New Park City Childcare Program is Live 

Park City Community Foundation is excited to share that Park City’s new childcare program is now providing needs-based scholarships to local families and providers. Early Childhood Alliance, a community initiative of Park City Community Foundation, played a pivotal role in advocating for and guiding the development of the program, and we are hopeful these funds will help to alleviate some financial stress of local families and providers.

The program, a partnership between Park City Municipal Corporation (PCMC) and Upwards, is being launched as Covid-era stabilization grants were cut at the end of September, putting childcare providers at risk of closing and/or raising tuition to make up for the loss in federal funding. The goals of these funds are to prop up our local providers and help ensure that families are not paying more than 10% of their income towards childcare. PCMC approved $1 million in one-time funding after local families, providers, and advocates asked for childcare support. Early Childhood Alliance put together a needs assessment and created the Park City Cares About Kids proposal that ultimately led to the development of the program’s three-fold approach:

• The first is the Needs-Based Childcare Tuition Scholarship for children up to kindergarten age (Utah children are eligible for kindergarten in the year they turn 5 by September 2). Families must live in Park City (zip code 84060) and have a household income less than 100% of Summit County’s area median income (AMI). Children must be enrolled at a participating regulated childcare provider in Summit County, and households must contribute 10% of their income toward childcare. The city’s stipend will cover the remaining expenses up to a combined payment (parent contribution + scholarship) of $1,700 per child per month for each child enrolled in a participating regulated childcare provider that is located within Summit County, excluding expenses eligible for other programs, including State and Federal funding
• The second is the Infant & Toddler Childcare Tuition Scholarship addressing the needs of children up to 36 months of age for families with a household income of less than 100% AMI. The scholarship is open to Park City residents and those who live outside the city but work in town (zip code 84060). Eligible families will receive $200 per child per month for each child enrolled in a participating regulated childcare provider that is located within Summit County.
• The third is the Regulated Childcare Providers Incentive, which supports local caregivers. Participating providers in Summit county serving Park City resident or employee children enrolled in the Department of Work Services assistance program will be eligible to receive $300 per child per month.

Scholarships and childcare-provider payments will be available on a first-come, first-served basis each month as of January 1, 2024 and will be distributed directly to regulated childcare providers by Upwards. The company was chosen for its user-friendly technology, demonstrated success in streamlining childcare operations, and expertise in the space. The administration fees for Upwards are being covered by Park City Community Foundation, ensuring the full $1 million investment from PCMC is going directly to families and providers. 

The launch of the program is welcome news as the vast majority of working families in Park City report that childcare issues have negatively impacted their employment. The Park City Childcare Needs Assessment revealed that 83% of Park City parents with children ages 0-5 rely on some form of childcare to participate in the workforce. Concurrently, childcare costs have increased by 32% nationwide since 2019.

Families can use this calculator to see if they qualify based on AMI and apply here: https://upwards.com/childcare-assistance

Upwards offers customer service in multiple languages via their website, phone (323.421.7479), and email (support@upwards.com).

See local news about this announcement from Fox13 >