Chittenden County Child Care Statistics

Child Care Resource provides child care statistics for the Chittenden County community. The statistics reported on the pages below are the ones most typically requested. If you have a question and you can’t find the answer below, please feel free to contact us.

Regulated Child Care Programs:

Child Care Wages and Benefits: 

 Number, Capacity, and Vacancies June 2017

In Chittenden County, child care is harder to find than ever. 
Comparing 2014 to 2017, there are fewer programs and fewer vacancies in the programs that currently exist.
 
      Number of Programs Slots Number of Vacancies Vacancy Rate
Type of Program Ages Served Schedules Offered July 2014 June 2017 July 2014 June 2017 July 2014 June 2017 July 2014 June 2017
Child Care Centers Ages birth-5, sometimes Ages 5-12 as well  Offers care full-days and full weeks 63 64 3217 3612 228 51 7% 1%
Family Child Care Homes Ages birth-5, sometimes Ages 5-12 as well Offers care full-days and full weeks 143 102 1133 849 119 38 11% 4%
Private Preschools Ages 3-5 May offer part-days/part-weeks to full-days/full weeks 33 33 1163 918 80 23 7% 3%
Public Preschool Ages 3-5 Most often part-days/part weeks 26 22 457 506 0 0 0% 0%
After-School Programs Ages 5-12 Part-days after school, may offer care during vacations and summers 48 40 2302 2806 56 1 2% 0%
Across Programs Ages birth-12 Full-days, part-days, full weeks, part weeks 314 261 8272 8691 483 113 6% 1%
Source: Child Care Resource Provider Database

 

 Average Program Tuition: June 2017

The average tuition amounts below are for programs offering a weekly full-time care. For after school programs, this means care from school dismissal to 5:30 or 6:00 pm.

Tuition is not necessarily equal to cost. Some programs have additional sources of income that supplement tuition.

Some community-based early care and education programs have formed partnerships with local school districts to provide publicly funded pre-kindergarten education for children ages 3-5 years.  This public education funding helps to cover the cost of 10 hours per week for 35 weeks per year.  In some cases the funding is used to reduce the tuition that parents pay. In Chittenden County, there are 68 currently in partnership with one or more school district. Of these, 58 are centers or private preschool programs and 11 are family child care programs.

Type of Program Children younger than 2 years of age Children 2 years of age Children ages 3-5 years Children ages 6-12 years
Child Care Center $247 $244 $241 $95
Family Child Care Home $191 $186 $187 $92
Private Preschool N/A N/A $238 N/A
After-School Programs N/A N/A N/A $81

 Programs Recognized for High Quality June 2017

Programs may be recognized for quality through national organizations such as the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) or the National Association of Family Child Care (NAFCC). They may also be recognized for quality through the State of Vermont Step Ahead to Recognition System (STARS).

In the table below, high quality is defined as accreditation through NAEYC or NAFCC or attainment of 4 STARS or 5 STARS through the State of Vermont.

  • Preschool programs are most likely to have attained a high level of quality recognition.
  • Regardless of the type of program, across the board, vacancy rates in programs recognized for high quality are much lower than overall vacancy rates in programs in regulated programs.
Type of Program Number of Programs Recognized for High Quality Percentage of All Regulated Programs Number of Slots in Programs Recognized for High Quality Percentage of All Slots in Regulated Programs Number of Vacancies In Programs Recognized for High Quality Vacancy Rate in Programs Recognized for High Quality
Child Care Center 42 66% 2595 72% 29 1%
Family Child Care Home 18 17% 154 18% 1  <1%
Private Preschool 20 61% 539 59% 1 <1%
Public Preschool 22 100% 480 95% 0  0%
After-School Programs 15 38% 1051 37% 0 0%
Across programs 117 45% 4819 55% 31 <1%

Source: Child Care Resource Provider Database

 Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook United States Median Pay For Early Care and Education Positions 2017

Early Care and Education Position Yearly Median Pay Hourly Median Pay For more information visit
Child Care Worker $22,290 $10.72 http://www.bls.gov/ooh/personal-care-and-service/childcare-workers.htm
Teaching Assistant $26,260 n/a http://www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/teacher-assistants.htm
Preschool Teacher $28,990 $13.94 http://www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/preschool-teachers.htm
Child Care/Preschool Director $46,890 $22.54 http://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/preschool-and-childcare-center-directors.htm

 

Need help finding the best care for your child? Call a Referral Specialist today! 802.863.3367