'Nobody to Watch My Twins.' Military Spouses Quit Jobs, Families Bust Budgets in Scramble for Child Care
But an email at the end of May derailed everything. Just days before she was due to return to her dental office job, the on-base child care center informed her the twins would not have spotsuntil May 2026.
I was in a panic, Kinninson said. I had to quit my job. And I had to find a work-from-home job because I had nobody to watch my twins.
Military families and on-base child care providers have known for a long time that theirs is a system delicately balanced on a wobbling foundation, made shakier by the frequent moves of its primary pool of employeesmilitary spouses.
But suddenly, the countrys largest employer-sponsored child care system was upended by staffing shortages that rippled from base to base after a DOD-wide hiring freeze announced in late February prevented centers from filling vacancies. Even though child care providers were exempted from the freeze three weeks after it was announced, the damage has persisted for months.
Military child care waitlists around the country remain frozenoftentimes providing no notice to parents who are counting on care.
Its really setting families up for failure, said Kayla Corbitt, the founder and CEO of Operation Child Care Project, a nonprofit that advocates and provides child care case management services for 50 to 60 DOD families at a time nationwide. This is happening at almost every installation, but theyre not telling anyone.
https://thewarhorse.org/military-family-childcare/