Child Care Advocacy and Action Guide
This guide was created for rural Minnesota communities because child care isn’t working for families, providers, or educators.
It’s time for lasting change.
Why Advocate?
The current child care model is broken. It relies on families paying unaffordable rates, providers operating on razor-thin margins, and child care workers being chronically underpaid. While these challenges exist statewide, their impact is especially acute in rural Minnesota. Rural areas face longer waitlists, fewer licensed providers, limited infant care options, and geographic isolation that compounds staffing and sustainability barriers.
Rural areas have also been significantly impacted by the loss of family child care providers. Minnesota has seen a 50% decline in licensed family child care homes over the past 20 years. At the same time, rural centers often operate below full capacity due to workforce shortages, even as they remain vital to local families. Rigid staffing licensure requirements limit flexibility, making it harder for small centers to adapt and remain open, particularly during times of illness, staff turnover, or fluctuating enrollment.
Minnesota's rural families, providers, and early educators face increasing pressure from limited access, high costs, and staffing shortages. Despite some recent policy wins, including stabilization grants and emerging tax credit proposals, rural communities remain underserved.
This guide will help you:
Share your story with legislators
Advocate for policy and funding solutions
Organize your community for action
We’ve seen progress. Now we need to ensure that funding, reforms, and support systems reflect the experiences of rural Minnesotans and center their voices.
How to Take Action
1. Contact Your Legislators
Find your Minnesota State Senator and Representative.
Sample Email Subject: Support Sustainable Child Care in Greater Minnesota
Sample Introduction: Hello, my name is [Your Name], and I live in [Town], ZIP Code [#####]. I’m reaching out to thank you for your efforts to address the child care crisis and to ask for your continued leadership to support rural solutions.
2. Submit Testimony to the MN Legislature
Testify in-person, virtually, or submit written comments. For updates, follow:
3. Join a Grassroots Movement
Kids Count On Us, an initiative by ISAIAH, brings together over 600 family child care providers and centers across the state who advocate for equitable early education policies.
They’ve been instrumental in raising provider voices and advancing reforms rooted in racial, economic, and geographic equity.
Moms First is a national grassroots initiative advocating for systemic change in child care, paid leave, and economic justice. They work with communities across Minnesota to build momentum for bold policies that center working families and caregivers.
Your Story Matters
Whether you're a parent, program operator, child care worker, or business owner, decision-makers need to hear what’s happening in Greater Minnesota. Use the following table to identify relevant story prompts and aligned policy priorities for your sector:
Policy Solutions That Matter
Let lawmakers know what solutions you support:
Increased funding for the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP)
Permanent and increased stabilization grants (CCRI/C3)
Better CCAP reimbursement rates for rural providers
Implementation of Section 45F tax credits for employers offering child care benefits
Workforce compensation strategies to retain and recruit educators
Start-up support for rural and BIPOC-led programs
Family engagement funding that reflects community needs and culture
Partner Organizations and Resources
Kids Count On Us / ISAIAH
Grassroots advocacy by child care providers and parents across MinnesotaMoms First
National movement supporting economic justice for families and caregiversMinnesota’s Future
Statewide coalition advocating for early childhood education investmentChild Care Aware of Minnesota
Resources for families, providers, and communitiesMinnesota Association for the Education of Young Children
Professional development and policy advocacy