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The Brighter Futures Indiana Data Center offers data related to population, economy, supply and demand.

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Expanding Child Care Capacity for Hard-Working Families

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Indiana’s Child Care Expansion Grant program is a state-funded initiative to expand quality child care access, especially for our most vulnerable, hard-working families. The competitive grant opportunity provides funding for early childhood and school-age providers to grow seat capacity to serve more CCDF and On My Way Pre-K children and families.

The application period has ended, and applications are currently under review.

Award notifications and corresponding funding information (if applicable) will be shared directly with providers via email notification.

Providers awarded funding through the existing program expansion track will have 12 months from the time of the award to use the funds, and those awarded through the new program creation track will have 18 months. Ongoing support will be made available to awarded providers through the Office of Early Childhood & Out of School Learning’s Grant Navigators as they plan for how to use and make investments with their grant funds.

Through the Child Care Expansion Grant opportunity, Indiana state leaders intend to grow quality child care access in underserved communities and for priority age groups, such as infants and toddlers, where significant gaps currently exist in the state's child care landscape. The grant opportunity supports providers in expanding or repositioning child care seats in existing programs, and creating new programs in underserved areas.The application period has ended, and applications are currently under review. Award notifications and corresponding funding information (if applicable) will be shared directly with providers via email notification.

Providers awarded funding through the existing program expansion track will have 12 months from the time of the award to use the funds, and those awarded through the new program creation track will have 18 months. Ongoing support will be made available to awarded providers through the Office of Early Childhood & Out of School Learning’s Grant Navigators as they plan for how to use and make investments with their grant funds.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is the purpose of Indiana’s Child Care Expansion Grants?

    Indiana's Child Care Expansion Grant program aims to increase quality child care access for vulnerable families, especially within underserved areas and priority age groups such as infants and toddlers. The effort prioritizes access for CCDF and On My Way Pre-K children and families and is supported by state funding made available through Senate Enrolled Act 2 from the 2022 Indiana General Assembly special session.

  • What are the maximum award amounts?

    Grant awards will be based on the relative scale and projected impact of requested projects. Applicants applying under the Existing Program Expansion track may request up to $200,000, while those applying under the New Program Creation track can request up to $750,000. New Program Creation awardees are required to contribute a minimum of 10% of total project budgets, either in cash, loan funding, or through in-kind donations or contributions.

  • How were applications reviewed and scored?

    This was a competitive grant opportunity, and not all applications will receive an award. Only applications that best met grant criteria were considered for an award.

    The State reviewed applications and made award decisions based on a number of factors, including but not limited to a commitment to expand access to underserved children and families, the total number of seats being created, the quality level achieved or planned to be achieved by the applicant and the degree to which the applicant serves or plans to serve CCDF and On My Way Pre-K families. Applications should have displayed a clear understanding of the local need, and connected how grant funds would address those needs realistically.

    OECOSL will not be providing additional information on the evaluation and award process.

  • Will OECOSL be publishing or sharing any program-level data collected through grant applications?

    No. OECOSL will not be publishing or sharing program-level data collected through grant applications.

  • What resources are available for providers that were not chosen to receive grant funds?

    Be on the lookout for future OECOSL grant opportunities.