HUNTSVILLE, AL – Huntsville has been regarding by many for its unique business community. Both visitors to the city and residents alike agree that community development and support are key parts of the image that makes up the city’s economy.

Yesterday, the Community Foundation of Greater Huntsville and the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber announced three new grant-funded initiatives that help reaffirm that image.

The new initiatives focus on addressing the need for Childcare, which has been consistently identified as a critical workforce challenge. These efforts aim to support and increase the industry.

The first two initiatives are funded by the Community Foundation of Greater Huntsville’s Women’s Philanthropy Society (WPS) – established for women by women – which seeks to support strategic solutions addressing systemic issues facing women and families in our community. This year, the members of the WPS selected economic empowerment as the focus area for their annual high impact grants, and during their spring Community Conversation, childcare was identified as the top priority.

The WPS Grants Committee selected Huntsville Housing Authority’s Childcare Project and Heart of the Valley YMCA’s Pathways to Solutions to each receive a $50,000 grant. Both programs are addressing the critical shortage of trained childcare workers and childcare openings.

“The Women’s Philanthropy Society has chosen to plant their flag on the childcare issue this year,” said Melissa Thompson, CEO/President of the Community Foundation of Greater Huntsville. “We know that this community does not shy away from tackling big issues, so we are proud to provide financial resources to help address this critical need.”

For the third initiative, the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber was awarded a Workforce Invest Grant by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to support collaborative efforts in training and education for family childcare providers.

This project aims to improve the quality and availability of childcare in Huntsville by creating new in-home family childcare programs and enhancing existing ones. The Chamber will be partnering with TOOTRiS, the nation’s largest childcare platform, to execute the program.

The project has two main components: 1) the establishment of four new in-home family childcare programs, each with a capacity of six children, and 2) enhancing educational quality for 12 existing in-home family childcare programs with developmental supplies and resources, and training through state and national certification efforts.

“We’re excited to partner with the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber to help address the critical need for Child Care options for working parents and their employers,” said Alessandra Lezama, CEO of TOOTRiS. “Our technology platform and training will enable these entrepreneurs to streamline their operations and provide high-quality Child Care services to families in our community.”

The program is an innovative initiative that will provide funding and technical assistance to individuals interested in starting or enhancing in-home family childcare providers. They will benefit from training, licensing support, and upgraded materials and equipment, which will enable them to offer higher quality care. TOOTRiS will work with the Chamber to provide training, technology, and support to these entrepreneurs, as well as to connect them with the working families in Huntsville who are in need of childcare services.

In the Huntsville/Madison County region, there are currently over 10,000 children in the region who are in need of childcare services, and only 6,000 licensed childcare spaces available. The TVA grant will help the Chamber to address this critical need by providing funding and resources to support the development of new childcare facilities and micro-enterprises.

“We are thrilled to receive this grant from TVA and to partner with TOOTRiS to expand childcare in the Huntsville community,” said Lyndsay Ferguson, Vice President of Workforce at the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber. “This program will not only help to meet the growing demand for childcare services, but also provide opportunities for aspiring entrepreneurs to start their own childcare businesses and contribute to the economic growth of our community.”

For more information, please visit hsvchamber.org.