Oelslager Announces Grant Resources for Child Care Providers

COLUMBUS — There is $150 million in Child Care Support Grants still available to help child care programs impacted by the ongoing pandemic. 

State Representative Scott Oelslager (R-North Canton) wants child care organizations to know funds are accessible to help maintain operations.  

“Ohio set aside money received from the federal American Rescue Plan to assist child care facilities in keeping their doors open to help families around the state,” said Oelslager.

The grants are being awarded through the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) and will cover the following areas:

- Operating/New Pandemic Costs: These funds are intended to provide assistance with costs incurred after the declaration of the federal public health emergency on Jan. 31, 2020, through June 30, 2022.

- Workforce Recruitment/Retention: These funds are for personnel costs such as wages, benefits, sign-on and retention bonuses, background checks and training that are incurred between Dec. 1, 2021, through June 30, 2022.

- Child Access Development: These funds are to increase families' access to child care by providing funding to expand classrooms, increase access to technology, and address learning gaps and social/emotional needs of children. The expense period is Dec. 1, 2021, through June 30, 2022.

The funds are available for ODJFS-regulated child care centers, family child care Type A and Type B homes, in-home aides, and approved day camps, as well as Ohio Department of Education (ODE)-licensed preschool and school-age programs that are approved to provide publicly funded child care (PFCC). 

ODJFS-regulated child care programs do not need to be participating in PFCC to be eligible to apply for these sub-grants, however, ODE programs must be approved to provide PFCC at the time of application.

Eligible providers must submit an application through the Ohio Professional Registry, via a program’s organization dashboard at https://registry.occrra.org/.