Young children experience big feelings, and their mental and emotional health matters. This post offers practical guidance to help families recognize emotions, build coping skills, and know when to seek extra support.

Families thrive when child care systems are stable, accessible, and rooted in trust. Proposed policy changes risk creating barriers that delay care, disrupt employment, and strain providers already operating with limited resources. When access is restricted, the impact reaches beyond families, affecting workforce participation and community stability. Protecting equitable, timely child care is essential to sustaining both families and our broader economy.

Child care spaces must remain places of trust, safety, and dignity. Policies that introduce surveillance, even under the intent of accountability, risk compromising privacy, increasing burden on providers, and shifting early learning environments toward enforcement rather than care. We must protect children by strengthening systems through partnership, not monitoring.

Dr. Jasmine Moses, Policy Manager for the Black Child Development Institute Ohio, submitted testimony to the Ohio House Children and Human Services Committee expressing concerns about House Bill 647 and its potential impact on the stability of Ohio’s publicly funded child care system. Her testimony highlights the need for policies that uphold accountability, protect due process, support child care providers, and ensure families maintain access to safe, reliable care.

When conversations about maternal and infant health happen, dads are often left out. At BCDI Ohio, we are listening directly to fathers across the state to understand their experiences, challenges, and ideas for change. When dads are included, families thrive. Read the full blog and take our Dad and Caregiver Survey to help shape stronger support for families across Ohio.

This comment urges federal leaders to reconsider proposed changes to the child care rule that could destabilize families and providers. Drawing on on-the-ground experience in Ohio, it explains how affordable, reliable child care supports children’s development, family stability, and local economies. Removing key protections risks shifting financial strain back onto those already under pressure and weakening a system families depend on every day.