skill tools from Q-tips—all for a classroom of two-year-olds. She’s not just caring for kids. She’s shaping minds at the most critical point of brain development.
For this, she earns $15 an hour.
Carla’s story isn’t unique. Across Michigan, early childhood educators—especially those who care for infants and toddlers—are drastically underpaid, overworked, and undervalued. These teachers help babies speak their first words, potty train, count to 10, and learn empathy. They are educators, not babysitters.
Yet Michigan’s investment in children under the age of 4 doesn’t reflect that reality. While the state has made preschool (age 4) a priority—funding the Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) so teachers can earn up to $30/hour—educators working with infants and toddlers are left behind. These classrooms receive just $6–$7 per hour in state reimbursements, forcing centers to rely on underpaid staff, most of whom qualify for Medicaid and lack basic benefits.
It’s a broken system, and it’s costing Michigan dearly—through teacher turnover, classroom closures, and families left without care. Without urgent state action, the educators who pour their hearts into our youngest children may leave the field altogether.
We’re calling on Governor Gretchen Whitmer, the Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP), and the State Legislature to:
- Raise the Child Development and Care (CDC) subsidy reimbursement rates to reflect the true cost of high-quality infant and toddler care
- Fund programs that offer livable wages, health benefits, and training support for early educators—especially those outside of GSRP
- Prioritize children from birth to age 3 in early education policy, not just 4-year-olds
Our youngest kids and their caretakers and educators deserve investment and fair pay.
Photo: Mandi Wright, Detroit Free Press
43
The Decision Makers
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Petition created on September 14, 2025