As the Northfield School Board goes through the process of analyzing and approving budgets for the 2024-25 school year, they are hearing presentations from the district’s various departments. Last week, Erin Bailey, the Director of Community Education, presented both a revised budget for 2024, and the budget for next year. The conversation, however, became more about the lack of childcare in Northfield, and the desperate need for more.
According to the Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Matt Hillmann, Northfield is one of the few districts across the state that operates a childcare facility that is fully licensed by the State of Minnesota, and in fact, the Early Ventures program is the second largest childcare program in Northfield. Bailey said the infant room was filled within minutes of registration opening this year, and the district could very easily fill a second infant room.
The reasons for the lack of childcare are many, ranging from staffing issues to the high costs that are incurred by both providers and participants. According to both State and Federal recommendations, childcare should cost a family no more than 7% of their income. Bailey said it costs $15,000 a year for an infant to attend Early Ventures, which is 17-20% of the median Household Income in Northfield.
She added that $15,000 per infant does not cover the Early Ventures operating costs. In fact, with the end of Covid-era Childcare Stabilization funding from the Federal Government, childcare operating costs have risen to the point where six in-home daycare facilities in Northfield closed in a six-week period in 2023.
“It’s hard to make the math work, and we do have conflicting priorities,” Bailey said. “We need childcare in Northfield and in Rice County. We also are trying to balance our budget.”
The problem is not unique to Northfield. The need for childcare has risen to a crisis level throughout the country.
Dr. Hillmann said the problem will have to be addressed soon.
“Childcare is essential to our economy. It’s essential to supporting young families. You could expect to hear more about this because, when you talk about the model for a high-quality childcare center to be able to at least even break even, difficult is not a strong enough word to say. And we’re not talking about trying to turn a profit. We’re talking about just trying to break even.”
The demand for more capacity in the Early Ventures program is not slowing down. With 100% of the Early Ventures kids being deemed ready for kindergarten over the last few years, and with a waiting list of families who want to send their kids there, Hillmann said the program is becoming a victim of its own success, and they will keep looking for ways to mitigate the problem.
‘No Mow May’ becomes ‘Less Mow May’
Today is the first day of May, bringing with it the beginning of the No Mow May campaign, or at least what used to be called No Mow May.
The program is an effort to support pollinators who emerge from hibernation or migrate to Minnesota in early spring and are in deep need of nectar and pollen for food. The idea of No Mow May – refraining from mowing one’s lawn – has evolved intoLess Mow May, according to Gerten’s Greenhouse Content manager and the host of Garden Bites, Teri Knight, for several reasons.
“No Mow May,” she said, “is now being reimagined as Less Mow May. Leaving your lawn to grow an entire month and then trying to mow it is more harmful to your lawn and not nearly as helpful as people thought as most of the weeds in our lawns are low growing anyway.
“It’s best to keep your lawn at 3 to 4 inches and only mow by a third of that.”
Last year, the Northfield City Council approved a resolution that temporarily suspended enforcement of the tall-weeds-and-grass code from May 1st to May 31st, enabling the program. It is open to residential, owner-occupied properties and renters with landlord consent, but not to business or city-owned greenspace.
To participate, residents should register their property, refrain from mowing their lawn in May, and display a “Less Mow May” or “No Mow May” sign in their yard or on their home, in plain view from the street. Residents can pick up one free reusable yard sign for their registered address at City Hall while supplies last.
No Mow May was first introduced in the United Kingdom by a British conservation charity, where it has become a standing tradition for the past decade. Appleton, Wisconsin was the first U.S. city to adopt No Mow May in 2020 after a professor in biology brought it to his city council to use as research. The research conducted in Appleton was compelling enough for nine additional cities in Wisconsin, as well as Rochester and West St. Paul, to adopt No Mow May in 2021. Several other Minnesota cities followed in 2022.
A statement issued by the city said the Northfield city staff and the City Council will review the results of the program this summer. If deemed successful, it could be expanded to include other properties in Northfield in future years.
Celebration is a Library/St. Olaf College collaboration
And this Saturday, in collaboration with the St. Olaf College Asian Studies Department and the Academic Civic Engagement Office, the Northfield Public Library will host Northfield’s first ever celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
Remarks from Mayor Rhonda Pownell and other community leaders will open the event, followed by an artist talk from St. Olaf visiting assistant professor of Art and Art History Mayumi Amada beginning at 2pm. At 3:00, community members of all ages are welcome to join in on a paper flower making workshop led by Amada. Registration for the workshop is required.
Several Asian centered St. Olaf student groups will lead presentations, performances, and discussions throughout the building.
The event is set for Saturday afternoon from 1-4pm at the Northfield Public Library and is free and open to the public. For more information visit the library’s website at mynpl.org.
KYMN Daily News 5/1/24
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
