Election season is in full swing here in America, with politics dominating the news and social media platforms. While there are many issues at the forefront of the public’s mind, one that doesn’t get talked about nearly enough is child care, including after school care.

Some Shocking Statistics About After School Care

Here are some things that all voters should know about after school care in America, courtesy of the Afterschool Alliance:

• 11.3 million children take care of themselves after the school day ends.
• On school days, the hours between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. are the peak hours for juvenile crime and experimentation with drugs, alcohol, cigarettes and sex.
• A report on 21st Century Community Learning Centers (afterschool programs receiving federal funds) showed that 45 percent of all participants improved their reading grades and 41 percent improved their math grades.
• Teens who do not participate in afterschool programs are nearly three times more likely to skip classes than teens who do participate. They are also three times more likely to use marijuana or other drugs, and they are more likely to drink alcohol, smoke cigarettes and engage in sexual activity.

As you can see, the simple problem of not having anywhere to go, or any after school care in which to participate creates issues for students that have a negative impact on the community at large.

Recently, presidential candidate Hillary Clinton revealed some elements of her plan to make daycare and after school care more accessible for all American families. It’s time to face up to the reality of what family life is like today and to support families,” Clinton said during a recent appearance at a social services center in Lexington, Kentucky.

At Just For Kids, we’re concerned with providing after school care, summer camps, and other vital care services for children in the Chicago area, and feel that it’s important to keep people informed about the stance potential presidential nominees have taken regarding child care.

Basic elements of Clinton’s plan are:

• Bolster “a highly regarded “home visiting” program designed to help low-income children at risk of emotional, intellectual, and physical harm.” (via HuffPo)
• Increase pay for daycare and after school care program workers “as a way to improve retention and attract educators with stronger qualifications.” (via HuffPo)
• Lower child care costs via a combination of subsidized child care and tax credits that would “make sure that no family ever pays more than 10 percent of its income on child-care expenses.” (via HuffPo)

In theory, these changes could have a massive impact on the accessibility, affordability, and efficacy of child care programs in America, including after school care. But will these lofty goals actually come to fruition? As always, there’s the question of how Clinton’s after before and after school care programs would be paid for.

“Fully realizing Clinton’s goal would likely require the federal government, and thus the taxpayers, to come up with tens of billions of new dollars every year,” reported Jonathan Cohn for the Huffington Post.

Will taxpayers be willing to make such a sacrifice for the future of America’s children? We’ll have to wait until November to find out.