• Parenting has become a new full-time job for many parents during the pandemic.

• During this time, the primary focus of parents is on the emotional, social, and intellectual well-being of their children. This responsibility is often shared with teachers so that both parenting and working are possible.

• Without the assistance of teachers, parents are now 100% responsible for the care and nurturing of their kids.

• UI, PUA, and FPUC allow parents to come closer to meeting expenses while, at the same time, meeting their obligation to their children.

• The FPUC expiration striking on July 25 was complicated timing for parents that have to purchase school supplies. Because the government is insisting schools must reopen, parents must find funding for clothing, supplies, sports equipment and the new added cost of PPE for their children in a time when their income has been completely halted. As always, lower income households will face obstacles in their children's ability to have access to their education equally, but now have the added health risks to weigh, and costs associated with that, when sending their children back into crowded environments.

• Learning from home presents equally difficult obstacles for lower income households. Access to reliable and adequate streaming internet connections, computers and other at home expenses disproportionately place obstacles in the way of children's learning in lower income households. 1 in 10 immigrant households are not connected to the internet. Four in 10 parents without a home computer (40%) or home Internet access (42%) say the main reason they do not have these items is because they are too expensive. (Source: Joann Ganz Cooney Center)

See this article from the New York Times.