Summit County expands childcare scholarship program

Child at daycare. Photo: Tanaphong Toochinda via Unsplash

Program to provide financial assistance to families with children up to kindergarten age

SUMMIT COUNTY, Utah — Summit County’s childcare needs-based scholarship program has been expanded to cover all residents and workers, enabling more families to access affordable and quality childcare.

This childcare expansion is a collaboration between Summit County, Park City Municipal, and Upwards (the largest childcare network in the U.S.). The program will provide financial assistance to families with children up to kindergarten age. In addition, the program will offer regulated childcare providers incentives to support them in providing care for children enrolled in the DWS Childcare Assistance program in Summit County.

The pilot program in Park City has helped 34 working families and supported 17 childcare providers.

“Expanding the Childcare Scholarship Program to Summit County reflects a powerful community effort to address local childcare challenges for families,” Starr Mastrodonato, program manager at Upwards, said in a news release. “Upwards is excited to build on Park City’s initial success and contribute our technology and expertise to support more families and empower childcare providers across the region. We believe this collaboration has the potential to strengthen the childcare ecosystem in Summit County, creating a more stable workforce and positively impacting the local economy.”

Upwards will distribute scholarships and childcare provider incentives on a first-come, first-served basis each month. Eligibility criteria and how to sign up are available at the Upwards website.