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FAIRMONT - With a shortage of around 200 childcare spots in Martin County, Faribault and Martin County Health and Human Services (FMCHS) are doing all they can to bridge that gap.
While Building Blocks in Fairmont provides a large chunk of the childcare in the area, there are 45 in-home daycares in Martin County, each of which can take care of up to 12 kids per one adult. Of these 45, 18 are outside of Fairmont, covering areas like Trimont, Truman and Ceylon that don't have day care centers.
Audrey Schultz serves as the child care licenser for FMCHS, and works on each step of the process for those who are already providers and those looking to become one.
"I receive all applications that come in for anybody interested in being licensed," she said. "I go through the licensing process with them, background studies, home checks, reference checks, all those things. For currently licensed providers, I do their annual visits. Each licensed provider within our two counties has to have one unannounced home visit each year to monitor compliance. I also do any complaints or investigations for currently licensed providers, or complaints or investigations on unlicensed providers."
At a recent Sherburn City Council meeting, in-home daycares were a major topic. Two had recently closed, leaving only two left, and one is looking to retire. Ceylon and Granada also only have one to two providers for the entire town while others, like Dunnell, have no listed daycares at all.
Since Schultz started in February 2026, she said the decrease in those who have closed and the increase in in-home daycares she has been able to help open has been even. Regardless, that 200-child gap means Schultz wants to see more child care supply across the board.
"Fairmont needs more, but also Welcome, Trimont, Sherburn, all those lower-populated satellite areas," she said. "They have people who need to work as well, and maybe they don’t come to Fairmont. Maybe they need daycare in Trimont or Sherburn. I would really like to see several open up in each town."
Because of this gap, far-reaching issues are created for individuals and families.
"Parents are forced to stay home with their kids," Schultz said. "Somebody who has a career that wanted to progress is no longer able to do that. Additionally, you have grandparents who are filling that gap. You see a lot more unlicensed daycare, people providing care for more than one unrelated family, which is not legal in the state of Minnesota. Parents are doing what they have to do right now to still work because in this economy, you need two incomes, so it’s hard."
The biggest challenge Schultz said they have had in recruiting more in-home daycares is having people able to make that jump from a regular job to owning their own business.
"I think the jump is scary," she said. "I think plenty of [people] would love to stay at home, but I think it’s really scary to make the jump from having that steady paycheck to having to fill those spots to keep yourself open. If we had the extra spots, there wouldn’t really be an issue with getting them filled. Competition is good as well, ensuring that you have a good quality in-home child care is essential in this business, too."
In-home daycares are coveted for multiple reasons, including a lower provider-to-child ratio and a family-feeling environment. With most things, cost is also a factor, which Schultz said can also cause a gap between what providers charge and what families are able to pay. On average, childcare costs $135-$300 a week in Martin County.
"That’s definitely a contributing factor for sure," she said. "These in-home providers understand. People have to make a living as well, so they don’t want to raise their rates because the families are struggling, but they’re struggling in turn."
Minnesota does have a Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) which can help families with the cost of childcare. On top of ensuring the family qualifies to receive CCAP, they also have to be able to find one that takes it, as Schultz said it is a lot more paperwork for the provider. Of the 45 in-home daycares in Martin County, only around 20 take CCAP.
FMCHS is taking multiple steps to address the gaps. Schultz said they have been working on child care appreciation, so current providers know how meaningful and crucial their work is to parents and the overall economy of Martin County. They have also partnered with the Martin County Economic Development Authority to work on solutions to get more providers and attract more interest.
There is also an open house scheduled for 6 to 8 p.m. on Oct. 8 which invites those interested in learning more about opening their own child care, as well as being a provider appreciation event. A location has not been selected yet for this event.
A webpage has also recently been updated at fmchs.com/index.php/services/licensing-services, which is a curated and expansive list of information and resources for people who are already providers and people who are curious about becoming one, as well as information for parents.
For those interested in potentially opening their own in-home daycare, Schultz urged them to fill out an application and meet with her.
"Let me go over a bunch of stuff with you, and if you decide you want to move forward, that’s great," she said. "If you don’t, it’s not for you, that’s okay too. This is my job. This is what I was hired to do, to come meet with you and try to expand our opportunities around here and support our current ones."
For questions or more information, call 507-618-5399 or email Audrey.Schultz@FMCHS.com.