Alex Milan Tracy for Underscore
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The dozens of independent, nonprofit and nonpartisan news organizations that make up the Rural News Network are developing the broadest news alliance reporting on rural America. These newsrooms are pursuing coverage that provides a more complete picture of what it means to live and work in these communities.
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LATEST NEWS FROM THE NETWORK
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Foundational work underway for child care special district
March 04, 2026
The special tax district will expand and improve access and affordability for early childhood care and education by leveraging funds from a 0.25% sales and use tax.
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Grassroots effort in Redfield turning old bank into day care
February 13, 2026
This story is part of an ongoing South Dakota News Watch series called Engage South Dakota using storytelling, crowdsourcing and community engagement to identify and share potentially replicable housing solutions.
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Inside the nightmare winter for Minnesota child care providers
January 22, 2026
There is uncertainty around half-a-billion dollars in federal funding, not to mention state scrutiny and frightening threats.
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Oklahoma child care group sues DHS over cuts to subsidies for school-age children
December 15, 2025
The Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) announced the removal of a $5 per day “add-on” to providers’ subsidy rate schedule – implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic – for children ages six and older.
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Area daycare closure sends families reeling
October 25, 2025
A nationwide child care shortage hits especially hard in rural communities like Litchfield County.
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A referendum in this Maine vacation town is all about child care
October 21, 2025
There are just 16 registered providers in Piscataquis County and none of them had open slots as of May.
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Sitka’s community baby shower strives to connect community members to resources
September 26, 2025
Sitka Tribe of Alaska and the Center for Community are hosting a community baby shower for all expectant parents and families with babies under one year.
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Formation of Colorado’s first special district funding childcare to be decided by tri-county voters
August 20, 2025
If approved, it would become Colorado’s first special taxing district meant to improve access to early-childhood care and education — another is being explored on the Front Range, but won’t likely make the 2025 ballot.
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A village for all ages: how one intergenerational campus is redefining aging and early learning in South Dakota
August 05, 2025
The Village of Harmony Hill now brings together a Catholic religious community, a nonprofit organization, senior living, and early childhood education—each woven into one layered, faith-rooted mission of holistic care.
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‘Nobody to Watch My Twins.’ Military Spouses Quit Jobs, Families Bust Budgets in Scramble for Child Care
July 25, 2025
Ripple effect continues months after a temporary hiring freeze crippled many DOD day cares.
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From Threats of a Mid-Year Closure, Northern Dutchess Day Care Completes A Remarkable Comeback
July 11, 2025
The announcement that the oldest licensed day care in the Hudson Valley was being put out of business came during the first week of the academic year.
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Kauaʻi Tackles Child Care Crisis With New Spaces And Baby-Friendly Workplaces
May 30, 2025
Solving the problem is seen as an important step in helping recruit and retain much-needed workers on the Garden Island. Initiatives could be models for the rest of the state.
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Oklahoma child care facilities face ‘burdensome’ licensing requirements, study finds
November 18, 2024
Oklahoma children outnumber the spots available in licensed child care facilities, and rural counties are feeling the burden of uneven access.
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Child care shortage isn’t a new problem; advocates decry decades of inadequate public money
September 11, 2024
Most states, including North Carolina, primarily support child care with federal funds and supplement it with state money. But neither federal nor state dollars have kept up with higher costs.
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Major federal ‘deficiency’ violations forced MACAA to shut down its free Head Start childcare centers
August 13, 2024
Charlottesville area’s only free Head Start program closed suddenly, leaving nearly 200 families without childcare.
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