Child Care Resources

Center for Inclusive Child Care (CCIC)

The CICC is a statewide network, funded by the MN Departments of Education and Human Services, which promotes and supports inclusive early childhood and school age programs and professionals. It provides training and consultation to child care professionals around a wide variety of inclusion support topic areas, including behavior challenges, disability perceptions, and specific disabilities. The website contains links to hundreds of disability specific sites and is a central resource for materials, products and information that promote and support inclusive care. It helps educators, trainers, and parent’s access information about early intervention, disability law, and state and national resources. The page is available in: Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. Mailing address: CCIC, Concordia University, 275 North Syndicate Street, St. Paul, MN 55104. Phone 651-603-6265.www.inclusivechildcare.org

Child Care Assistance Programs (CCAP)

Minnesota’s CCAP can help income-eligible families pay child care costs for children up to age 12 and for children with special needs up to age 14. These costs may be paid for qualifying families while to go to work, look for work, or attend school. Child Care assistance may be available to: 1) Families participating Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP); 2) Families that had an MFIP case close within the last 12 months; 3) Low-income families that may be eligible for the Basic Sliding Fee program. To qualify for CCAP, families must comply with child support enforcement if applicable for all children in the family. Care must be provided by a legal child care provider over the age of 18. All families will have a copayment based on their gross income and family size.

Families should fill out an application to find out if they qualify for help with their child care costs. Contact your county’s Department of Human Services (DHS) or the Child Care Resources and Referral (CCRR) Agency in your area to begin the application process. There is a fact sheet called “Do You Need Help Paying for Daycare (DHS-3551) on the DHS Website www.dhs.state.mn.us

Child Care Financial Aid Website

The Child Care Financial Aid website offers more information or help with child care for parents, employers and child care providers. Parents can use the Web site to estimate eligibility for tax credits, fee subsidies, scholarships and program options. It can also connect parents to tools for finding child care providers and learn about options for parenting education. There is also information on Head Start and Early Head Start. These are comprehensive child development programs that serve children from birth to age 5, pregnant women, and their families. They are child-focused programs and are aimed at increasing the school readiness of young children in low-income families. Employers can find information about offering child care benefits. www.childcarefinancialaid.org

Dependent Care Assistance Programs (DCAPs)

These are accounts set up by an employer allowing employees to contribute money through payroll deductions to pay for child care costs. The deduction lowers your taxable income. The maximum amount you can deduct per year is $5,000 per family.   It is important to carefully estimate child care expenses when deciding the annual amount to you direct to a DCAP, since any money you do no use by the end of the year is forfeited to the employer to offset administrative expenses. Minnesota Child Care Resource and Referral Network; 380 Lafayette Road, Suite 103; St. Paul MN 55107. To connect to your local Resource and Referral Agency: 888-291-9811; Twin Cities Area: 651-665-0150 http://mnchildcare.org/financial/employers.php

Minnesota Child Care Resource and Referral Network

The Minnesota Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies help parents find and select quality childcare that fits their individual needs. They also support quality child care in the state by offering comprehensive training to child care professionals. To find out more about child care in your county, contact the Minnesota Child Care Resources and Referral Network, Statewide Information and Referral Line (888-291-9811; Metro area: 651-665-0150) or go online at: http://www.mnchildcare.org

Post-Secondary Child Care Grant Program

This helps students who do not get MFIP (Minnesota Family Investment Program) with child care costs so parents can attend public colleges and universities, technical and community colleges, private colleges and some vocational schools. For more information, check with your school’s financial aid office. http://www.mheso.state.mn.us/mPg.cfm?pageID=348Minnesota Office of Higher Education; 1450 Energy Park Drive, Suite 350; St. Paul, MN 55108-5227; 651-642-0567; 800-657-3866.