Policy Institute survey reveals providers are operating on thin margins while working to keep care affordable and meet the needs of Louisiana families
BATON ROUGE — Today, the Louisiana Policy Institute for Children (LPIC) released results from “Carrying the Cost: How Louisiana Providers Are Covering the Financial Burden of Child Care,” which surveyed over 600 Louisiana early childhood education (ECE)providers to better understand the challenges of the industry that supports parents as they go to work and school, or look for new work. LPIC conducted the survey in partnership with Agenda for Children, Child Care Association of Louisiana, Children’s Coalition for Northeast Louisiana, For Providers By Providers, Louisiana Association of the Education of Young Children, Northwestern State University, On Track by 5 Alliance, Pointe Coupee Early Childhood Coalition, and Volunteers of America.
The findings show that providers are largely absorbing rising costs, although they are unlikely to sustain that practice in the long term. Nearly 80% of providers reported that their operating costs outpace revenues in some months, while nearly three-fourths said they were worried about being able to afford to operate over the next six months.
The results provide insights into the challenges facing the ECE sector, emphasizing the following:
- Rising costs are putting providers under financial strain, but rather than raising tuition on families who are already falling behind, providers are absorbing the costs themselves.
- Staffing remains a critical challenge. Average annual pay for lead teachers remains around $28,800, which is roughly half the average salary of a Louisiana K-12 school teacher.
- Providers want to invest in their programs but lack the resources to do so. While additional funding does go to teachers’ salaries and bonuses, it’s hard to afford to expand programs, which highlights the need for public investment.
“Louisiana’s early childhood providers are doing everything they can to keep their doors open and keep expenses affordable for families, but they cannot continue to absorb these costs indefinitely,” said Libbie Sonnier, Ph.D., chief executive officer of LPIC. “This survey makes it clear that Louisiana needs sustained investments in early childhood programs and educators in order to allow parents to work, businesses to operate, and, most importantly, for children to thrive.”
Financial pressures limit providers’ ability to expand: 29% said they were not interested in expanding because they couldn’t afford to do so. At the same time, providers need to maintain their staff. Results showed that 73% of providers said they would rather direct additional funding toward employee salaries and wages.
“Early educators are skilled, experienced professionals doing essential work every single day, but their compensation still does not reflect the value of that work,” said Precious Acker, executive director of Kids of Excellence. “As providers, we want to pay our educators more. We want to offer stronger benefits, invest in their growth, and create careers that allow great teachers to stay in this field. We know that retaining strong educators is directly connected to the quality of care and education children receive. But the reality is, providers cannot solve this problem alone. Without adequate and sustainable investment in early childhood education, programs simply do not have the resources to compensate educators at the level they deserve.”
The results also found that Louisiana’s providers are serving fewer children than they have the capacity to enroll, even as families continue to seek care. Providers reported serving approximately two-thirds of the children they have the capacity to serve, while two-thirds also reported having waitlists.
“It may seem like having seats available means that providers have room to grow, but the reality is much more complicated,” said Sarah Corley, director of LSUA Children’s Center. “Providers often have open seats because families are waiting for CCAP approval or because staffing and financial pressures make it difficult to operate at full capacity.”
Louisiana has an opportunity to build an early childhood system that works for children, families, providers, and employers, but doing so will require child care as essential infrastructure and providing the resources necessary to make the system strong and stable.
The complete findings from “Carrying the Cost: How Louisiana Providers Are Covering the Financial Burden of Child Care” can be found here. The survey was conducted from May 6 to May 20, 2026. Questions ranged from operational challenges and cost increases to staffing challenges and more. For more information on LPIC, please visit PolicyInstituteLA.org. To watch today’s press conference, click here.
About Louisiana Policy Institute for Children: Louisiana Policy Institute for Children is a 501(c)(3) nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring that Louisiana’s young children, from birth to age four, are best prepared for success in school and in life. The Policy Institute develops policy proposals informed by data, research, best practices, and the experiences of other states to improve the outcomes of Louisiana’s youngest citizens, and further provides educational and outreach activities based on recommended policy solutions. The organization works to ensure children are safe, healthy, and have the opportunity to reach their full potential. For more information, visit www.policyinstitutela.org and follow the Louisiana Policy Institute for Children on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.