Southwest Initiative Foundation (SWIF) invites southwest Minnesota child care providers and champions of child care to attend a listening session to provide feedback, ideas and concerns regarding the draft licensing standards for family child care and child care centers published by the Department of Human Services (DHS) as part of the Child Care Regulation Modernization Projects. These draft licensing standards were created in consultation with the National Association for Regulator Administration (NARA), Minnesota state agencies and child care development and health and safety professionals. The legislature directed DHS to work with NARA as part of DHS’ multi-year initiative to develop new licensing standards and they are now at the stage of collecting public comment.

One of SWIF’s priorities is supporting the growth and retention of child care programs in the region because we know access to quality child care is critical to community vitality and economic mobility. We are seeking the engagement and participation of child care providers and child care champions across the region to ensure the perspectives of southwest Minnesota are represented. All listening sessions will be led by Cheryl Glaeser of Achieve Consulting and will include a short presentation of the draft licensing standards. A majority of the time will be allocated to facilitated conversation and opportunity for attendees to provide feedback on the draft licensing standards. The feedback gathered during the SWIF listening sessions will be compiled into an executive summary and shared with DHS and southwest Minnesota legislators. DHS and NARA will incorporate this summary into their final analysis, which includes feedback from their own listening sessions, external sessions and the online survey. In partnership with DHS, NARA will produce a revised licensing standard draft, which will be presented at the 2025 legislative session.

• This event is in-person only at MinnWest Technology Campus in the Sibley Auditorium. To access the Sibley Auditorium, please park in Lot L and enter the 1800 Building through door #2. Click here to download a map of the MinnWest Technology Campus. 
• The session is free to attend, but registration is required. Please register by July 3 to help us plan for catering. 
• Registration begins at 5 p.m., dinner begins at 5:15 p.m. and the program will begin promptly at 6:00 p.m. Please note that you do not need to arrive before 5:45 p.m. if it doesn’t work for your schedule. Dinner is optional.

These listening sessions are intended for providers and child care champions who live and/or work in the region SWIF serves, which includes the counties of Big Stone, Chippewa, Cottonwood, Jackson, Kandiyohi, Lac qui Parle, Lincoln, Lyon, McLeod, Meeker, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone, Redwood, Renville, Rock, Swift and Yellow Medicine, as well as the Lower Sioux Indian Community and the Upper Sioux Community. If you do not live and/or work in this geography, we encourage you to provide feedback by:

• Completing the DHS online survey.
• Attending a listening session hosted by DHS. Click the tab “Get Involved” to view dates and locations.
• Emailing the Child Care Regulation Modernization Team directly at [email protected].
• Contacting your local Representative or Senator. Contact information can be found by visiting the Minnesota State Legislature website.

If you have questions about the listening sessions hosted by Southwest Initiative Foundation, please contact Briana Mumme at [email protected]. If you have questions specific to the draft revised licensing standards for family child care and child care centers, please email the Child Care Regulation Modernization team at [email protected].