GREGORY COUNTY
CHILD CARE
Report Overview
Gregory County received a grant from the South Dakota Governor's Office of Economic Development to address the child care crisis in our community.
In early 2024, Gregory County contracted with Klein Visioneering Group (KVG) and the South Dakota Afterschool Network (SDAN) to conduct a study on child care availability, affordability and accessibility in our community. We conducted separate surveys for parents, child care providers and employers.
Gregory County Child Care Landscape community report includes data from survey responses and recommendations. This report compiles valuable data collected from the survey responses, and provides specific recommendations for our community, employers, providers and policymakers.
DATA HIGHLIGHTS
IN GREGORY COUNTY
48.7%
Of parents reported missing work due to child care challenges.
Source: Gregory County Parent Child Care Survey, December 18, 2023 - January 26, 2024
$7,764
Families with children under age 5 reported spending annually for child care ($647 per month).
For families with school-age children, parents reported spending $3,128 ($261 per month).
Source: Gregory County Parent Child Care Survey, December 18, 2023 - January 26, 2024
ZERO
Licensed before & after centers
The current supply of child care specifically for school-age children (e.g., before & after care or afterschool care) meets zero percent of the need by working parents since there are no licensed school-age programs.
Source: Kids Count South Dakota, Licensed before and after school program capacity in South Dakota, 2023. Estimates for the number and percentage of school-age children age 5-14 in working families are calculated based on the Child Population by Age Group in South Dakota by County, Kids Count South Dakota and Children with All Available Parents in the Labor Force by Age by County, Kids Count South Dakota.
Child Care Assistance
Did you know you may qualify for child care assistance?
Currently, only 7% of eligible children in Gregory County receive child care assistance (that’s about 15 children)!
Using child care assistance when you qualify helps your community. When you enroll in child care assistance, your fee is paid to the licensed day care you are using. This helps providers charge the rates they need to provide livable wages and high-quality care without pricing out families who can afford it the least.
See if you qualify by visiting the South Dakota DSS website.
OUR PARTNERS
A special thank you to the following organizations that helped make this work possible:
