Evanston/Skokie School District 65 officials remain unsure whether the district’s school-age childcare program will be outsourced to the local YMCA as part of a list of possible budget cuts approved Monday.
Handing over D65’s before- and after-school childcare program to Evanston’s McGaw YMCA, 1000 Grove St., has been protested heavily since it was proposed in mid-April.
The new list of possible cuts could save the district up to $3 million, but D65 school board president Mary Rita Luecke said the district will only cut enough to balance its $1.7 million deficit.
Luecke said the district does not want to cut any of the programs on the list, including childcare, but the cuts are necessary to lift the district out of debt.
“We will work with the staff in progress to see if it’s possible to break even,” Luecke said. “But I don’t know if we can keep the same program if it is not in line with budget concerns.”
Although the fate of the childcare program is still in question, school board member Jonathan Baum said it is unlikely to occur by the fall because the district has not taken any action yet.
“Until we take affirmative steps, which we haven’t done and it doesn’t look like we will in the future, then the program probably won’t change,” Baum said. “We also can’t completely rule it out.”
Chris Hart, vice president of the McGaw YMCA, said the YMCA’s directors have already discussed plans for collaborating with D65. He said final decisions are in the hands of district officials.
Although Hart said the YMCA program is more expensive than the district’s program, low-income children receiving state funds now still would be subsidized for childcare. There would be no cap on the number of children accepted, he said.
Luecke said the district’s current program is cheaper than using other local providers, which pleases parents but contributes to the program’s deficit.
The district’s childcare programs, which consist of community childcare, the state pre-kindergarten program, Head Start and before- and after-school childcare, run a deficit of about $900,000 each year. The before- and after-school childcare program alone costs the district about $142,000 a year.
If the program is not cut completely, Luecke said there would be staff reductions or increased fees.
Natalie Copper, president of the Evanston Association of Child Care Professionals, said she was told by the administration after Monday’s vote that childcare programs would not be outsourced.
Although Copper said keeping the program means current childcare workers could lose their jobs, she said she was pleased with the decision.
“Given the choices we have, it’s the better of the choices,” Copper said. “But it’s not a choice that I love.”
Copper said she will not know any more details on possible staff reductions until next week.
Saving before- and after-school childcare would help the district because it is an excellent program that the children and parents love, Copper said.
“(The district) needs to give it a chance to become profitable,” she said.
Timber Ridge School childcare worker Nedra Washington said she was relieved when she heard from Copper that the program might not be handed to the YMCA.
But Washington said she is worried that she may lose her job if the district decides to keep the program and reduce staff.
“The current employees and my job would be in jeopardy,” she said.
Deborah Smith, another Timber Ridge childcare worker, said she hopes the district will come to a definite decision on the program soon. She said she may need to look for a new job either way.
“People’s lives are at stake,” Smith said. “I’m happy they said they wouldn’t outsource, but when the other shoe drops, we have to look at program or staff reductions.”
The district has not made any proposals to the school board on cutting staff positions or increasing fees yet, Luecke said. The district is negotiating with teachers and childcare workers, and there will not be a definite answer until the district settles the negotiations, she said.
“Once that’s done, we’ll have a better idea of what to do,” Luecke said.
