Photo illustration by Jeff Boyer / Times Union archive.

Recent news that Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani are expanding free and low-cost child care in New York City, and eventually statewide, is welcome and long overdue. Investment in early childhood education is not just good for children and families; it strengthens local economies. For every dollar invested in early education, society sees an estimated $7 return. In other words: Making child care more affordable and accessible for working families benefits all of us.

But affordability alone will not solve our child care crisis. The other half of the equation is investing in the people who make child care possible -- teachers. Without investing in early childhood education teachers, expanded child care access will strain an........

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