The Office of Head Start (OHS) released updated performance standards last month, which focus heavily on the financial and emotional wellbeing of program staff. The new standards require that over the next 7 years, programs must work towards paying teaching staff a salary that is comparable to public school pre-k teachers. This is a monumental policy shift for a workforce that has endured physically demanding work, long hours and low pay for decades. OHS is striving to give the early childhood workforce the recognition and pay parity they so rightfully deserve. We hope Illinois is watching closely.
Similar to other states, wages for child care teachers in Illinois are woefully low, which has led to high turnover. According to the most recent wage data we have available from fiscal year 2023, the median hourly pay for a lead teacher was $16.50 and for an assistant teacher, the median hourly wage was $15.40. With pay hovering around minimum wage and arduous working conditions, our current workforce crisis should not come as a surprise.