Child Care Summit

Well -trained and supported caregivers are essential to care. To attract and keep exceptional caregivers working in child care programs, the department is developing a new staffing model to provide a pathway for career advancement and focused classroom support. This effort helps increase quality of care military-connected children and youth receive and has a positive impact on the well-being of service members and their families.

For military families who can’t access on-installation child care, Military Child Care in Your Neighborhood, or MCCYN, helps eligible families meet their needs by reducing out-of-pocket expenses for off-installation care and increasing consistencies in program delivery. Based on feedback received during the summit, the department is thinking more broadly about the economic security of military families, analyzing fee assistance utilization and working on solutions for service members living in densely populated areas where off-installation child care is costly and more difficult to find.

The Child Care in Your Home fee assistance pilot program provides fee assistance to service members who decide in-home child care best fits their needs. This program puts parents in charge as employers of in-home care providers, and because participants expressed a need to understand this role more clearly, the department is reviewing the program to make it easier for parents to understand their roles and responsibilities as an employer. Other enhancements now available include a nanny share agreement, which allows two or more families to hire the same provider when there is agreement between all parties, making in-home care more accessible and affordable.

Keep checking this page for more updates and initiatives that support quality child care for military families.

A number of child care podcasts are available to help service members and their families explore the best child care options for their family. Listen to these podcasts for an overview of military child care, explanation of DOD fee assistance, and guidance in placing a request and searching for child care.

• Military Child Care Overview: Accessibility, Availability and Affordability
• MilitaryChildCare.com: Placing a Request and Searching for Child Care
• Military Child Care in Your Neighborhood-PLUS Expansion: Fee Assistance for Community Child Care

This website helps families in any service branch find and request military-operated child care worldwide.

If you have questions about military child care or would like assistance navigating the programs and options available to you, our consultants can help answer your questions and connect you with the resources you need. Call 800-342-9647, call us OCONUS or schedule a live chat.

This podcast series features experts who discuss topics of interest to military families who have a member with special needs. Learn how to build a community of support, connect with assistance on the installation and in the community, and use resources including MilitaryOneSource.mil and EFMP & Me.