LANSING, Mich., March 7, 2025: The Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP) and partner organizations released a report today highlighting the positive impacts of a pilot program to increase wages for child care professionals in order to improve child care access and affordability for Michigan families. The report highlights the pilot program’s “substantial positive change” on staffing and quality of care, and its findings will be used to inform additional upcoming efforts, including a second pilot program launching later this year.
“Michigan’s child care providers serve an absolutely critical role for children, families, employers, and our economy as a whole, and we know that by investing in them, we are investing in our state’s overall success,” said Dr. Beverly Walker-Griffea, director of MiLEAP. “MiLEAP is continuing to collaborate with partners across the state to find ways to attract and retain high-quality child care professionals, expanding space for more children, and giving more options for Michigan’s families.”
“As we work with partners across the state to expand access to affordable child care, we continue to hear that child care professionals need more support to stay and thrive in this industry,” said Emily Laidlaw, deputy director of Early Education at MiLEAP. “Our recent pilot demonstrated the impact higher wages has on recruitment and retention, and we are continuing to work with our partners to find ways to replicate the effort across the state.”
“In order ensure Michigan has a robust child care industry that has the capacity to meet the unique needs of all working families, we need to invest in early childhood educators,” said Alicia Guevara, CEO of the Early Childhood Investment Corporation (ECIC). “Increasing compensation both recognizes and helps keep highly skilled early educators in the industry to ensure more high-quality early care and education programs are available for families. We will continue to work with MiLEAP and the thousands of dedicated child care providers in Michigan to find ways to grow and strengthen the industry.”
For families seeking child care options, visit the greatstarttoquality.org/find-programs/. For families with children turning 4 before Dec. 1, 2025, enrollment will open soon for FREE high-quality PreK for the 2025-26 school year. Visit MIPreKforAll.org to find programs near you that meet your family’s unique needs.