Cook County YMCA plans child care license change

The Cook County YMCA is changing its child care license, a move that will reduce the number of available spots and staff required to operate the program.

The YMCA currently holds a child care center license, which allows it to operate up to 42 slots, most of them for preschool-aged children. The organization is applying to switch to a family child care license, which would reduce capacity to 10 children. There are currently 13 children enrolled in the program.

The change comes as the YMCA’s preschool teacher retires. The organization does not plan to hire a replacement and instead will operate with its two remaining teachers under the new license.

Under a family child care license, only one provider is required to be present, allowing for additional flexibility if a staff member is sick or unavailable.

Finding substitute staff has been a persistent challenge for the YMCA.

“We have this amazing group of our three lead teachers who do a wonderful job. However, we do not have a deep bench of substitutes, aides — people who can fold in,” YMCA Executive Director Amanda Hand told WTIP. “Teachers get sick, teachers take vacations, all of that. And so that’s where, for us as an organization, the greatest challenges are.”

Hand said the larger capacity allowed under the center license was necessary when the program was growing, with up to 12 full-time staff. However, demand declined following the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I think across fields, across disciplines, the world just changed, and we’ve never had that level of demand since,” Hand said. “Nor the availability of that kind of staffing bench since.”

Hand said staff and families were consulted as the YMCA began the process of changing its license.

While the YMCA faces different challenges than in-home providers, the shift reflects broader child care issues in Cook County and nationwide.

“To me, this is a national policy issue as much as it is, you know, personal,” Hand said.  “Wages make a difference. Resources put into child care funding make a difference. You know, [it’s] all of our work to advocate for those things.”

Cook County has attempted to make child care work more attractive by offering wage enhancements for workers, but staffing shortages persist.

Cooperation Station was closed for more than a year while officials searched for a new provider.

While Cook County Schools offer child care and prekindergarten programs for children ages 3 and 4, shortages remain for younger children, particularly infants, who require lower staff-to-child ratios.

“It’s always going to be the most challenging to adequately serve infants and toddlers because there are smaller ratios for them, right? No child care provider can serve the same number of infants and or toddlers that they can preschool age students,” Hand said.

WTIP spoke to Hand about her first months at the YMCA and changes to the child care program.  The audio of that interview can be found below.

Josh Hinke April 18, 2026