How do you build consensus among a large diverse group of individuals — each with their own perspectives, motivations and life experiences — who all have a stake in one of the biggest issues facing working families today? That’s what we were tasked with in a project focused on child care in Michigan.
In 2022, the Lansing Economic Area Partnership received funding from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s initiative to increase access to child care across the state. The Early Childhood Investment Corporation awarded planning grants to Ingham, Eaton and Clinton Counties to support data collection and create a customized action plan that addressed the region’s specific needs.
PSC’s extensive experience in child care and early childhood education, like our work with the Office of Great Start in 2015, made us a clear choice for this work. Plus, it tapped into a few of our powerhouse skills: research, consensus building and strategic planning.
To uncover valuable insights into child care across the greater Lansing region, the Capital Area Child Care Coalition was formed. Led by LEAP, Capital Area Michigan Works! and United Way of South Central Michigan, the CACCC brought together 74 representatives from economic development organizations, local governments, child care business owners, parents of young children, and other dedicated community partners.
Access to tailored child care options is essential for caregivers to participate in the workforce and contribute to the state’s economy. It’s about more than just finding a spot for their child. They must consider the hours of service, location, cost, cultural preferences, special needs and more.
Research: We gathered data to give the coalition a deeper understanding of child care needs across the region.
We gathered background data on:
How we did it:
Who we worked with:
The CACCC members provided vital qualitative data and sparked innovative ideas. But first, PSC had to get all 74 of them working together.
Attendees at a CACCC consensus workshop.
Each person who joined the CACCC brought their own unique backgrounds and interests, and also a shared and heartfelt goal: to improve child care in the tri-county region. We prioritized accessibility and creating a safe space for clear, open communication.
We did this through:
Keeping these elements in focus, CACCC meetings centered on building consensus, setting goals and priorities, creating timelines and assigning responsibilities.
Beyond the main coalition meetings, PSC led a series of small discussion groups that provided deeper insights into coalition members’ specific challenges. Parents and caregivers shared with us that when a family cannot access or afford child care, their current or prospective employment opportunities tend to suffer, ultimately affecting their economic well-being. Child care administrators revealed that staffing challenges prevent them from fully reaching their licensed capacity for child care programs.
These personal experiences guided steering committee members as they drafted a goal-oriented roadmap for the CACCC.
Beyond the main coalition meetings, PSC led a series of small discussion groups that provided deeper insights into coalition members’ specific challenges. Parents and caregivers shared with us that when a family cannot access or afford child care, their current or prospective employment opportunities tend to suffer, ultimately affecting their economic well-being. Child care administrators revealed that staffing challenges prevent them from fully reaching their licensed capacity for child care programs. These personal experiences guided steering committee members as they drafted a goal-oriented roadmap for the CACCC.
We combined our quantitative research with insights gathered from the intentional, facilitated conversations to create the Regional Action Plan: Capital Area Child Care Coalition, a report that presents a clear and achievable strategic plan for implementing these ideas.
Throughout the region, child care is largely inaccessible, unaffordable for many families, and often unavailable when it’s needed most. Many child care business owners are unable to adequately staff their programs to the capacity their licenses allow. This indicates that the shortage of child care slots is probably more critical than published data reveals.
Why the staffing problems? It could be that regional child care wages are lower than the national average and even represent a poverty wage for some workers depending on their family size.
This project was completed with support from MI-LEAP utilizing American Rescue Plan Act funding, from the Office of Child Care, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In June 2025, ECIC announced renewed funding, ensuring the CACCC can continue its impactful work for another five months.
In this next phase of CACCC work, we will focus on the following objectives:
