Child Care Options

American Cultural Expectations for Child Care and Safety
Selecting a Child Care Provider
Child Care Provider-Daytime
Child Care Provider-Evenings and On Occasion
Child Care during ISSA-sponsored ESL Classes

American Cultural Expectations for Child Care and Safety

Since child-raising customs differ from culture to culture, it is important to understand that in the United States, while the adults of a community take an interest in the well-being of each child, it is considered primarily the responsibility of a child’s parent, legal guardian, or designated care provider to ensure that a child’s physical, emotional, and educational needs are adequately met.

It is natural that one will take into account a child’s age, maturity, and health when making decisions about how best to provide for the above needs, but it is important to note a few basic concerns.

Infants and very young children should never be left unattended, even for a short time, on playgrounds, in cars, or at public buildings. If you must leave your home for any reason, take your child with you or have another responsible person stay with your child while you are away.
School-age children who return home after school are sometimes left alone until an adult returns later in the afternoon. Only children who are able to remain in the home safely should be left unattended.
A child should know at all times how to contact a parent or other responsible adult in case of emergency. In most cases, children who are home after school without adult supervision should remain in the home until an adult returns.

Selecting a Child Care Provide

The following site offers inks to information regarding a number of child care issues including how to wisely select a child care provider: http://nrc.uchsc.edu/
Remember that international spouses in F-2 status are not legally eligible to receive compensation in exchange for providing child care services.

Child Care Provider-Daytime

The University of Notre Dame and St. Mary’s College sponsor two daycare centers known as Early Childhood Development Centers.
The Centers are open to children from the ages of two years through five years. The fee is based upon gross family income. Places are limited, so you must apply according to an enrollment schedule and according to a priority established for each center. You will find more information and an online application form at the ECDC link above.

Child Care Provider-Evenings and On Occasion

If you are away regularly in the evenings, you may want to consider making arrangements with a child care center or other licensed child care provider. Not all daycare centers and child care ministries provide evening hours, however.

For occasional hours, day or evening, parents often work out a cooperative arrangement with other parents or hire a “babysitter”. Babysitters are frequently young and unlicensed child care providers whom you hire by the hour. Wages range from 2 to 6 dollars an hour depending, again, upon a number of factors. Adult child care providers, who bring considerable skills and knowledge to bear, should be compensated at higher levels.

Child Care during ISSA-sponsored ESL Classes

ISSA endeavors to provide child care during the Fall and Spring semesters for the three 2-hour ESL classes sponsored by our department. This service is provided free of charge, however on days where the child care provider is absent, class participants may need to provide child care cooperatively for these two hours.