This week is Child Welfare Worker Appreciation Week – an opportunity for our agency to acknowledge the child welfare workforce as a valuable and integral part of communities across the country.

Gov. Inslee recently announced that most students in Washington should resume remote learning in the fall, which means that the majority of parents will need to continue balancing work and child care. The work of our agency is focused on children, youth and families impacted by these decisions, but it also touches home for many of you as parents or caregivers. Parent or not, we are all concerned about what will happen this September to our families and children. Unfortunately, there are more questions than answers at this point.

Existing Child Care Market

The past several years we have seen a disturbing and growing pattern of children in the foster care system having to stay overnight in a hotel with their caseworker, in a Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) office or a one-night “emergency” placement in a foster home. Each of these situations is a problem. Children who have experienced the level of trauma these young people have experienced need a safe and stable place to live, with a safe and stable caregiver who can provide the level of care they need.

Did you know being absent from school just two days each month for any reason equates to missing 10% of instructional time and valuable information needed to ensure academic progress? Unfortunately, Washington State ranks among the lowest in the country in regular school attendance. Further, the children and youth most likely to be absent from school are students of color, students experiencing poverty and students experiencing homelessness.