DU2

Dream Up! Child Care Supply-Building Grant Program.

The Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF) provided competitive applications in 2022 and 2023. Through this program, awarded communities received strategic planning support and $75,000 in grant funding. Additional $5,000 stipends were allocated to participating child care providers who submit updated business plans during the strategic planning process. Through a collaborative community approach, teams of community stakeholders, worked to evaluate, plan, sustain, and expand existing child care, and support new child care programs.

Project Growth  is one of many initiatives DCF introduced to stabilize our communities’ child care systems and boost Wisconsin’s economy. As one of its grant programs, Dream Up! provided funding and strategic planning guidance to support child care supply-building through a collaborative community approach. After awarding a couple of cohorts of recipients, DCF partnered with KW2 to conduct an evaluation. Early findings were released in October 2022, and the final reports for the Dream Up! grant program are now available as well.