Case Study: Building Rural Child Care Sustainability
A Deepening Crisis
Minnesota’s child care crisis continues to deepen, threatening families, communities, and local economies. Across the state, child care centers—particularly those serving historically underserved communities—are struggling with workforce shortages, financial instability, and systemic funding gaps.
Recently, an article in the Minnesota Reformer highlighted the closure of the Hallie Q. Brown Community Center’s early learning program in St. Paul, exemplifying these challenges. Executive Director Benny Roberts faced staffing shortages and operational hurdles before making the difficult decision to shut down the center. This loss underscores the urgent need not only to expand child care capacity but also to retain existing child care spots, preventing further strain on families.
The situation is even more dire in Greater Minnesota, where rural providers face greater financial and workforce challenges. In Duluth, multiple child care centers have shuttered in the past year, exacerbating the strain on working families and employers. Rising operational costs, fragmented funding, and a critical shortage of qualified teachers have pushed many providers to the breaking point. Without targeted interventions, more closures will follow, further limiting access to affordable, high-quality child care.
The Getting Funding Ready Pilot (GFRP), developed by Rural Pathways and funded by the Northland Foundation in 2024, took a proactive approach to strengthening child care sustainability in rural Minnesota. Rather than focusing solely on expanding capacity, the initiative prioritized financial resilience and retention of existing nonprofit child care centers by addressing key operational and funding barriers.
Through tailored capacity-building support and strategic funding guidance, the program helped five child care providers in Northeastern Minnesota overcome challenges such as low enrollment, staff shortages, and rising costs. By equipping these centers with the tools needed to sustain operations, GFRP provides a replicable model for stabilizing child care ecosystems in rural and underserved communities.
Read the full case study here or listen here (12:10).
A Scalable Model for Rural Child Care
Key successes of the Getting Funding Ready Pilot include increased funding requests and secured financial support, diversified revenue streams for greater financial stability, and strengthened community engagement through enhanced stakeholder collaboration.
This case study highlights a replicable framework for reinforcing rural child care ecosystems, demonstrating the value of customized support, stakeholder involvement, and phased implementation in driving sustainable outcomes. To amplify impact, future initiatives should focus on regional program expansion to reach more rural providers and advocacy for policy reforms to address systemic challenges in rural child care.
Take Action Today!
If you’re a child care provider, funder, community leader, or economic developer looking to strengthen rural child care sustainability, Rural Pathways is here to help.
Contact us today to explore collaboration opportunities, access tailored support, and be part of the solution.
To learn more about our funding road maps, check this out.
Let’s build a stronger future for rural child care—together!
Citation: Anderson, Charity & Gilpin, Staci. (2025). Case Study: Building Rural Child Care Sustainability. Rural Pathways News.