Where to Find Quality Child Care in Cedar Valley, IA

Government, nonprofits and businesses in Iowa work to increase access to child care in Waterloo, Cedar Falls and the surrounding communities.

By Kathleen Grant on December 28, 2023

iStock.com/Caia Image/Robert Daly

Across the nation, overly expensive child care services are hurting worker productivity, limiting career opportunities and keeping many out of the workforce entirely, which in turn robs employers of valuable talent. Iowa is trying to do something about that, launching innovative child care initiatives that give parents better access to resources and more affordable options.

Here’s how these efforts are improving access to child care in Waterloo, Cedar Falls and the surrounding communities of the Cedar Valley.

On the state level, a new Child Care Office was established in 2023 within the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services. The office oversees several programs that focus on supporting Iowa families, delivering quality child care, and attracting and retaining child care workforce. 

The state has also established Future Ready Iowa Child Care Challenge grants to create more local child care facilities. 

Improving Child Care in Cedar Valley

In the Cedar Valley, facilities that have received this grant include Cedar Valley Child Care Center (Black Hawk County), Families First Learning Center & Childcare (Bremer County), Grundy Community Preschool & Childcare Center (Grundy County) and Little Island Child Care Center (Buchanan County). 

Another grant recipient was Little Sprouts Children’s Center in New Hampton (Chickasaw County). Originally called Great Plays Daycare, the center had been housed in an old Pizza Hut restaurant in need of repairs and more space. The center moved to a new location in 2022, thanks to federal, state and local grants and an array of community support. 

“We were fortunate to locate to a facility in our community with a spacious education wing,” says Tammy Robinson, City of New Hampton economic development director. “The new location came with a remodeling cost of over $1 million and increased the capacity by 43 kids, and it was renamed Little Sprouts Children’s Center.” 

Effective Strategies 

Nonprofits are also helping to fill the void. The Iowa Women’s Foundation has awarded grants to Discoveries Learning Center (Bremer County), Sumner Daycare & Learning Center (Bremer County) and Waverly Child Care & Preschool (Bremer County). 

Another organization offering help is Child Care Resource & Referral of Northeast Iowa in Waterloo. 

“We provide consultation, technical assistance and professional development to all regulated programs,” says Mary Janssen, regional director of Child Care Resource & Referral of Northeast Iowa, which serves child care programs across 19 counties. 

The organization works to bring different sectors together to address child care situations. A Child Care Coalition of community members works to seek partnerships and programs that can benefit families. 

“We also partner with the Iowa Women’s Foundation and with Grow Cedar Valley to assess the child care needs of businesses,” Janssen says. 

VGM Group

Increased Capacity 

UnityPoint Health has received a $2 million grant to build a child care facility at Allen Hospital. With the funding, Allen Hospital plans to partner with Cedar Valley Kids to construct an 8,400-square-foot facility on 2.76 acres of donated land in the North Crossing development. It is anticipated to create 100 child care slots, with 60 of those designated for UnityPoint Health team members. 

In addition, VGM Group Inc. formally announced plans to add an on-site child care center at its headquarters in Waterloo.

The center, scheduled to open in late 2023, will provide space for up to 66 children ages 6 weeks to 5 years. 

“At VGM, most of our workforce is female who have reported difficulties in finding reliable, quality child care for several years now,” says Cassi Price, VGM Group vice president of corporate projects. 

Price says the company recently put together a team dedicated to establishing the center for working parents at VGM. 

“In almost serendipitous fashion, Future Ready Iowa released its Iowa Child Care Business Incentive Grants, and we received a grant for about $1.3 million to get the VGM Child Care Center developed and set to operate long term,” Price says. “We needed to show our female workforce that if they choose to grow their families while also growing their careers, we are here to support them in any way we can.” 

– Staff Writer Kevin Litwin contributed to this article.