ARPA Childcare Service Provider Grants

Childcare Scholarship Program

The city is making childcare assistance program funding available to support employed Scranton residents that meet the income requirements for impacted and disproportionately impacted households in Scranton. 

This program is designed to assist eligible households with reimbursement for childcare services to provide economic relief and support to families that need affordable childcare services. The awards will provide reimbursements for childcare upon providing evidence of receipts or proof of payment and employment. Costs for past childcare services may be eligible for reimbursement.

To be eligible, past proof of payment for affordable childcare service expenses must be post March 3, 2021, and proof of employment during that same period of expenditure must be provided. 

Childcare Provider Wage Boost Program

The city is offering childcare service provider wage boost grant funding to support operational and licensed childcare service providers located within impacted and disproportionately impacted areas within the city. Challenges accessing or affording childcare have been widespread during the pandemic, affecting many jurisdictions and populations across the country.

This program is designed to assist eligible childcare service providers with funding to help bolster, support, and preserve their existing programs in the form of a wage boost grant. This grant will allow these service providers to help retain or hire new employees at competitive rates to meet the demands the pandemic has created on the residents within Scranton.

If awarded, the service provider will be able to submit reimbursement requests to SACF to cover cost increases associated with either 1) increasing the hourly wage rates of existing employees, or 2) hiring new employees to meet increased childcare demands.  The program is established to reimburse the first-year wage boost costs at 100% and the second-year wage boost costs at 50%, but only up to the grant cap amount of $50,000.

Affordable Childcare Eligibility Requirements

1. Be currently licensed as a Child Care Home or Child Care Center with a Provisional or Operating license, or be approved to offer after-school programs through the local school district
2. Be in good standing with, and have a current Child Care Subsidy enrollment
3. Requested funding must be used to improve the quality of the program/curriculum of the childcare

Affordable Childcare Programs

The City is seeking applications for Childcare and/or after-school program funding. Funding may be applied for and used to assist childcare and early learning centers with services and expenses necessitated by the Pandemic.

Funding may also be used to improve the quality of the childcare or after-school program curriculum, coordination, and availability citywide.