EEDC: Tell me a little about Critchlow Adkins Children’s Centers.
Cristy Morrell: This year is our 50th anniversary. We were established in 1970 by Janice Adkins, Happy (Harriett) Critchlow, and some very insightful people who realized that, if parents had to go to work, they needed really good childcare. They started with eight kids and a couple of classrooms in St. Mark’s United Methodist Church in Easton.
EEDC: And now?
Cristy Morrell: Traditionally (pre-COVID), we serve about 320 kids with before and aftercare for pre-K through fifth grade. We’re in five locations throughout Talbot County, including the new elementary school in Easton. Each of the schools has an all-day program for three-year-old’s preschool program (and some of them even take two-year-olds). We also offer a summer camp program serving around 260 children. Now with COVID, we have about a hundred kids in our program. So, it’s tough; COVID is definitely affecting us.
(To read about how CACC has had to adapt because of COVID, see the Best Practice Section)
EEDC: What impact is this having on working families?
Cristy Morrell: If we usually have 260 kids in our program in the summer, and we now have a hundred, that means that there are 160 kids that normally would have this enriching summer activity experience. So, a lot of these kids are staying home and being watched by older siblings or grandparents or parents that are working from home. It’s a legitimate concern about sending their kids to programs and sending their kids to school in the fall. Every time they have to go out, it’s a potential exposure.
We’re right now in the process of evaluating what our numbers will look like in the fall. And it’s very challenging because we are partners with Talbot County public schools in that we have to pay for their space. Luckily, we’ve been able to apply and get generous grants from the State of Maryland.
EEDC: With COVID and the uncertainty about the upcoming school year, what does that partnership look like now?
Cristy Morrell: We’re going to now have school-age kids that normally would be in school all day in our program, who will supposedly be doing this distance learning. So, our teachers are going to have to set them up and make sure that they’re on their zoom meeting and doing their activities and any follow-ups.
We’re asking our teachers to be nurses, having to make medical evaluations on children coming into their program, and monitoring them. You’re asking them to assist with the education component. Not that we haven’t already been, always been educationally based, but this is now another level. And our teachers are amazing. And I know that they’re going to rise to the occasion, but it’s financially challenging for us because we’re a big program and our class sizes are pretty much cut in half. And so, we’re trying to work with licensing and the state and what can we do to serve as many kids as we can safely as we can and make sure that the kids in our program are getting the education that the school is trying to provide. So, it’s a lot; it’s a lot.
EEDC: Wow, that’s a whole different perspective. Tell me more about the licensing.
Cristy Morrell: Critchlow is accredited by Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), and then they have another rating called EXELS, of which there are five levels. What that means is the MSDE comes in and evaluates your program. They make sure that you are using an approved curriculum, that you’re following healthy guidelines with your snacks and breakfast, which we serve every day, that your teachers are continuing their education, that there’s family engagement, that there’s age-appropriate programming, and that it is engaging and multicultural.
And so, accreditation is pretty big, and all of our sites are accredited at EXELS level five. We’re the only non-profit childcare provider in Talbot County that has that. And it doesn’t mean that other providers are not good programs. It doesn’t mean that they’re not doing amazing things. But we go through this time consuming and expensive accreditation every three years because we feel it’s important to our programs.
The other thing that we provide, as a non-profit, is affordable educational, high quality, and nurturing childcare to working families. We work very hard to keep our rates the lowest in the County. But we also work with the State. They have a childcare scholarship program. So, families that need assistance can apply to the State and receive childcare assistance with their tuition. So, we do accept that, and we also provide tuition assistance for around about 45% of our families. Again, these are pre-COVID numbers.
EEDC: 45% receive tuition assistance?
Cristy Morrell: Yes, and on average, that’s about $100,000 a year. We strive to meet that mission of being high-quality childcare for families that need to work or go back to school. We’re in the process of determining how this will change this school year.
Parents will say that they need help or that they want to send their children to our program. But when push comes to shove, they are concerned and will maybe change their mind. And so, I do know that we have had families in our programs this summer who have not ever needed assistance, now needing assistance. I don’t know what it’s going to look like in the fall. Much of it depends on the school. You’re going to have families that maybe only needed before and aftercare. And then all of a sudden, they’re only going to be in school two days a week. So, what do we do? Normally, we’d say, ‘OK, for a week it’s X amount of dollars.’ Now it’s going to be almost like a buffet. And you’re going to have families that can’t take on this increase, and those kids are going to be going home, and we’re trying to figure out how to make sure that those kids are in our program instead.
EEDC: How do you think, CACC fits within the Easton business community?
Cristy Morrell: I started attending the economic meetings, and was seeing these businesses highlighted, and I thought, I don’t think people realize that pre-COVID we had 45 employees. We still have 45 employees. We’re hanging onto them as long as we possibly can for the sake of the program, for the sake of employees, and for the sake of the children.
We had an economic impact study done on Critchlow, and we really make a substantial economic impact in this community. With the uncertainty of COVID and childcare, I keep thinking: we need to figure out how we can navigate this and be there on the other side because it’s not just a matter of providing childcare for some kids. It’s the livelihood for not only 45 employees, but also impacts the revenue that’s generated in our County and surrounding counties and how local businesses are being supported. If their employees don’t have childcare, what does that mean for them and for all of us? I have an amazing board of directors. I have an outstanding finance committee, and we are working on navigating this the best possible way for the best possible outcome.
EEDC: Pre-COVID, like other non-profits, you depended on fundraisers to raise money. What are your plans for this year?
Cristy Morrell: Right. So, we usually have a major fall fundraiser, which we’re not going to be able to do right now, we have two annual appeals, and we have very generous and very supportive donors. There’s like 300 non-profits in this community, and everybody’s in need. And I feel like, wow, if there’s a grant that I can go for, that will help, then I’m definitely going to do my due diligence and see if I can raise the money that way. And if I’m still short, then I will go to our donors and say, look, this is where we are, but I try to respect our donors.
I do have an idea for a virtual fundraiser, which obviously would not probably bring in anywhere near what our regular fundraiser would be, especially since this was our 50th year. We had grand plans, but I do have an idea that we’re working in development for a really cute fundraiser.
EEDC: Tell us more…
It will involve the kids, a little virtual entertainment for our donors. So, stay tuned.
To find out more about how you can help, go here. NATALIE: http://www.cacckids.org/
Take a moment to look at this special message from the children of CACC Here
To see the programs that CACC is offering this summer, check out their Facebook page. Here
