Childcare survey assistance needed

     Childcare has been one of the most hot-button issues in Iowa for the last several years. There is a concern that there is a lack of quality and affordable childcare across the state, causing it to be referenced as a “childcare desert.” With increasing regulations, higher costs, workforce turnover, etc., childcare is a unique business model that can be hard to operate successfully, which means that many people fear there is not enough to serve all the children that need it.

     Jones County Economic Development (JCED) is working to find out more information to better address the needs in Jones County around the childcare conversation. There are three different sets of stakeholders that play into the childcare discussion: Families/Guardians, Businesses, and Childcare Operations. By working with all three sectors of the community, JCED is hoping to get a more comprehensive look at the childcare data.

     Working with Levi Architecture, a group of local childcare providers and resources and businesses, two surveys have been developed to get a clearer picture of what the actual numbers show for childcare needs in Jones County. The first survey is geared toward parents/guardians/families and will be looking to determine current and future childcare needs. We have had great cooperation with local businesses; the cities of Anamosa and Monticello; the Jones County Supervisors; the school districts of Monticello, Anamosa, Olin, and Midland; and local childcare providers, to get this survey distributed throughout Jones County via a survey link.

     The second survey is geared toward employers in Jones County to find out how childcare issues and concerns are impacting plans for retention and recruitment of employees, as well as how it might be limiting potential expansion options in Jones County. This survey link will be emailed directly to employers to fill out and will help determine if there is a disconnect between employers and their employees when it comes to the childcare conversations.

     Survey links will go out March 1 and will be accessible for the following two weeks. In case there are some technical issues, there will be hard copy surveys in a handful of places around the county. Those hand-filled surveys can be dropped off at any of the schools or at the Anamosa or Monticello City Hall buildings and addressed to JCED. While we know this might not impact every person with children or planning families, we are hoping we can get a large number of surveys returned so we can start collating the data and share the information by early May.

     If you have questions about the survey, please contact Derek Lumsden at director@jonescountydevelopment.com of 319-480-7446.