Press Room
NBC in Connecticut reports: “Child Care Costs are High, But There Are Resources to Help.”
On Connecticut’s online NBC channel, the high cost of childcare is making headlines. The River family in Hartford is just one family profiled whose childcare costs equal a second mortgage. For 5-month old Graham and 3-year-old Grayson to attend daycare full-time, the Rivers are paying about $2,200 per month, and this figure has influenced their decision not to have another child.
NBC reports that families can expect to pay a full-time nanny up to $15 per hour. For 45 hours of coverage, the monthly cost to hire a nanny totals $2,700. The most cost-effective option mentioned? For families with more than one child, it’s au pair childcare at just $340 per week (or $1,360/month).
Local Childcare Coordinator Maria Calabro is interviewed in the segment and mentions one other benefit to hosting an au pair: the flexibility to schedule childcare coverage outside of regular business hours.
| Farmington Valley | ||||
| Berlitz And Cultural Care Partner To Offer An Affordable Education Option For Au Pairs | ||||
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| Submitted by Maria Calabro, Cultural Care Au Pair, on 2010-06-08. | ||||
The economy had an impact on everyone last year. Many families faced new financial challenges, but in the end, they still needed flexible, affordable childcare. In response to the economic situation and feedback from local families, Cultural Care Au Pair, a cultural exchange and childcare program that serves families in the Farmington Valley area, approached Berlitz, in Stamford, to see if together they could come up with a solution for an affordable education option for au pairs. Au Pairs are childcare providers from around the world who in exchange for living in a host family home, provide up to 45 hours per week of childcare. Au pair programs are governed by the Department of State and because the au pairs are here on a J- 1 Visa, the au pairs are required to earn either 6 credits or 72 hours of live face to face classroom instruction at an accredited post secondary institution. Host families are required to pay up to $500 for these classes. “Au pairs join our program to improve their English and this enables them to get better jobs when they return to their home country. My CT host families have struggled with trying to find relevant, quality, affordable classes for au pairs. I’ve researched many options and found out that local courses were much higher than the budgeted $500. That’s when I came up with the idea to approach Berlitz” said Karen Hurley, senior program director for Cultural Care Au Pair. Berlitz, recognized world wide for their language instruction programs, will be piloting a 9-week au pair program, this summer, at their Stamford and West Hartford locations. A minimum of 12 au pairs are needed to run a class, and the $250 course fee for 36 hours of instruction, also includes a pre evaluation, registration fees, and all course materials. “The goal of the pilot program is to assure that the Berlitz product maintains the quality that they have delivered for the last 130 years. Eventually we would like to be able to roll this program out to the rest of the country, and also offer other languages as an option to au pairs who are proficient in English,” said Mrs. Hurley. “These new classes offers a solution to the dilemma of how an au pair can earn their credits for $500 and this breakthrough makes it more affordable for families to host an au pair,” says Calabro. “Many of my au pairs have already responded positively to this news and have taken their first step toward becoming more proficient in English by enrolling in the pilot program. Classes begin June 21 and are on a first come first serve basis. For more information about the Berlitz pilot program, contact Maria Calabro at 860-651-1855 or Maria.Calabro@lcc.culturalcare.com or call Berlitz at 203-324-9551. |
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