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MANSFIELD — A shortage of affordable, high-quality child care is shaping how families live, how businesses hire and how communities grow across north central Ohio.
The Richland Source, Ashland Source and Knox Pages reporting team has published 13 in-depth stories at the halfway point of It Takes a Village: Why Child Care is Everyone’s Business.
And they’re just getting started.
In this week’s Better Together podcast, host Brittany Schock is joined by:
- Hayden Gray, reporter covering the series on the ground.
- Katie Ellington Serrao, Solutions Journalism Coordinator guiding the project.
- Amy Hiner, advocate and returning guest from the series kickoff.
Together, they reflect on what’s resonated most with readers, the challenges that have surfaced, and the solutions that might just change the game for parents, providers and employers alike.
A real-life ‘village moment’ was experienced
The episode opens with a personal story: co-host Maddie Penwell was unexpectedly sidelined by an emergency appendectomy the night before recording. When she called Schock at 10 p.m. to help with her kids, the experience became a living example of the “village” the series keeps returning to — the network of people who show up when life throws a curveball.
“You can’t take your kid to child care at 10 p.m. when you need an emergency appendectomy,” Schock said. “That’s when the village shows up.”
Key themes from the first half were identified
The conversation covered major findings from the first half of the project, from brain development and kindergarten readiness to economic losses for Ohio’s workforce.
- 90% of brain development happens by age 5, making high-quality early childhood education a crucial foundation.
- Child care costs are a barrier for families and providers alike. Median wages for Ohio child care workers hover around $13.57/hour, far below the state median.
- The economic stakes are high. Ohio loses an estimated $5.48 billion each year due to insufficient child care coverage.
- This is an everyone issue. Even those without young children are affected through workforce shortages, reduced economic growth, and community impacts.
Looking ahead: Potential solutions will come into focus
The next phase of It Takes a Village will shift toward solutions — from innovative local programs to policy changes in other states that could be adapted here. Planned stories will explore:
- Step Up to Quality ratings and what they mean
- After-school care and second/third-shift challenges
- Support for stay-at-home parents
- The child care inspection process
- Employer-driven solutions
- Results from the community survey of more than 1,000 respondents
- A collaborative short series from partner newsrooms in South Africa
Join the conversation — and attend the event
📅 Save the date: Monday, Oct. 20, join us at Buckeye Imagination Museum for Building a Better Village, a free, family-friendly capstone event for the series.
💬 Join the Facebook group: It Takes a Village: A Source Community to connect with others, share your experiences, and see behind-the-scenes reporting updates.