THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, April 24, 1996 TAG: 9604240387
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH SIMPSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 91 lines
If your day-care center parking lot seems busy lately, here's one reason why:
The proportion of working mothers sending their children to child-care facilities reached an all-time high in 1993 - 30 percent - up from 23 percent in 1991, according to a Census Bureau report released today.
The report, called ``Who's Minding Our Preschoolers?'' also found a dip in the percentage of fathers caring for their children - from 20 percent down to 16 percent - during the same period.
The upswing in the use of child-care centers followed a period of decline, while the decrease in father care reversed an earlier trend from 1988 to 1991.
The study's author, Lynne M. Casper, said the economy probably played a role in both reversals.
She said the reason more fathers cared for their children during the late '80s and early '90s was because there were higher unemployment rates, which left men at home to care for their children.
``When the economy improved in '93, fathers went back to work, and families were able to afford child care again,'' Casper said. ``That's not to say that fathers aren't taking a more active role in parenting, just that this data points to the fact that the economy played a greater role where child care is concerned.''
The proportion of children cared for by home day-care providers stayed about the same as in 1991.
The study, which focused on child-care arrangements of working mothers, found that 48 percent of children are cared for by relatives, including grandparents, fathers, siblings, aunts, uncles and cousins.
Area parents who chose child-care centers over home settings say they did so for a variety of reasons, including more playmates and a more structured curriculum.
Sharon Campbell, whose 2-year-old daughter, Grace, goes to Children's Harbor in Portsmouth, made a switch to a center several months ago after two years of having a cousin care for her daughter.
``I have an only child and I want her to learn to relate to other children,'' said the Portsmouth mother. ``Even for children with siblings, it's important to learn to be with others.''
Eric Ackerman said he and his wife, Peggy Hawkes, made a switch from a nanny to a Children's World center for their 3-year-old daughter, Alexandra, so she could have more playmates and more varied activities. ``We're extremely pleased,'' said Ackerman, who lives in Virginia Beach. ``The teachers really care for the kids. They treat them like their own.''
Kathryn Wolf, director of dependent care services at The Planning Council, said the leap in center care might be linked to the rise in numbers of child-care facilities. Also, parents are becoming more educated about child-care choices and are more likely to choose licensed, professional care. But Wolf said parents often overlook the fact that family day-care providers are becoming more professional as well.
The previous census report that showed more stay-at-home fathers in 1991 spurred debate over whether more fathers were choosing to stay home or whether they were forced home because of job loss. A Chesapeake stay-at-home father said he's not surprised the economy played a role. Steve Haywood, a stay-at-home dad since 1989, said he often feels like a rarity. ``I don't know a single other one,'' Haywood said.
Still, he highly recommends the choice: ``It's great being with your kids.''
Other findings of the study include:
In 1993, 9.9 million children under age 5 were in need of child care while their mothers were working.
The majority of preschoolers who were cared for by relatives were cared for by either their grandparents or their fathers.
Relatives provided child care in 60 percent of poor family child care arrangements, compared to 46 percent in families who weren't poor in 1996.
Families living in the South were more likely to choose child care facilities and less likely to choose relatives to care for their children than any other region in the country. MEMO: A related Census Bureau report, on the cost of child care, is available
on the Internet. See the News page of Pilot Online at
http://www.pilotonline.com/
ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by BETH BERGMAN, The Virginian-Pilot
Grace Ferguson, top left, and Jasmine Logan, center, play house in
Children's Harbor Day Care Center in Portsmouth.
Graphic by ROBERT D. VOROS, The Virginian-Pilot
Primary Child Care Arrangements
KEYWORDS: DAY CARE by CNB