Your Voice is Important - By Beth Ward
The greatest challenge I’ve had with Early Childhood Education and Care services in my region has been all of it and everything in between! My family needs child care. We are a one income household, and in today’s economy that does not suffice. We had zero Early Intervention services for my daughter. There were no options in Southern Illinois for a four-year-old with the possibility of an autism diagnosis. There were also no options to obtain that diagnosis to get an Individual Education Plan (IEP) started so she could enter an early childhood program. We ultimately waited nine months for an appointment two hours away.
After leaving my nursing career to get my daughter on the right educational track, I sought out a new career. I was inevitably placed right back in the same situation: no child care. I called NINE child care facilities. Some of the reasoning I had to sit with was:
“We don’t have the staff.”
“We don’t have the resources to keep her safe.”
“Your daughter could try out.”
“No, we don’t do that here.”
“Well, if she could sign (language) to us that would make it easier to accommodate her.”
My daughter missed an entire CRUCIAL year of school because of our lack of services. Nobody deserves to feel as defeated as I have in this fight. Every child deserves the opportunity to thrive, regardless of their clinical diagnosis.
