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Can Advocates in Red States Make the Business Case for Child Care?
One of the many revelations for Americans during the pandemic was the role of child care in making the economy work.
To keep companies staffed and women in the workforce, child care programs need to be open and available, people realized. And more than that, they need to be accessible and affordable, too.
It’s one of those pandemic lessons that people keep learning again and again, as labor shortages persist. Employers feel it—they can’t fill their open jobs. Employees feel it—they have to make choices about whether to remain in the workforce, and if they do, they have to step in and do the jobs of their would-be coworkers. And consumers feel it, too—from supply chain issues to long lines to inflationary pressure.
First round of grant funding open to expand child care access across Idaho
The deadline to apply for the first round of child care expansion grants from the Idaho Workforce Development Council is Aug. 1, and council Executive Director Wendi Secrist expects the $15 million in available funding this fiscal year to quickly disappear.
During the 2022 legislative session, the Idaho Legislature approved $15 million from state fiscal recovery funds in the federal American Rescue Plan Act to be used for child care infrastructure grants. The grant funding is intended to be used to shorten waitlists for child care at high-quality facilities, including dollars that can help offset start-up costs for businesses and providers looking to expand. After the August deadline, the program will have two more rounds of funding with deadlines of Oct. 1 and Jan. 1. If the $15 million is not spent by then, the council will open another round.
City of Boise Offers Incentive Pay for Local Child Care Providers
Beginning August 1, 2022, two thousand childcare providers and workers licensed in Boise will be eligible to apply for a one-time payment of $1,500. The Childcare Incentive Pay program accounts for $3 million of the $34 million in American Rescue Plan funding that is being directed into the community to serve Boiseans who have been hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Applications are scheduled to be open August 1 – 31, and checks will be issued October through November.
“Childcare providers are vital to the health of our workforce and our economy,” said Mayor McLean. “When the pandemic hit our community, the childcare industry was severely impacted. I am proud to partner with Idaho AEYC to support our childcare workforce. Investing in quality, affordable childcare is a direct investment in our community.”
Available Opportunities
We currently have no available grant opportunities open.
If you'd like to learn about how you can help find grant funding for your community, contact us.
Grant Opportunities
There is a lot of work our community partners, and early childhood educators do that need funding resources to create and/or sustain programming in Idaho. Idaho AEYC acts as a conduit, connecting child care providers, early childhood education programs, and other important programming to grant opportunities.
In face of childcare crisis, collaborative group seeks solutions
In April of 2022, Building Blocks Early Learning Center owner Adrianna Green, who rents her facility on Little Avenue in Driggs, learned that the owner wanted to sell the property. She was told that the future owner would honor her lease, which expires at the end of the 2023 school year.
Building Blocks is the only licensed daycare facility in Teton County that still offers care to children under two. In the Idaho Stars Quality Rating System, it is a Step Two provider, and accepts the Idaho Child Care Program financial assistance for families who are unable to pay the full cost of childcare. The facility currently has a seven-page, multi-year waitlist of parents seeking daycare.
Child and Family Connections
Promoting Active, Holistic Learning for Young Children and Their Families
Idaho AEYC's Child and Family Connections is a program created to provide information and resources for early educators, families, and communities throughout Idaho. Working together, we can support the success of all children.
Employer Business Toolkit
The child care crisis affects employers and employees now more than ever. Increasingly, employers want to better understand and meet the needs of employees, while employees want a healthy work-life balance. 
Sandpoint Early Learning Collaborative
The Sandpoint Learning Collaborative is a group of stakeholders in our community who work together to pool resources to build up quality early learning opportunities for children in our community.