Over $630,000 in State Funding Awarded to Area Childcare Providers

The State of Iowa has awarded over $630,000 in funding to area childcare providers creating 265 new childcare options through the Child Care Challenge grant program and the DHS Investing in Iowa's Child Care funding program.

“This is very exciting news for the Ames and Boone area," said Brenda Dryer, Senior Vice President for the Ames Chamber of Commerce. "We were pleased to have worked to support a number of these applications. This funding is key as we work to expand on the child care options in our area. We were short on day care spaces prior to the pandemic; as we work to get people back to work and further expand on employment opportunities in the region these spots will be needed!”
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Area awardees include:
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• ChildServe, Ames, IA
  • Iowa DHS Award: $173,073
  • Child Care Challenge Award: $95,000
  • This project will expand the Special Needs Childcare center in Ames and will focus on serving children with a diagnosis of Autism. Capacity will be doubled from 9 children to a total of 18 children.
• Imagination Station Child Care, Boone, IA
  • Iowa DHS Award: $22,170
  • Funds will be used for renovations to the center and will create 31 additional slots for children already on the waiting list.
• Iowa State University, Ames, IA
  • Iowa DHS Award: $35,500
  • Child Care Challenge Award: $6,250
  • This project will expand the Infant Cyclone Care Center and will increase infant slots by 8.
• LilyPad Learning Center, Huxley, IA
  • Iowa DHS Award: $119,526
  • The project will fund the purchasing of a large warehouse building that will be renovated to provide 75 new child care slots for the community.
• Stepping Stones Childcare, Slater, IA
  • Iowa DHS Award: $125,000
  • Child Care Challenge Award: $75,000
  • This project is to turn the only in-home provider in Slater into a fully developed childcare center in the community. The in-home provider has space for 6 kids but a center would offer space for 142 children between the ages of 6 weeks and 10 years of age.

Child Care Challenge grants support community projects to establish local childcare facilities and was created to bolster and support innovative partnerships between leaders in the community and key stakeholders in both the private and public sectors. The DHS Investing in Iowa's Child Care program provides funding for equipment, personnel, training and supplies for new or established child care facilities.