Live5: City of Charleston Commission on Women to find solutions for affordable child care
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) — Finding affordable child care in the Charleston area is a challenge. The City of Charleston is relaunching its Commission on Women to find a solution to the issue.
“About only 28% of South Carolina families can afford to have their kids in a full-time daycare situation. There aren’t enough daycares, the waitlists are years long, and sometimes it costs as much or more than your mortgage,” Councilmember Leslie Skardon of the City of Charleston said.
The choice between sending your child to day care and paying basic bills is not just a statistic.
“When you have a two-parent working household where both parents do need to work create a great life for their child, it is such a huge burden to find affordable childcare, not only affordable but also good-quality childcare,” Zella Davis, a local mom in Charleston, said.
Diverse groups make up the commission, including:
A member of City Council, who serves as chair
A City of Charleston staff member
A representative of the College of Charleston’s Women’s and Gender Studies program
A women’s health care expert from Roper St. Francis Healthcare
Representatives of YWCA Greater Charleston, the League of Women Voters of the Charleston Area, Chamber of Mothers and WREN (Women’s Rights and Empowerment Network)
Two at-large community members
“We drop our kids off at 7:00 a.m. and they get out of school at 2:25 p.m. So how are two working parents supposed to pick up their kids and continue to do that enrichment and that learning when they’re working full-time jobs? There just aren’t enough childcare options for early childhood education and for after school right now,” Skardon said.
The commission is also structured to match the city’s budget cycle, so good ideas don’t have to wait.
“Looking at different zoning ideas to help make there be more childcare, there are issues that we can tackle and that we can make a real impact on,” Skardon said. “Decisions that the Commission makes are done in parallel with City Council, with the Mayor’s Office, with staff, so that we’re not working in a silo and coming back to the city and saying why something can’t be done.”
Next, the commission will study child care policies from other cities and national organizations. Then they’ll workshop and draft a proposal that will be presented to the city for a vote and implementation.
The commission will move from monthly to quarterly meetings, each with a specific purpose:
End of year: Members vote on one topic to study for the year ahead.
First quarter: Experts from other cities and national organizations share policies that have worked elsewhere.
Second quarter: Members workshop a proposal with City staff to test its feasibility and cost.
Third quarter: The proposal is presented to the Mayor, the City’s chief financial officer and City Council for consideration.
Mayor William Cogswell said the change is part of a broader review of the City’s boards and commissions that began when he took office.
“When I came into office, the City had 30 to 40 boards and commissions, and some of them hadn’t met in years. We’ve been looking at each one and asking how we set it up for success,” said Mayor Cogswell. “This commission has a dedicated core of members, and this new structure gives their work a clear path to City Hall. I’m grateful to Councilmember Skardon for her passion and persistence in putting this together, and to every member who has given their time to this commission.”
Now that the official topic for 2027 is affordable child care, the commission’s real work begins: learning and listening to understand what the city can do to help make child care more affordable and accessible for families.
“Regardless of who you are, you should care about affordable childcare because it makes a really big difference in our economy and in our culture,” Skardon said.