by Brian Scott-Smith CTNewsJunkie
NEW LONDON, CT – “Morning Without Child Care” rallies were taking place in more than a dozen cities in Connecticut on Wednesday to draw attention to the childcare affordability crisis in the state and how it is impacting not only parents and their children, but also employers and the state’s economy.
The counties of Windham and New London in eastern Connecticut have the two smallest overall populations in the state. But demand for child care is growing because of employers like Electric Boat, which is looking to add thousands of new employees to help build the nation’s submarines. New London County is already short some 500 child care slots.
Eva Bermuda-Zimmerman is coalition director for Child Care For CT, a statewide organization working to strengthen Connecticut’s families and economy and the event organizer.
“We’re demanding more funding for child care,” Bermuda-Zimmerman stated, “and making sure that this year the three headliner bills – from the House, the Senate, and the governor’s proposal – actually are real.”
She was referring to Raised Bill 1369, An Act Concerning Child Care Support For Connecticut’s Workforce, and HB 6840, which would direct the Office of Early Childhood to study the availability of child care services for low-income families in the state.
In March, Governor Lamont announced a $300 million plan to help with rising child care costs through a program that would make child care affordable and free for parents earning up to $100,000 and discounted for those earning over that threshold.
Bermuda-Zimmerman said she is hoping the governor keeps his promise, as “in previous years we’ve been advocating and only getting band-aids – a hundred million here, a hundred million there.”
“This year there is an opportunity for money in an endowment, so it could be a steadfast, reliable way for sustainable child care funding and making sure that parents don’t pay so much and providers get paid more,” she stated.
Yeiza Delgado is a New London resident and mother of three children who attend the Little Learners Early Education Program run by the Thames Valley Council for Community Action, Inc., (TVCCA) in New London, and she supports the rallies.
“If I don’t have child care, I can’t work. If I can’t work, then I can’t give my kids everything that they need. So it’s the most important thing for me until they reach the age that they can go to public school.”
Delgado works but stated that if the services at Little Learners were to go away, she would have to stop working to look after her kids, and that would keep her in a low-income status forever.
Staff members at the Little Learners Early Education Program in New London greet parents and kids on Wednesday, May 14, 2025. Credit: Brian Scott-Smith / CTNewsJunkie
Jenna Hugh is one of the teachers at Little Learners and she said getting kids into pre-school is critical on many levels.
“I think that child care is super important, not only for families that need to work and provide for their family but for the children, because early education is essential in developing skills for life,” Hugh said. She added: “I work with toddlers specifically, so I’m teaching them how to develop their language skills, their physical development skills, their motor skills.”
Hugh noted that she sees the parents who use Little Learners and knows that if the pre-school were not available, it would be devastating for the parents, who would be forced to give up work to stay home and care for their children.
TVCCA CEO Joshua Kelly said the rallies are not just about getting parents and educators involved but also local legislators. “We had three different state legislators who were able to attend today. They got to hear some real stories about how impacted our families are right here in New London and the surrounding communities. It’s vitally important that these stories are shared so there’s a little bit more of a push at the state level to commit to funding, commit to more funding, not just level funding,” he said.
Signage outside the Thames Valley Council for Community Action, Inc.’s Little Learners Early Education Program in New London on Wednesday, May 14, 2025. Credit: Brian Scott-Smith / CTNewsJunkie
Kelly pointed out this is how the crisis has come about, as the state has “flat-funded” child care for years, so it has not kept up with inflation or the rise in wages in the state.
Therefore, he said, not only is there a lack of affordability, but there is also a lack of qualified individuals coming into the profession, meaning fewer spaces are available.
“It’s a nasty vicious cycle that’s happening right now, that is decreasing the amount of child care that we’re able to offer and provide not just at TVCCA but really across the board.”
Kelly accepts that the problems they are facing will not be solved overnight and – because of the way Connecticut sets a biennial budget – even if bills being proposed in this legislative session get passed, he says there is still going to be pain for many for at least another year or so. And, he said, that is not even taking into account the current ups and downs of federal funding under the Trump administration.
“Morning Without Child Care” rallies were also held in Bloomfield, Bridgeport, Cheshire, Danbury, Hartford, New Britain, New Haven, New London, Norwalk, Stamford, Stratford, and Waterbury.