Colorado Springs Chamber & EDC Awarded Grant to Address Local Child Care Challenges
(Colorado Springs, CO) – The Colorado Springs Chamber & Economic Development Corporation is pleased to announce its selection as a recipient of $20,000 in grant funding through the Child Care Access Alliance, a statewide partnership launched by the Colorado Chamber Foundation, Gary Community Ventures and Executives Partnering to Invest in Children (EPIC).
As one of seven chambers of commerce selected through a competitive statewide application process, the Colorado Springs Chamber & EDC will use the funding to better understand and address regional child care challenges impacting employers, working families and economic competitiveness across El Paso County.
The grant will support employer engagement, workforce impact analysis and the development of business-driven child care solutions through the Chamber & EDC’s leadership within the Family Friendly Initiative (FFI), a cross-sector coalition born out of the work of 110 Summit delegates representing business, education, faith-based, government, health and human services, military, nonprofit, media and child care sectors. The initiative was created to mobilize regional collaboration and expand access to affordable, high-quality child care throughout El Paso County.
“The Family Friendly Initiative was created because leaders across our region recognized that solving the child care challenge requires collective action,” said SherryLynn Boyles, Chair of the Colorado Springs Chamber & EDC Government Affairs Council and Executive Director of Joint Initiatives for Youth + Families. “Through FFI, business, nonprofit, education and public sector partners have already built strong momentum around child care as a workforce and economic competitiveness issue. This grant allows us to deepen employer engagement, quantify the real business impacts of child care instability and identify practical, employer-driven solutions that help businesses attract and retain talent while supporting children and families in our community.”
Through the initiative, the Chamber & EDC and its partners will conduct employer surveys, executive roundtables and industry listening sessions to better understand how child care gaps affect workforce participation and business operations across sectors including healthcare, defense, manufacturing, hospitality and education.
The project also will explore employer-led strategies such as child care stipends, provider partnerships, flexible scheduling models and workforce pipeline solutions for early childhood educators. Findings will ultimately inform a regional employer-led child care strategy and implementation framework while advancing the Family Friendly Initiative’s broader goals around public awareness, workforce development, policy advocacy, sustainable funding and cross-sector partnerships.
“Child care is a critical workforce issue, and we’re proud to partner with organizations like the Colorado Springs Chamber & EDC to address it at the local level,” said Rachel Beck, Executive Director of the Colorado Chamber Foundation. “By working together to expand access, we can support working families, strengthen early childhood development and build a stronger talent pipeline for Colorado.”
“We’re excited to partner with chambers across Colorado and lift up their leadership in driving solutions to child care challenges,” said Steffanie Clothier, Director of School Readiness with Gary Community Ventures. “This work will spark innovation at the local level and help shape what’s possible across the state.”
The Colorado Springs Chamber & EDC will work in partnership with Joint Initiatives, regional employers, workforce and economic development organizations, public sector leaders and child care providers throughout the project period.
Regional insights will contribute to a comprehensive statewide report that aims to provide a clearer understanding of Colorado’s child care challenges and identify proposed solutions. The grantees’ work is expected to conclude by the spring of 2027, with the statewide report to follow.
Affordable and accessible child care is essential to Colorado’s economic competitiveness. The Colorado Chamber Foundation’s Vision 2033 identifies workforce shortages as one of the state’s most urgent challenges, with employers across industries citing the high cost and limited availability of child care as a major barrier to attracting and retaining talent.
Colorado’s child care challenges have broad-reaching impacts. The state ranks among the most expensive in the nation for care, with the average annual cost of child care being $20,978 for an infant and $17,479 for a toddler. At the same time, Colorado faces a critical shortage of licensed child care seats, with more than half of the state considered a child care desert. Altogether, the lack of affordable and accessible child care results in an estimated $2.7 billion loss to Colorado’s economy each year.
Learn more about the Child Care Access Alliance and its work across Colorado here.