TOPEKA, Kan. — The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), in partnership with All In For Kansas Kids, has announced four regional recipients of the new Child Care Zones grants — a program designed to support local efforts to improve access to and quality of child care across the state.
Funded through the federal Preschool Development Birth through Five (PDG B-5) Renewal Grant awarded to Kansas in 2024, the initiative provides targeted investments to strengthen early childhood services and infrastructure. The Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund administers the grant.
“We are pleased to support KDHE’s Child Care Zones program through the PDG B-5 investment,” said Melissa Rooker, Executive Director of the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund. “These are communities who are working together to address barriers, grow awareness of needs and challenges, recover from shortages and setbacks, and make sustainable system improvements.”
Launched in early 2025, the Child Care Zones program designates self-defined regions—covering at least two counties—to receive state-level support for addressing unique, community-specific child care challenges. Successful applicants demonstrated strong collaboration among local stakeholders, including child care providers, employers, local governments, school districts and nonprofits.
The four Round One awardees and their supported counties are:
- Grow at Eden (Child Care Provider) – Labette, Allen, Crawford, and Neosho Counties
- McPherson County Community Foundation – McPherson and Marion Counties
- City of Kingman – Kingman, Harper, Kiowa, Comanche, and Morton Counties
- Geary County Child Care Coalition (Live Well Geary County) – Geary and Dickinson Counties
Each community proposed region-specific strategies to address pressing child care concerns, such as workforce recruitment and retention, expanding access, forming public-private partnerships, and improving care quality.
“Child Care Zones, made possible with federal PDG funding, are an opportunity to support local communities and their child care needs,” said Derik Flerlage, KDHE Director of the Bureau of Family Health and Bureau of Disease Control and Prevention. “Using KDHE’s aid-to-local model, we are proud to fund creative ideas to improve child care infrastructure as identified by those who know their needs best – Kansas local communities.”
A second round of Child Care Zones funding will be announced in early summer 2025, with applications due by late August. Communities interested in applying must represent at least two counties and are encouraged to subscribe to the All In For Kansas Kids newsletter for updates.
For more information about the Child Care Zones initiative, contact Jennifer Burgardt, Child Care Zones Coordinator, or visit the All In For Kansas Kids website.