Dear Chairman and Members of the State Board of Social Services,

Thank you for allowing me to provide comments on the proposed state child care regulations.

My name is Maria-Isabel Ballivian, and I am the Executive Director of ACCA Child Development Center, a Fairfax County nonprofit that for over 50 years has been serving low-income children, ages 3 months to 5 years. At present, we serve more than 200 children, largely from minority families.

At ACCA, we believe that from birth to age five, a precious window exists to shape a child’s brain—at a time when it is extremely receptive—thus laying the foundation for a bright future. Although these early years are a phase of great opportunity, they are also a time of vulnerability. This is why we are committed to providing the highest quality early care and preschool education. But to do so, it is imperative that funding is not lowered and state regulations are strengthened even further, particularly in the case of disadvantaged children who qualify for CCAR assistance.

Even though the economy has been slowly improving, the need for subsidized and affordable child care has increased significantly--a trend that may not change in the near future.

In recent years, I have witness how Virginia has made great strides in the areas of early education. However, I have also observed how some families have been negatively impacted by changes made to the CCAR program.

1. Children with chronic health issues are losing access to child care because they often exceed the number of CCAR approved absences and their parents are unable to cover the cost of unsubsidized early education.
2. Some parents, who are in the process of going through a divorce, are being told that they need to apply for child support before they can access CCAR funds. In practice, this is another barrier that will prevent qualified children from receiving quality early care.
3. Finally, there are instances where parents either become unemployed or fall ill, which forces their children to be dropped from CCAR. In some cases, ACCA has been able to provide scholarships, but as a small nonprofit, there is only so much we can do. For us, the educators, it is heartbreaking to see children leave our program in that manner. How can a parent care for their children when they are sick or searching for a job? Children should not pay the price for parental misfortune.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Maria Isabel Ballivian

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