Three rural organizations in western Colorado — a school district, a college, and a science museum — are preparing to launch or expand child care centers, backed by state grants aimed at supporting employer-based child care. These projects are among the last to benefit from federal COVID-19 relief funding.
The Buena Vista school district will expand its child care center, The Powerhouse children’s science museum in Durango will add three classrooms, and Colorado Mountain College in Garfield County will open a new child care facility. The Buena Vista center is set to open this fall, while the other two are expected to begin operations in fall 2026.
Altogether, the three projects will create about 330 new child care seats. This will help reduce the shortage of child care options in Colorado’s rural communities — a problem that has persisted for years.
The state’s employer-based child care grant program, which made these projects possible, is funded largely by federal COVID stimulus money. With that funding now exhausted, the program will come to an end.
Child care located in or near workplaces has several advantages. It can reduce employee turnover, shorten commutes, improve morale, and offer hours that better align with work schedules.
Over four rounds, the grant program awarded funding — typically between $500,000 and $800,000 per project — to more than 25 initiatives. These included child care centers at a ski resort in Steamboat Springs, a hospital in Grand Junction, and a school district in La Veta. In many cases, new child care spots were made available not only to employees but also to other families in the local area.
Many grant recipients began by participating in a program called the Design Lab. This initiative, operated by the business coalition Executives Partnering to Invest in Children (EPIC), helps employers understand how to launch on-site or nearby child care centers. From 2021 to 2024, the state contributed around $270,000 to support the program.
Lisa Roy, executive director of the Colorado Department of Early Childhood, highlighted the value of these efforts.
“The success of the Design Lab and employer-based child care model is proof that when businesses and government collaborate around family-focused solutions, we create lasting impact,” Roy said in a press release.
With the federal stimulus money gone, the future of similar state-funded child care programs remains uncertain. However, these projects show how strategic partnerships can lead to long-term improvements for working families in rural areas.
