The Military Spouse's Map Through the Maze Pocket GuideOTHER CHILD CARE OPTIONS

 

Find Drop-In or Part-Time Care Services

  • If you're not working full-time and can't afford full-time child care, consider part-time or drop-in services. Part-time care is seldom available. Drop-in care is offered on a first-come first-serve basis.
  • You have to register in order to access drop-in care.
  • You have to call each day to see if drop-in space is available.
  • Expect to pay a set hourly rate for such daycare service.

Locate Civilian Child Care Services

  • Many child care centers are licensed and inspected by the state and thus are expected to maintain certain standards of operation. You can get a list of these centers through your local Department of Social Services or Family and Protective Services.

  • Some child care centers are permitted to operate without a license, such as religious exempt child day centers, voluntarily registered family day homes, and certified preschools.

  • Child Care Aware (www.childcareaware.org), which is run by the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies (NACCRRA), provides parents with quality child care services. You should check if the facilities are accredited. In some cases, you can be subsidized by the military for a short period of time, especially military parents who are activated or deployed - a temporary child care situation. To find out, call 1-800-424-2246 or visit the following website:

    www.naccrra.org/MilitaryPrograms/progdesc.php

 

SOURCE: Adapted from Trudy S. Woodring and Ronald L. Krannich, Ph.D., The Military Spouse's Map Through the Maze Pocket Guide (Manassas Park: Impact Publications), page 16. Copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Copying strictly forbidden.