Arlington Childcare reports full enrollment, applies for new child-infrastructure grant and seeks county support

Ashley Wales, director of Arlington Childcare, told Gilliam County Court the center is approaching its first year of operation, reached full enrollment of 16 children this summer with a waiting list, and is renewing its license.

Wales said the center planned to apply the same day for a newly opened child-infrastructure grant and that staff hope to add an additional classroom or a second building to separate older children from infants and toddlers. “We learned a lot this summer with having mixed age groups…we need separation,” she said.

Wales said the center had received several small donations from local businesses and a $5,000 award from a business class she attended. She also said some families had children on the waiting list because infants had not yet been born; she did not provide a specific waiting-list count at the meeting.

County members asked whether the center had applied for operational support grants; Wales said she missed the window for some operational support opportunities and had instead focused on the infrastructure grant and local fundraising. The court offered to provide a letter of support for the infrastructure application.

Wales said the center’s capacity is 16 and that summer enrollment was full; the center has some children who attend on Fridays from neighboring communities and plans holiday fundraisers.

The court praised the center’s role in the community and agreed to support the grant application with a letter to accompany the submission. No county funding commitment was announced at the meeting.