DES MOINES, Iowa — Childcare advocates and providers met with lawmakers under the Golden Dome Wednesday morning to discuss important childcare issues and possible solutions.

Iowa has a shortage of childcare workers and facilities, on top of high costs. Advocates Wednesday were pushing for better compensation and benefits for childcare workers in the state, saying that a win for childcare workers is a win for Iowa children.

“We still really need to address the workforce. There is a lack of early childhood educators in the profession and if we can’t staff our childcare [centers], ya know, there’s no one to care for children. So, we have to address the accessibility and price issues for families at the same time while we address the workforce issue,” said Tracy Ehlert, State Representative for District 79.

“Once [childcare workers] are supported, that provides better quality care for our children, and then that attracts more childcare workers into the workforce, which ultimately creates more childcare spots for families,” said Jessie Bulk, an advocate for childcare.

Megan Waterman, the Center Director for Caring Corner Christian Daycare said that those who work in the industry do so because they have a passion for childcare development, saying “We all choose to work in child care. Not for the money, it’s not glamorous. We have a heart for children and we have a heart for care, and we have a heart for our community. And it’s so important that we get together and share our stories and we agree on a baseline of what needs to be done so we can succeed. Becasue if childcare workers succeed, our youngest children succeed in Iowa.”

Advocates are hopeful to continue to work with legislators throughout the session to prioritize child care legislation.

“We feel really good about the policy priorities of the Iowa Childcare Coalition. This year we have had a lot of good questions from our legislators and out of the Governor’s Office a lot of support. We know that child care is in Iowa and we know the state is focused on solving the issue,” said Jillian Herink, Executive Director at the Iowa Association for the Education of Young Children.

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