Your Personal Research Journey

The topic I chose to research for this course is the effects on children in one small child care center when federal budget cuts happen. I chose this topic because I deal with this situation on daily basis. I have been in the early childhood field for eight years and federal budget cuts has been an issue that we have been battling every year. Every time the federal government announces the budget for the new fiscal year, child care is usually the first to get cut. The federal government does not understand the importance of early childhood and the difference that many early childhood programs are making in children lives. I have had families return to our program to let us know how well their child is doing and they always say they know it is because of us and the work we did with their children. We cannot continue to have success stories without the proper funding to operate. When the federal government cuts the budget to early childhood; that means some agencies will have to cut staff or salaries. One of the largest early childhood programs in Chicago had to close their doors because they could not afford to pay staff. The agency I work for recently cut all staff salaries and had to layoff some staff because of the federal budget cuts. We have limited supplies and limited staff. It is very stressful and it is causing staff to find employment elsewhere because of the budget cuts. The agency is loosing qualified staff because of these cuts. I know I am currently looking for employment elsewhere because it is a struggle to maintain my home on the salary that I am receiving. It is also frustrating to work with limited supplies and I cannot provide the services to the children or families. The stress of poor compensation and no supplies can drive a agency out of business.

I have a lot of personal experiences that stimulated this topic, but I am having a hard time starting the research process. Can anyone provide any ideas for me about where I should start or what should I actually be researching?

http://www.waldenu.edu