News : Gov. Reynolds announces $5 million for 19 child care and preschool programs

Today, Governor Kim Reynolds announced her commitment of $5M to expand 19 child care and preschool program partnerships. The Continuum of Care grant program garnered overwhelming interest with more than 120 applications submitted.

The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (Agency), Division of Family Well-Being and Protection, announces its intent to award a Expanding the Early Childhood Continuum of Care Grant to Growing Patch Wrap Around Care and Center Point Urbana Community School District in the amount of $100,000.00. (Others awarded can be seen below.)

The awards reaffirm the governor's commitment to further strengthen Iowa's child care system. By encouraging partnerships between child care providers and preschools, the program helps ensure full days of care for 4-year-olds and strengthens school-aged readiness. These awards will expand the number of children served through supportive staffing, hours of operation, and transportation options for child care and preschool programs.

"Iowa has a strong and diverse statewide preschool system with many options for Iowa families. We've also had tremendous success improving child care access, growing the workforce, and increasing wages for child care workers," said Gov. Reynolds. "Still, Iowa's working parents need more flexibility to provide their children with full-day care plus early learning, which has been a gap in our system for too long. The Continuum of Care grant program provides a strategic solution by incentivizing child care providers and preschool programs to work together to better serve Iowa families. There's a clear need for this program - as evidenced by the overwhelming number of applicants - and I encourage state legislators to explore ways to permanently support these partnerships."