The program aims to alleviate the burden of the pandemic on working parents, many of whom are in an impossible bind: What do you do if your child’s school is online, you need to work, and you don’t have — or can’t afford — care for them during the day?
One solution has been to open child care centers to school age children. This fall, after state officials began to offer child care subsidies to online learners ages 5-12, nearly 20,000 children enrolled. This gives children a place to go during the school day and helps support child care centers that have seen their enrollment plummet. But it can take more than a month for the subsidies to reach the child care providers, a spokesman for the Michigan Department of Education said.