KinderCare Education shifts operations to provide emergency child care

Centers will remain open to support first responders, critical health care professionals and families in essential services

Portland, Ore. (March 20, 2020) - KinderCare Education today announced that in response to the urgent public need from COVID-19, the company will focus its operations to provide child care to first responders, critical health care professionals and families in essential services.

"The families in our country are facing a crisis of significant proportion, and we're prioritizing our services to support those families who are on the front lines of battling this threat: the first responders, health care professionals, and other essential workers who keep our communities running," said Tom Wyatt, CEO of KinderCare Education.

KinderCare Education operates about 1,500 centers around the nation and expects to keep more than 400 of those centers open to provide this essential child care. The company will reopen additional essential centers as the need arises.

"We're going city by city and identifying centers that operate in areas with large numbers of families who work as first responders, health care providers, and other essential services. We're going to keep those centers open so that we can support those families. We'll increase safety in line with guidance from our medical experts, to ensure the health and well-being of our children and teachers," Wyatt said.

The essential centers that remain open will serve families currently enrolled in those centers and those who work in emergency and medical services, and will work to accommodate other essential workers. Those interested should contact KinderCare via phone at 800-709-8834 or visit www.kindercare.com to learn more.

In addition, KinderCare Education at Work centers at medical facilities will remain open, and we will continue to partner with employers to support their child care needs wherever possible. Where requested, the company continues to support school districts across the country with its Champions programs for school-age children.

"Child care is being affected in ways we could never have imagined, with family support of older family members no longer an option. For the safety of our communities, this crisis support is one small thing companies like KinderCare can do to help us all through this unprecedented time," added Wyatt.

These centers will be staffed by employees who have chosen to work there to provide this support. KinderCare Education has engaged an independent medical advisor to provide health and safety guidelines for all centers that will remain open.

About KinderCare Education^®
KinderCare Education is America's largest private provider of early childhood education and child care. KinderCare has more than 36,000 teachers and staff serving hardworking families in 40 states and the District of Columbia caring for more than 186,000 children every day:

• In neighborhoods, with KinderCare® Learning Centers that offer early childhood education and child care for children six weeks to 12 years old;
• At work, through KinderCare Education at Work™, providing customized family benefits for more than 400 employers around the country, including on-site and near-site early learning centers and back-up care for last-minute child care, and
• In local schools, with Champions® before and after-school programs.

Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, KinderCare operates more than 1,500 early learning centers, and more than 600 Champions sites. In 2019, KinderCare earned its third Gallup Great Workplace Award - one of only 39 companies worldwide to win this award. To learn more, visit KinderCare Education.