Groundwork Ohio Roadshow 2026: Franklin County
Groundwork Ohio continued its statewide Roadshow with a visit to Les Petites Academy in Hilliard on September 11, joining Action for Children and U.S. Rep. Mike Carey (R-Ohio-15) and members of his team for a conversation about child care, working families, and what Ohio communities need as they grow.
The visit offered an opportunity to hear directly from a child care provider while discussing the broader challenges families face finding and affording care—and why child care must be part of conversations about Ohio’s workforce and economic development.
Child Care Is Part of Ohio’s Affordability Challenge
Groundwork Ohio opened the conversation by sharing recent statewide polling showing that affordability is the defining concern for Ohio voters heading into the 2026 election. Nearly two-thirds of voters identify lowering the cost of living as one of the most important issues facing their families, while 76% say finding and affording quality child care is a crisis or major problem.
Those numbers reflect a challenge families experience every day: parents may want and need to work, but they also need safe, reliable child care that fits their schedules and budgets.
Congressman Carey shared that reality from his own experience as a working parent, describing the juggling required when regular child care arrangements are not available.
“That is a challenge that we face every day.”
When child care falls through, parents may have to miss work, reduce their hours, or make difficult choices about employment.
The group discussed the importance of federal funding including the Child Care Development Block Grant.
Economic Growth Requires Child Care Growth
The conversation also turned to major economic development projects underway throughout central Ohio and neighboring communities.
As thousands of new jobs come to communities through large-scale investments, participants discussed an important question: Will there be enough child care for the workers filling those jobs?
Congressman Carey specifically raised concerns about child care capacity surrounding growing employment centers, including development in Licking County, Jeffersonville, and the Rickenbacker area. In smaller communities, a major new employer can dramatically increase demand for housing, infrastructure, and services—including child care.
That makes child care part of the infrastructure needed to support economic growth. Creating jobs is only one piece of the equation. Parents must also be able to get to those jobs and know their children have a safe, reliable place to learn and grow while they work.
Employers Can Help—But They Need to Know How
Participants also discussed opportunities to engage employers more directly in child care solutions.
Ohio has taken steps to encourage employer investment in child care, including through a state tax credit. Participants expressed appreciation for that tool but noted that many businesses may not know it exists or understand how to use it.
That points to an opportunity beyond creating new policies: making sure employers know about the tools already available and connecting them with child care experts who can help identify solutions that fit their workforce.
When Families Face Additional Barriers
The site visit also highlighted how difficult it can be for providers to help families navigate a complicated system.
Alia Jaradat, owner of Les Petites Academy, described challenges encountered by some immigrant families seeking child care assistance, including families who are legally living and working in the United States but may encounter eligibility barriers. The discussion underscored how access to child care can affect a parent’s ability to participate in the workforce—and how confusing eligibility rules can be for both families and the providers trying to assist them.
Congressman Carey and his staff asked to learn more about what providers are seeing on the ground and encouraged participants to continue sharing individual family experiences with their office.
It was another reminder of why these conversations matter: policy decisions are ultimately experienced by real families, and hearing directly from the people navigating those systems can help policymakers better understand where barriers exist.
What We’ll Carry Forward
Our Franklin County stop reinforced a message we have heard throughout the Groundwork Ohio Roadshow: child care is family infrastructure, workforce infrastructure, and economic infrastructure.
As Ohio attracts new employers and creates new jobs, child care capacity must grow alongside them. Employers have a role to play. Policymakers at every level have tools they can use. And child care providers and community organizations bring critical expertise about what families actually experience.
We’re grateful to Action for Children, Les Petites Academy, Congressman Carey, his staff, and everyone who participated in the conversation.
As the Roadshow continues, we’ll keep bringing what we hear in communities across Ohio into conversations about how we can make our state the best place in the nation to be a young child.
Learn More
Explore Groundwork Ohio's county fact sheets to learn more about the data behind this Roadshow stop.
