Wyo. Code R. 053-0022-3
Effective Date: 09/26/2025 to Current
Rule Type: Current Rules & Regulations
Reference Number: 053.0022.3.09262025
Section 1. Authority. The Department of Workforce Services (DWS) is authorized under the DWS Act W.S. § 9-2-2601(c), W.S. § 9-2-2602(b)(vi), W.S. § 14-4-204, and the Wyoming Administrative Procedures Act, W.S. §16-3-101 et seq. to promulgate rules and regulations to be used by the DWS in the discharge of its functions.
Section 2. Purpose. The WY Quality Counts Educational Development Program provides funding for training of owners and staff of child care facilities through the use of Child Development Associate (CDA) Scholarships to encourage individuals working in the child care industry to enroll in and complete formal education that will enhance the quality of child care provided by the industry.
Section 3. Eligible Coursework. The Child Development Associate (CDA) scholarship shall only be used for the Child Development Associate (CDA) credential administered by the Council for Professional Recognition and coursework is approved by the Wyoming Statewide Training and Resource System.
(a) CDA scholarship funds shall only be used for costs associated with the following: (i) Advisor fees; (ii) Books; (iii) CDA assessment fee; (iv) CDA credential coursework; (v) CDA credential renewal fee; (vi) Additional CDA credential fees, if required by the child care facility; or (vii) Other required fees as approved by the WY Quality Counts program manager. (b) CDA scholarship funds shall be paid directly to the approved CDA training provider.
(a) An eligible applicant shall be:
(i) An owner or staff member working for a minimum of fifteen (15) hours per week in a child care facility as defined in W.S. § 14-4-101(a)(vi)(D) or (K); and
(ii) In good standing with the WY Quality Counts Educational Development Program.
(a) Applicants shall complete and submit an official DWS Child Development Associate (CDA) Scholarship application form for the program in which the applicant is requesting funding.
(b) Applications shall be submitted at least forty-five (45) days prior and not more than one hundred and ten (110) days prior to the scheduled start date of the program.
Once an application has been approved by the WY Quality Counts program manager, the applicant shall adhere to the following requirements of the scholarship:
(i) Enter into a written agreement as set forth by DWS for the duration of the program;
(ii) Sign an agreement to the repayment and mandatory employment requirements in accordance with Section 8. Mandatory Employment Requirements and Section 9. Termination from the CDA Scholarship Program and Repayment Requirement.
(iii) Maintain continuous enrollment during the duration of the program;
(iv) Complete and submit a DWS-recognized training survey form no later than forty-five (45) days after completion of the coursework;
(v) Achieve satisfactory performance;
(vi) Provide proof of completion and a copy of the CDA credential no later than forty-five (45) days from the time the information is available; and
(vii) Remain in good standing with both the approved CDA program and the WY Quality Counts Educational Development Program.
(a) The participant shall agree to work for or contract with a child care facility for a mandatory employment period of five hundred (500) hours for each CDA credential, CDA credential renewal, or second credential, within a twelve (12) month period.
(i) The mandatory employment period shall begin:
(A) The month immediately after the completion of the CDA coursework; or
(B) If the child care facility is closed during the summer, the first day the child care facility reopens in the fall.
(b) If the participant is laid off due to lack of work, the scholarship participant shall obtain employment with another child care facility and complete any remaining mandatory employment period hours.
(a) The scholarship participant shall be terminated from the CDA scholarship program if the participant fails to adhere to the following requirements:
(i) Maintain enrollment;
(ii) Remain in good standing with the CDA program and the WY Quality Counts Educational Development Program;
(iii) Meet performance requirements;
(iv) Provide verification documents on time;
(v) Successfully obtain the CDA credential; or
(vi) Meet the mandatory employment requirements.
(b) Any CDA scholarship participant who is terminated from the scholarship program is required to repay the portion of funds that were paid for the CDA on their behalf to DWS, to include costs incurred in the collection, unless a Waiver of Repayment has been approved by the WY Quality Counts program manager.
(i) A Waiver of Repayment may be approved if the scholarship participant submits a request, in writing, to the WY Quality Counts program manager that outlines one of the following reasons the scholarship participant was unable to adhere to the requirements:
(A) Experienced a major medical occurrence;
(B) Activated for military service or has a spouse activated for or relocated in military service;
(C) Deceased, in which case a representative for the scholarship participant may submit the written request; or (D) Encounters an emergency or hardship, involving themselves or an immediate family member that reasonably precludes the ability to complete the approved coursework.
(c) Repayments due to DWS shall be made, or a repayment agreement shall be signed, within thirty (30) days of the date the notice of termination was sent from the WY Quality Counts program manager to the scholarship recipient.
(i) The WY Quality Counts program manager shall send the notice of termination via electronic copy to the participant’s email address on file, if available, and via physical copy to the participant’s mailing address provided on the application.
(d) Failure to repay scholarship funds or sign a repayment agreement within the thirty (30) days of the notice of termination, the WY Quality Counts program manager shall refer the case to a collection agency for appropriate legal action and place the individual on the list for individuals that are not in good standing with the WY Quality Counts Educational Development Program.
Section 10. Scholarship Program Limitations. The CDA participant shall be eligible for up to two thousand three hundred dollars ($2,300) for allowable costs per CDA program.