New navigator group could help Kearney parents find childcare

One of Kearney’s largest employers is working with Buffalo County to test out a childcare navigation program to give families one-on-one support as they search for childcare.

While most of the state is facing a lack of childcare spots, Kearney is seeing a different challenge. The availability is there, but families are stuck in the process of trying to find the right fit.

Amanda Polacek, director of strategic initiatives at the Development Council for Buffalo County, said there are 12 childcare centers and 56 licensed in-home providers. Polacek compared it to buying a house with scheduling tours, putting down an offer and going through negotiations. She said in that process, there’s a realtor to help.

“Similarly with childcare, it's not a one-and-done issue,” Polacek said. “You need to find a place that looks interesting on paper. You need to schedule a tour. You need to see if it's a good fit for your kiddo. You need to see if you can afford it. If you can't afford it, do they offer any subsidy programs?”

The county is piloting a childcare navigator program called Upwards at one of the area’s largest employers, Kearney Regional Medical Center, to try and solve that navigation problem.

Greg Crisci, head of corporate programs at Upwards, said it can take families 20 to 40 hours to go through the process of finding childcare on their own. With a navigator, that work is taken off their shoulders.

“The care navigator is going to do all the work for that employee,” Crisci said. “They're going to call. They're going to schedule tours. They're going to talk about rates and tuition. They're going to help them get set up for the first day, and then they're going to be there if any other issues happen throughout the year.”

Crisci said employers haven’t always realized that problems with retention can stem from challenges with childcare.

“Employers are starting to look at it as infrastructure for their workforce, so that their workforce can be present, whether that is physically present, whether that is mentally present,” Crisci said. “I think that is, in general, good for business.”

The pilot launches on Oct. 1. In preparation, Crisci said that Upwards, which is a national company, worked with the county to ensure that as many childcare providers as possible are in their system, with information including tuition rates, hours and number of spots.

In addition to helping families, Polacek said the medical center and the county will be able to see better data on what issues are behind the community’s childcare challenges.

“Once we've done 100 care navigation requests, are we learning some trends within the Kearney market?” Polacek said. “Is there a disconnect between people who live on the south side of town trying to find care on the south side of town? Is it an issue that it's 15 minutes to get across town? Maybe it is. Maybe it isn't.”

The Development Council for Buffalo County, the Kearney Area Chamber of Commerce and Kearney Regional Medical Center are all chipping in to pay for the pilot program, according to Polacek.

“We can kind of help convene this process so that employees are able to come to work on time, that they can bring their whole selves to work, that they can advance in their careers because they have reliable childcare,” Polacek said. “Then we grow the economy, which is our goal at the end of the day.”