(INDIANAPOLIS) — Indiana is loosening a couple of child care regulations because of the coronavirus pandemic.
More than 30 school districts are starting the year online, and others are using a mix of online and in- person classes. Some parents are trying to ease the strain of having kids at home by pooling resources and having them do e-learning together. The problem is, that’s technically an unlicensed daycare, and state law would allow no more than six kids at a time.
Nicole Norvell, director of Indiana’s Office of Early Childhood and Out-of-School Learning, says the law didn’t anticipate a pandemic closing schools. An executive order from Governor Holcomb raises the limit to 10 kids as long as they’re there for e-learning.
The order also allows organizations like the YMCA or Boys and Girls Clubs which run afterschool
latchkey programs to use their own facilities instead. Current law requires those programs to operate on school property, which isn’t practical if those schools are closed.
