Childcare/Pre-K

Overall, childcare is unaffordable for most families, and it is often more cost effective for a parent or guardian to drop out of the labor force or to choose work or a career that is not ideal. The U.S. Department of the Treasury noted that currently the childcare sector is in “market failure,” which is when the market produces too much or too little of a good or service as compared to what would be best from a societal perspective. Childcare is a private market where the cost for both consumers and childcare business owners is too expensive, and those who work in the industry do not earn a living wage. Childcare/Pre-K spoke leaders, affiliates, and participants will wrestle with these issues and consider solutions for Utah through training and education, public policy, business engagement, and more. 

Spoke Leaders

Kabi Catalano

Kabi Catalano

Executive Director, UCB
LinkedIn Profile

Kabi Catalano is the Executive Director of Utah Community Builders, which addresses pressing community issues for Utah’s workforce. Key areas of cross-sector collaboration include family-friendly work, upward mobility, and mental wellness in the workplace.


Utah Community Builders

Elizabeth Garbe

Elizabeth Garbe

VP of Public Policy, UW SL
LinkedIn Profile

Elizabeth Garbe is the Vice President of Public Policy for the United Way of Salt Lake and is a passionate advocate for children and families in Utah. She has worked to pass legislation in education, health, and financial stability, with a strong focus on early childhood education.


United Way of Salt Lake

Anna Thomas

Anna Thomas

Senior Policy Analyst, VUC
LinkedIn Profile

Anna Thomas is the Policy Director at Voices for Utah Children, a non-profit and non-partisan statewide policy organization committed to realizing a Utah where all children have the opportunity to thrive. 


Voices for Utah Children

Bold Goals

To make Utah a place where more girls and women can thrive, the Childcare/Pre-K spoke leaders, affiliates, and participants are currently working to craft bold goals for 2026 and 2030. These goals will be linked to measurable outcomes, connected to visual dashboards, and will be posted in June of 2023. Through finding, collecting, and visualizing data for this spoke, changes over time can be tracked and utilized to create momentum for additional changes.

Partners & Affiliates

Are you and/or your organization interested in being involved in the Childcare/Pre-K spoke? If so, contact Kabi Catalano (kcatalano@slchamber.com) with details about you/your entity and the current or future efforts you believe are aligned with this work. Thank you for your interest!