Child Care Deserts Competition Award

Ready to Grow St. Joe, in partnership with the United Way of St. Joseph County, has been announced as a winner of the Child Care Deserts Competition, focused on increasing access to high-quality child care for children ages 6 weeks to 6 years. More than four of every 10 children in Indiana lives in a child care desert – a neighborhood, town or part of a city where there is no more than one child care seat for every three children. The Child Care Deserts Competition, hosted by Early Learning Indiana with support from a 2014 grant from the Lilly Endowment Inc., awarded $1 million to 13 organizations for their submitted ideas to create new child care seats. Ready to Grow will receive $150,000 to create up to 150 new high-quality childcare seats in 2 locations across St. Joseph County.