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About Sarah Vanover

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So far Sarah Vanover has created 31 blog entries.

Why We Need Head Start

This year is the 60th anniversary of Head Start, the preschool program for 3- to 5-year-olds and their families that are experiencing poverty.  The Head Start program began with the goal of breaking the poverty cycle for young children. Head Start goes beyond just providing a classroom experience, these programs also provide medical and dental care for children, meals and baby formula, and education programs – like GED courses – for parents and caregivers. Additionally, [...]

By |2025-05-15T13:20:34-04:00April 23rd, 2025|Blog, Economic Security, Education|
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Make Your Voice Heard: Paid Family Medical Leave for State Employees

Paid family medical leave is an essential strategy for healthy moms and healthy babies. The benefits of employers offering paid leave includes: Mothers get to heal before returning to work after a delivery or c-section. Mothers have the time and opportunity to breastfeed their infants. Infants can spend time bonding with their mothers to establish a pattern of healthy social and emotional development. Infant mortality rates decrease. Families still have a steady source of income [...]

By |2025-02-13T14:47:40-05:00February 13th, 2025|Blog, Economic Security, Health|
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High Ratings + (Sometimes) High Frustrations: Special Education in Kentucky

In 2024, the Kentucky Department of Education received the highest possible rating for its special education system. This rating is based on the Commonwealth’s ability to meet the requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which is the federal law that governs special education laws and funding. Kentucky has all the necessary policies and procedures in place that IDEA requires, and the state systems are designed to align with federal government laws.   Although [...]

By |2025-01-16T12:57:03-05:00January 16th, 2025|Blog, Education|
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The State of Child Care from the Perspective of Kentucky Providers and Parents

Kentucky kids need safe spaces to learn and socialize while their parents work. And before they begin kindergarten, many families rely on child care – whether in homes or centers – to provide this care. Despite the clear indication that child care is needed for Kentucky families, there continue to be challenges to finding and staying connected to care, especially for children with disabilities.  During the month of September, KYA surveyed child care center directors/owners [...]

By |2024-12-05T15:53:16-05:00December 5th, 2024|Blog, Economic Security, Education|
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Strengthening Kentucky Homeschool Settings

Kentucky kids access education in a variety of ways, including public schools, private schools, and homeschool settings.  Over the past several years, the number of families choosing homeschool for their children has grown substantially. There are many reasons that families choose to homeschool their children, but whatever motivation the family has for initiating homeschool education, it is important to ensure that all Kentucky kids are in a safe learning environment where they receive a high [...]

By |2024-11-07T11:10:58-05:00November 7th, 2024|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety, Education|
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Child Care Access – Gathering Input from Centers and Families

We are in the final countdown! The final federal dollars from the American Rescue Plan will run out on September 30th, and the child care industry will be expected to stand on its own two feet.   Unfortunately, child care was barely surviving prior to the pandemic, and with the inflation that has occurred in the past four years, the industry is not set-up to be successful. The biggest challenge to overcome is the cost [...]

By |2024-10-24T09:10:38-04:00September 10th, 2024|Blog, Economic Security, Education|
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KYGA24: Sustaining the Child Care Sector

Child care was a huge topic of discussion during the 2024 legislative session. Advocates appealed to elected officials to help them understand that safe and reliable child care makes it possible for families to be part of the workforce and benefit the whole community. Legislators also examined the price tag that would be attached to stabilizing Kentucky’s child care industry, and that price tag was not small.  In previous years, most of the child care [...]

By |2024-05-09T14:55:52-04:00May 9th, 2024|Blog, Bloom Kentucky, Economic Security, Education|
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Deep Dive into the Horizons Act and What It Means for Early Childhood Education

As Kentucky approaches the end of the federal fiscal year in September 2024, a potential child care crisis is looming for the entire state. Child care providers have already stopped receiving the sustainability payments that were allowing centers and family child care homes to increase staff wages while still paying their fixed expenses. With the sustainability payments over, child care programs are making tough decisions on whether to reduce wages, increase tuition, or close their [...]

By |2024-02-29T16:57:11-05:00February 29th, 2024|Blog, Bloom Kentucky, Child Welfare & Safety, Economic Security, Education|
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Stabilizing Child Care Requires Investing in Child Care

The federal stabilization payments for child care – dedicated to wages and fixed expenses – funded through the American Rescue Plan have all been dispersed. This month, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and the Beshear Administration will issue one final stabilization payment to child care providers. Beginning in 2024, all the additional American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds will focus on projects like the Child Care Assistance Program, start-up grants for family child care [...]

By |2023-12-07T13:00:04-05:00December 7th, 2023|Blog, Economic Security, Education|
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Federal Update on the State of Child Care

In 2021, the United States Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act that provided $24 Billion to stabilize the child care industry with most of those funds specifically dedicated to stabilization payments going directly to child care programs. This supplemental funding stream was dedicated to staff wages, facility expenses, utilities, and health measures utilized by the child care programs.   On September 30th, those funds will have officially expired, and child care programs all over the [...]

By |2023-09-21T12:55:29-04:00September 21st, 2023|Blog, Economic Security, Education|
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