Bringing Northeast Tennessee’s Childcare Solutions to the Statewide Conversation

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When communities come together around a shared challenge, creative solutions can emerge. That message was on full display August 28, as more than 400 leaders from across Tennessee gathered in Nashville for the Tennessee Childcare Solutions Summit.

The statewide gathering focused on a growing recognition that childcare is more than a family issue — it is workforce and economic infrastructure. Access to quality, affordable childcare impacts children and families, employers, and the strength of communities across Tennessee.

Representing First Tennessee Development District (FTDD), Andria Smith helped bring Northeast Tennessee’s experience to that conversation. Smith, along with Sullivan County Schools Director, Chuck Carter and Greater Kingsport Family YMCA CEO, Steve Shives, participated in a panel focused on how public-private partnerships can expand childcare supply. The discussion featured four Tennessee communities using existing assets in creative ways, including Sullivan County Schools, to address their local childcare needs.

Sullivan County’s approach is a strong example of the role collaboration can play in addressing a complex community challenge.

FTDD helped bring partners together and played a key role in supporting the successful award of a $1.43 million New Care Partnership Grant from the Tennessee Department of Human Services, structured as a 50% match.

“We were the convener, and we brought the data and the grant support for Sullivan County’s approach,” Smith explained during the panel.

Before pursuing funding, FTDD conducted a childcare needs assessment and follow-up survey to better understand the community’s needs. That information helped identify where demand was greatest and which age groups were most in need of services.

“We ran a childcare needs assessment, then a follow-up survey. That is what pinpointed where demand was highest and which ages to serve — it is why there are two centers on opposite sides of the county instead of one in the middle,” Smith said.

The project also demonstrates the power of braided funding — bringing together multiple existing resources rather than relying on one organization or one source of funding. Sullivan County met much of its grant match through existing resources, including classroom space, custodial services, and meals through school nutrition programs. Northeast State Community College’s instructional investment for emerging Early Childhood Educators also contributed, while Perkins Career and Technical Education dollars and regional workforce funds helped support the educator pipeline.

The result was a collaborative approach involving four partners and multiple funding streams — without a new appropriation.

For FTDD, the Sullivan County project illustrates exactly why development districts can be valuable partners when communities are tackling complicated regional challenges.

From conducting the initial needs assessment to identifying funding opportunities and helping coordinate partners, FTDD helped keep the project moving forward. The process took approximately 18 months from initial outreach to grant award — demonstrating the time, coordination, and persistence often required to turn an idea into a funded project.

Smith emphasized that development districts can help fill an important gap when no single organization has the staff capacity to coordinate every piece of a project.  “Every county in Tennessee has a development district,” Smith noted, encouraging communities interested in exploring childcare solutions to start the conversation with their local development district.

The Tennessee Child Care Solutions Summit highlighted examples from across the state showing that there is no single solution to Tennessee’s childcare challenges. Communities are finding opportunities through schools, employers, local governments, developers, childcare providers, workforce organizations, and other community partners.

For FTDD, being part of that conversation was an opportunity to share what Northeast Tennessee is already accomplishing — and to demonstrate how data, collaboration, existing resources, and strong partnerships can turn a community need into a practical solution.

Andria’s participation in the Summit helped put Sullivan County’s innovative approach on a statewide stage while highlighting the important role FTDD can play as a convener, resource, and partner for communities working to strengthen their workforce and support families.

*This project is funded through a grant with the Tennessee Department of Human Services and Greater Kingsport Family Young Men’s Christian Association, Inc.