Governor Shapiro highlights investments in early education during Pottsville visit

Pottsville, Schuylkill Co. — Governor Shapiro made a visit to The Perception Training Center in Pottsville to highlight the Governor’s 2025-26 proposed budget.

Shapiro is building on his efforts to make child care more affordable by expanding and strengthening the child care workforce and is hoping to fill 3,000 vacant childcare positions across Pennsylvania.

“I have seen the power of these early learning centers all across Pennsylvania and they make a difference in children’s lives,” said Governor Shapiro.

Governor Shapiro’s budget proposal builds on his first two budgets with a $55 million investment in workforce recruitment and retention grants to increase child care availability and pay the workers more.

Pennsylvania’s child care system serves over 300,000 children annually across the Commonwealth. However, providers are struggling to hire and retain staff, leading to reduced capacity and long waitlists for families in need of care.

The grants would provide an additional $1,000 annually per employee working in licensed child care centers in the Child Care Works (CCW) Program.

“Education is not K-12. It’s birth to 12,” Michelle Dallago the owner and executive director of The Perception Training Early Learning, Inc.

Dallago says that it’s often difficult to recruit and retain pre-school teachers due to low wages and feeling undervalued.

“Time and again I watch teachers with true passion for working with infants and toddlers and preschoolers move on to other careers because they want to be valued and respected in their careers,” added Dallago.

With this grant money Dallago hopes to offer a more competitive and livable wage to early childhood teachers and make them feel more valued in their careers as early childhood care enriches the lives of both children and their parents.

“I wouldn’t be able to work from home if my kids didn’t have somewhere to be taken care of everyday,” said Meridith Driscoll, a parent whose children attend Perception Early Learning.

Driscoll, a small business owner and mother of two children in early childhood education programs, says the Perception Training Center has made a world of difference for her.

While enrolled in early learning centers children can learn a variety of skills like language, math and motor skills.

“It’s not just daycare like people think for little kids. They’re learning and growing and learning how to be citizens and friends,” added Driscoll.

Governor Shapiro’s 2025-26 proposed budget investments in child care workforce and other services also includes $15 million additional funding for the Pre-K Counts program to help providers raise wages and stabilize the early educator workforce and $10 million to increase Early Intervention (EI) provider rates, ensuring all Pennsylvania children have access to needed support and resources.