Photo: Markus Spiske on Unsplash.com

By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - February 11, 2025

Last week, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced $6.1 million in grants through the  Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) to help expand access to childcare across the state. This amount is estimated to open 1,400 additional slots. Of the $6.1 million, $5.1 million, or 84%, was awarded to organizations in Greater Minnesota, which equates to adding 1,337 additional childcare slots. 

The following local organizations received funding in the latest round of grant awards (see the rest of the list at the end of the article):

• Arrowhead Economic Opportunity Agency – $240,000
• Cook County PHHS – $385,178
• Duluth Area Family YMCA – $480,000
• Northland Foundation – $240,000

In a February 6 press release, Governor Walz said, "Affordable, reliable child care is essential for a thriving economy – it removes the barriers that prevent parents from entering the workforce, and makes life easier and more affordable for families."

The DEED Child Care Economic Development grants provide funding for investing in "new or expanding child care businesses, including facility improvements, worker training, attraction, retention and licensing, and other strategies to reduce the child care shortage."

In 2022, First Children's Finance completed a Supply and Demand Gap Analysis in Cook County and Grand Portage, and found that there was an unmet need for at least 114 childcare slots to meet the demands of families with children 0-5 in the area. 

According to a Cook County Connections article released in July of 2024, the Analysis also found the following: 

• 44% of employers in the area have struggled to attract employees for open positions due to a lack of childcare
• 33% of employers have struggled to retain employees for this same reason
• 82% of families report that the availability and cost of childcare influence how adult family members participate in the workforce
• 46% of families indicate that the availability of childcare impacts their family planning decisions

Cook County Public Health and Human Services (PHHS) has worked to obtain grant funding over the past few years in order to help address the childcare issues in the area. In 2023, PHHS, along with the Cook County Economic Development Authority, partnered to "strengthen local childcare systems by implementing a range of supports for new and existing childcare providers." The organizations applied for a grant through DEED and received $180,000, which supported a wide variety of initiatives (you can learn more here). In 2024, PHHS applied for additional DEED funding and received $250,000 to support initiatives through June 2025. 

One local initiative has been the development of the wage enhancement program. This program, which began in 2023, helps bridge the pay gap for local providers by increasing hourly wages to better align with the DEED-proposed rate of $21.09 per hour. The program was renewed in the 2024 budget, along with a $5.96 an-hour cost of living increase for local providers. 

In a Cook County Connections article published on January 17, 2025, Cook County Public Health and Human Services Director Alison McIntyre shared, "All eligible providers in the county and Grand Portage have participated and shared positive feedback about the difference this has made for their programs." She added that this is a unique program and has generated interest on a national level.  

DEED was created in July 2023 and has since awarded $12 million in grants to 45 organizations, specifically going towards funding childcare startups or expansions. 

In addition to the four local organizations listed above, the following were awarded Child Care Economic Development Grants in this funding round: 

• Becker County – $120,000
• Brainerd Family YMCA – $97,5000
• Catholic Charities Twin Cities – $240,000
• City of Hutchinson – $40,000
• City of Wadena – $195,000
• Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio (CLUES) – $300,000
• God's Treasures Childcare Learning Center – $240,000
• Greater Bemidji, Inc. – $575,000
• Heartland Lakes Development Commission – $100,000
• Hendricks Community Hospital Association – $159,000
• Hmong American Partnership – $240,000
• ISO 482- Little Falls Community Schools – $240,000
• Kandiyohi County and City of Willmar EDC – $178,500
• Lil Chompers Child Care Inc. – $240,000
• Mapleton Economic Development Authority – $175,120
• Nobles County Community Service Agency – $480,000
• Northwest Minnesota Foundation – $134,530
• Otter Tail County – $240,000
• Renville County – $345,000
• Warroad Community Childcare Center – $240,000
• WomenVenture – $240,000