June 30, 2025
After launching its Childcare Provider Grants in January, the Wyoming Interagency Working Group on Childcare has exhausted all available funds in just two rounds of grantmaking. In total, 25 in-home and center-
based providers across the state received $183,450 in funding.
The grant program, administered by the Wyoming Community Foundation, offered grants up to $10,000 per applicant and prioritized providers in childcare deserts who could increase the number of children served in their community. Increased access to care was outlined as a priority because, according to the Department of Family Services, Wyoming has lost nearly 200 childcare providers in the past decade – dropping from 721 in 2014 to 527 in December 2024. This grant program worked to help reverse that trend.
While long-term impacts will take time to measure, early signs of success are already visible.
Take Broadway Childcare in Thermopolis, for example. Before receiving the Childcare Provider Grant, care provider Cassandra Norskog served seven children in her in-home program. The grant made her feel appreciated and gave her the security to increase the number of children she cares for. Since receiving the funding, she’s expanded to serve 10 children and hopes to grow to 15.
“The grant has been so helpful in providing supplies that I otherwise wasn’t able to afford,” Norskog said. “I have so much gratitude for the grant. It has been life changing in a positive way – not just for my business – but for the families I am able to serve.”
Beyond financial support, the collaborative group provided and continues to provide business assistance through the Wyoming Women’s Business Center and the Wyoming Small Business Development Center. Additionally, the University of Wyoming Early Childhood Outreach Network’s Professional Learning Collaborative is a partnering group which offers resources as well.
“We believe this program can serve as a successful model and an important piece of the puzzle to address childcare needs that affect our neighbors and communities,” says Micah Richardson, associate director of policy at the Wyoming Women’s Foundation.
The Wyoming Women’s Foundation hopes this is just the beginning. “Childcare isn’t just a family issue, it’s an economic one,” Richardson adds. “A relatively small investment in childcare can yield a big return, strengthening Wyoming’s workforce and communities. And we encourage our legislature to make it a greater priority.”
The Wyoming Interagency Working Group on Childcare will continue to evaluate the state’s childcare landscape and work to find additional avenues to address the issue.
The grant program was a collaborative effort of the Wyoming Business Council (WBC), the Wyoming Early Childhood Professional Learning Collaborative, Wyoming Department of Family Services (DFS), the Wyoming Department of Health, the Wyoming Women’s Foundation at the Wyoming Community Foundation (WYCF). It could not have been as successful as it was without the additional funding support provided by the Wyoming Council for Women and the John P. Ellbogen Foundation.
To learn more, please visit https://wycf.org/childcare-grant/ or contact Micah Richardson at micah@wycf.org. The Interagency Working Group on Childcare consists of numerous nonprofit partners and state agencies. To connect with the group, please contact Kristin Fong at kristin.fong@wyo.gov.