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  Building a Stronger Early Care and Education System For the Long Term.
  

  The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the cracks in our nation’s child care system, further making the case that we need to work together to address long-term solutions that will strengthen the industry for the future.

  It is important we use our state’s COVID-19 child care relief funds to not just help programs rebuild their operations, but implement solutions that will provide long-term recovery.

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Provide Support for Increased COVID-19 Operating Expenses

• Emergency Relief Grants

  To address increased operating expenses and enable programs to make forward-looking business decisions, the Office of Early Childhood and Out-of-School Learning (OECOSL) will issue temporary Emergency Relief Grants which offer a 20% increase to reimbursements for programs serving children receiving CCDF/OMWPK.

• Increased CACFP Reimbursements

  OECOSL will provide support for increased food costs by increasing CACFP reimbursements for participating programs. Claims submitted for costs incurred during May-Sept. 2021 will be eligible for the increased reimbursement.

• Child Care Closure Grants

  OECOSL will continue providing support to programs facing temporary closures due to a positive COVID-19 case. Programs must apply online to be eligible to receive funding. Grants are capped at $40,000 per closure and decisions are made every two weeks.

Help Programs Rebuild Their Workforce

• Statewide Workforce Recruitment Campaign

  To help programs rebuild their teaching teams, OECOSL will issue a statewide industry-building campaign to raise awareness of and interest in early care and education careers. This effort will build on the recommendations of Indiana’s Preschool Development Grant Transition to Teaching initiative completed in partnership with Early Learning Indiana.

• Hiring and Onboarding Supports

  To support recruitment and onboarding costs associated with hiring new team members, OECOSL will waive background check fees and issue $400 stipends to child care programs for each new hire. Stipends may be used to cover costs associated with recruitment, employee health and safety requirements, and mandatory job training.

Deliver Support for Families While Rebuilding Enrollment

• Waived CCDF Co-Pays for Families

  To provide temporary relief to families and reduce collection burdens for programs, OECOSL will waive families’ CCDF co-pays through the end of October 2021.

• Assistance for Families in Essential Businesses

  The Build, Learn, Grow Scholarship Fund — operated in partnership with Early Learning Indiana and Indiana Afterschool Network — offers early childhood and summer program scholarships for up to 50,000 children of families that work in essential businesses. These scholarships will help connect working families to high-quality early childhood and out-of-school learning, while also stimulating enrollment demand.

• New Supports for Displaced Workers

  New child care supports for low-income Hoosier workers displaced by COVID-19 will help them re-enter the workforce and get connected with high-demand jobs.