Build Learn Grow Scholarship

After the COVID-19 pandemic, the state of Indiana established the Build, Learn, and Grow Scholarship program in April 2021.

This program offers financial assistance to Indiana families in order to assist children in gaining access to early childhood education and out-of-school care that is of a high quality.

Since it was first offered, the scholarship program has been made available to approximately 16,000 children and their families, and more than 1,700 service providers have reaped the benefits of increased participation.

As the program comes to an end, Indiana is working to ensure that vulnerable scholarship families continue to receive support.

To do this, the state is temporarily expanding the assistance provided by the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) and encouraging service providers to assist families in a more comprehensive manner by using recent funds from the Stabilization Grant.

This award provides ongoing help for the families of scholarship recipients.

As the Build, Learn, and Grow scholarships come to an end, many people are afraid that hard-working families won’t be able to afford to pay for high-quality care once it becomes necessary for them to do so.

In response to this demand, the Office of Early Childhood and Out-of-School Learning (OECOSL) is extending temporary eligibility for the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) to more than 1,500 scholarship families whose incomes are at or below 85% of the state median income.

These families are enrolled in participating school-age programs.

The goal of this initiative is to support families in their efforts to continue working while also maintaining their children’s enrollment in school.

The local CCDF eligibility offices will review and process the basic application form that service providers should work with eligible families to complete and then submit on their behalf as early as is practically possible.

Members of the family under the age of 13 who have siblings are also eligible for assistance from the CCDF.

Instructions on how to sign up for this scholarship

• You can register a free account at ilead.in.gov or log in if you already have one.
• Simply select the green icon labeled “Start Your Indiana Learning Path.”
• Select “Course” from the list of options located on the left side of the screen.
• You can start the course and register for it by searching for “Build, Learn, Grow Scholarship Fund Information Session.”

Letter to interested candidates

Providers of Early Care and Education in the State of Indiana,

The Build, Learn, and Grow Scholarship Fund in Indiana is almost ready to begin accepting applications from families all around the state.

In order to be eligible to enroll these families or accept the scholarships from the state of Indiana, you are required to register for and complete the “Build, Learn, Grow Scholarship Fund Information Session” in the Indiana Learning Paths program.

Only then will you be able to enroll these families or accept the scholarships.

What does it mean to be awarded the Build, Learn, and Grow Scholarship?

The state of Indiana is providing financial assistance in the form of scholarships to families who fall into the category of essential workers and have incomes that fall within the qualifying range

(128% to 250% of the federal poverty level) to cover up to 80% of their child care costs for children ages 0 to 12.

This encompasses early care and education, as well as educational opportunities during the summer and before and after school.

For illustration purposes, a family of four that earns $66,000 annually is considered eligible for a Build, Learn, and Grow scholarship.

You can finish the information session whenever it is most convenient for you because it is open around the clock and is a prerequisite for programs that desire to accept scholarship monies.

You will learn about the scholarship procedure, how to determine whether or not a family is eligible for assistance, and the process for submitting a claim for reimbursement to support the children of important workers in your program during the course of the thirty minute session.

The deadline for the Build Learn Grow Scholarship

The application deadline for families that are eligible to receive school-age and summer scholarships is on August each scholarship year.

Apply for coverage as soon as you can to prevent any breaks in coverage for your family.

Note that the submission period for early childhood scholarship applications has already passed.

The eligibility offices of the CCDF are currently reviewing the applications that have been received.

What to note about this scholarship

Families and providers should prepare themselves for a delay in receiving feedback regarding their application because of the high volume of requests currently being processed.

Contact the eligibility office for your region to obtain the most recent information regarding the processing of an application.

Apply here for Build Learn Grow Scholarship

Build Learn Grow Scholarship Frequently Asked Questions

Here are suitable answers to some of the questions commonly asked by interested candidates:

Go through them to get answers to any question you may have.

1.    How long does it take for application to be accepted?

For programs geared toward students in elementary school through high school, the application deadline has been extended to Friday, August 5, 2022.

It is strongly recommended that providers turn in applications for families early in order to prevent coverage gaps.

2.  How long does it take before families get response?

After an application has been submitted on a family’s behalf by a provider, the family should expect to hear back from a CCDF eligibility office within ten business days.

Please be aware that the CCDF eligibility offices are currently working through a significant backlog of application submissions.

It is important for families and providers to understand that there may be a delay in receiving a decision regarding their voucher request.

3.   When I need a help, who can I contact?

If providers have issues regarding the application, they should look at the provider guide to the application.

Contact the SPARK Help Desk at (800) 299-1627, via email at help@indianaspark.com, or via live chat on indianaspark.com or in the My SPARK Learning Lab if you have additional questions, require assistance answering family questions, or have a large number of applications to submit.

You can also submit your questions via live chat on indianaspark.com. It is possible for service providers who receive a significant number of applications to make a request for onsite support in order to assist families and speed up the application process.

More FAQ