December 13 Child Care Provider Updates Please note that we will not be sending any listserv messages during the week between Christmas and New Year’s. Our regular messaging schedule will resume on January 3, 2023. Get Ready for Child Care Counts Update/Application Week – Dec. 19-23 Next week, December 19-23 is the December Child Care Counts Update/Application Week. Prepare to update your child attendance and staff records so you don’t miss out on any funding. Update/Application Week Reminders You must review, update, and resubmit your application every month. See the Child Care Counts Calendar for future Count and Application Weeks. Be sure to carefully review the child and staff lists for attendance and payroll status during the Count Week and hit “submit” once you have completed your review/update. If you do not wish to receive payments, you must withdraw your application during Update Week. Watch the How to Apply videos to view step-by-step instructions on how to submit your application. Review the Updating Your Child Care Counts Information During Update Week video to learn how to make application modifications during Update Week. Applications for the November Child Care Counts: Stabilization Payment Program are being reviewed. Providers will be notified of their eligibility for funds by December 16, 2022, via a payment letter uploaded to the Child Care Provider Portal. If you need assistance, email DCFDECECOVID19CCPayments@wisconsin.gov or call and leave your detailed questions at 608-535-3650. Child Care Counts Información en español. December Tuesday Talks with DECE – YoungStar Transition Continued Our next Tuesday Talks with DECE will take place on Tuesday, December 20 at 1:30 p.m. through Zoom. Next week’s talk is on the YoungStar Transition. No need to register. Just follow the Zoom link posted on our website at the time of the webinar. You can also download the re-occurring calendar invite with the Zoom information in it. Spanish interpretation will be available (Información en español). View the lineup on our website. Subscribe to our child care listserv to receive updates on upcoming talks. Applications Opening Soon – Dream Up! Grant Program: Cohort 3 The Dream Up! Child Care Supply-Building grant program, a part of Project Growth, will open for another round of applications soon. Through this program, awarded communities will receive strategic planning support from our partner, First Children Finance (FCF), along with $75,000 in grant funding. Additional $5,000 stipends will be allocated to local, participating child care providers who submit updated business plans during the strategic planning process. Through a collaborative community approach, teams of community stakeholders, will work to evaluate, plan, sustain, and expand existing child care, and support new child care programs. The first two cohorts of Dream Up! awardees were announced last spring. Who should apply? Applications should be submitted by a team of invested community members. Teams are encouraged to include a cross-sector of professionals. Team representatives may include (but are not limited to): Local business leaders Community and civic organizations Economic development programs Child care programs School districts Local government City or county administrations You can also view more information in our Dream Up! Informational Chart and rural and urban community scenarios on the Dream Up! webpage. The competitive applications period will run February 20 – March 17, 2023 at 5 p.m. CST. We encourage interested parties to review all materials on the Dream Up! webpage, start thinking about who your core team might be composed of, and gathering data. Subscribe to receive Project Growth emails for more updates.
