Community, Government and Business Leaders Across Arizona Join Forces to Design and Implement Child Care Solutions in the Workplace
Media Contact
Brooke Flower
brooke@epicimpact.org
Tucson, AZ (February 26, 2026) — With Arizona families spending an average of $15,625 per year for infant child care—and nearly half of centers statewide reporting no available infant care slots—business and community leaders are stepping forward to create solutions that make care more accessible, affordable and sustainable for working families.
This week, Executives Partnering to Invest in Children (EPIC) released the final report from its inaugural Arizona Employer-Based Child Care Design Lab, a first-of-its-kind initiative that brought together employers from across industries to design workplace child care supports tailored to their employees’ needs. Over the course of three months, a small cohort of employers from across Arizona identified concrete ways to address child care pain points for employees while supporting the businesses’ bottom line.
“The Design Lab exists because the child care crisis doesn’t solve itself,” said Steph Itelman, Chief Impact Officer at EPIC. “What this Lab does is move organizations from awareness to action, giving them the tools, data and community of practice to design real solutions.”
Access and affordability remain major barriers for Arizona families and employers alike. Married-couple families spend roughly 8 percent of household income on infant care, while single parents spend about 23 percent. These costs, combined with limited availability, lead many parents to reduce hours or exit the workforce altogether.
“Child care isn’t just a family issue—it’s a workforce issue,” said Melinda Morrison Gulick, CEO of First Things First. “When businesses step up to help provide or support quality care, it strengthens the entire economy. Arizona’s employers are realizing that investing in child care is investing in their business.”
“Arizona’s prosperity depends on our ability to attract and retain top talent,” said Danny Seiden, President and CEO of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry. “When we come together across sectors and employers champion solutions that make it easier for parents to work and for children to thrive, it’s a win for business, families and the state’s economic future.”
The Arizona Employer-Based Child Care Design Lab had support from partners including the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Chamber of Southern Arizona, First Things First, Greater Phoenix Chamber, United Way of Graham and Greenlee Counties, United Way of Northern Arizona, United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona, and Valley of the Sun United Way.
EPIC supports businesses to explore and develop child care solutions through tailored consulting in addition to the Design Lab model. “This work doesn’t have an end point, but it has to begin somewhere,” added Itelman. “The collaboration we saw in this first Lab proves Arizona businesses are ready to lead on one of the most important workforce issues of our time.”