In this episode of the Inclusive Excellence Podcast, co-hosts Erin Sember-Chase and Toral Patel are joined by Ruth Merle-Doyle, Work Life Program Manager at Cornell, and Melissa Perry, CEO of the Child Development Council of Central New York, to explore a growing challenge in Tompkins County – child care accessibility. 

According to Perry, Tompkins County has long struggled with a child care shortage. Officially classified as a “child care desert,” the county has three or more children for every available child care spot. This issue isn’t just local either – 51% of the U.S. population is living in areas where child care options are scarce. 

Merle-Doyle and Perry share how the consequences of this shortage extend far beyond the home. A lack of reliable child care places significant strain on families and can disrupt entire communities and workplaces. A recent Empire State poll by the ILR Buffalo Co-Lab found that more than two out of five respondents had a household member who had chosen to forgo employment outside of the home due to the lack of child care options.

“I do believe that employers need to acknowledge some truths about working families and parents and the challenges they face,” Merle-Doyle said. “We need to lean into the research and recognize how reliable care benefits the workforce. When it’s absent, it frustrates employees who are eager to be productive but are hindered by the lack of affordable, dependable care. It’s a situation that affects not only families but the overall health of a workforce.” 

Merle-Doyle and Perry offer solutions and suggestions for working parents, employers and colleagues to help mitigate the pressures of child care. From emergency scholarships to grants and a resource and referral program, they share the best tips and tricks for accessing child care and navigating resources at Cornell and throughout Tompkins County. They also touch on efforts to increase child care supply through grants and small business supports. 

“I want everyone to know that child care impacts us all, whether we realize it or not,” Perry said. “Everybody has some sort of connection to child care. And what keeps me doing this work is the belief that we can work together to give young children the best possible start in life by ensuring their caregivers – whether that's their family or a child care provider – have the necessary resources they need for success.”

For more information on navigating childcare in and out of the workplace, tune in to Episode 87: Today’s Child Care Desert – A Community Challenge.