Foundation Launches Campaign to Provide Retention Bonus to Childcare Workers in Watauga County
BACCF continues the tradition of linking the High Country business community to ongoing support for the childcare industry and its critical workforce
The Boone Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation (BACCF) announced a fundraising campaign to provide a direct, one-time retention bonus to every childcare worker employed at a licensed childcare facility in Watauga County. The Foundation is seeking to raise between $60,000 and $75,000 for this effort, with funds to be distributed in October 2026, designed to deliver meaningful financial relief just before the holidays to childcare professionals, based on service time with their employer. The announcement was made Friday, May 15th, as part of a joint press conference announcing a North Carolina Tri-Share partnership between UNC Health Appalachian and two local childcare providers.
"Childcare professionals are the workforce behind the workforce in our community and their love of caring for children certainly outpaces the wages that have been provided during a time of industry-wide financial instability,” said David Jackson, President and CEO of the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce. "Providing a retention bonus is our way of rewarding these professionals for sticking with these critical jobs despite the challenges, while nurturing our youngest learners during such a critical growth period in their lives."
October 2024: Direct Tuition Assistance
The initiative is a signature component of the BACCF’s support for initiatives that strengthen the childcare industry and workforce in Watauga County and builds on two consecutive years of specific fall fundraising campaigns. Starting in October 2024 after Hurricane Helene's devastating impact on Western North Carolina, the BACCF provided over $200,000 to cover one month of direct tuition assistance for families with children enrolled in licensed childcare centers in Watauga County, providing much needed financial flexibility following the storm.
October 2025: Childcare is the Workforce Behind the Workforce
In 2025, the Foundation expanded its focus to the childcare workforce by providing tuition assistance to those teachers with children enrolled in licensed early childcare programs. This effort was later combined with a round of emergency stabilization grants sent to every licensed childcare center and afterschool program in the county during the 43-day Federal government shutdown, a period of time that significantly delayed subsidy payments to programs. Last year’s pair of fundraising efforts combined to distribute more than $75,000 withing the industry, and was recognized by the North Carolina Task Force on Child Care and Early Education as a proof-of-concept for statewide action.
Watauga County Childcare Study
The 2024 Watauga County Childcare Study produced by Dancy Research found the average childcare worker in Watauga County earns just $30,600 annually; nearly $14,000 below the countywide average wage and well below the $40,206 living wage for a single adult household at the time. Only 41% of childcare workers in the county have employer-provided health insurance, and annual turnover in the field runs at roughly 17%, compared to a 12% average across all other occupations. Retaining experienced, high-quality childcare professionals is one of the most pressing challenges facing the early childhood ecosystem across North Carolina.
"We want to recognize and reward the dedication of all childcare professionals working in licensed childcare in Watauga County and to make sure they know the business community stands with them in their important work," said Ethan Dodson, Director of Development for the BACCF. "We are committed to making our fall childcare campaign an annual tradition to support this amazing resource for our community and vital part of our economy.”
The BACCF is working with its partners at the Children's Council of Watauga County to finalize data on the total number of eligible workers and is using that information to set the final fundraising target. Bonus amounts will be determined by the time each worker has been in their role at their respective childcare center.
“The more support we raise, the more impact we can provide across the entire industry,” said Jackson. “This campaign is consistent with our goal of strengthening an industry that provides for so many young families to opportunity to return to essential positions within our local workforce. We’ve also shown the private sector is eager to meet public funding opportunities that impact this critical industry. In this time of budget discussion across North Carolina, we feel strongly that investments in our children, and those that care and educate them, will lead directly to a stronger, more capable, and better educated workforce we will need for our future.”
Bonus distributions are planned for October 2026, timed to reinforce the Foundation's ongoing commitment to a fall childcare giving season and to provide relief to workers heading into the holiday months. All funds will be directed to childcare professionals employed at licensed childcare facilities in Watauga County.
To contribute to the 2026 Childcare Retention Bonus Campaign or to learn more, contact Ethan Dodson, Director of Development, at ethan@boonechamber.com or visit www.boonechamber.com/foundation.
The Boone Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports initiatives strengthening the economic vitality and quality of life in Watauga County. Through strategic philanthropy and community partnerships, the Foundation addresses critical needs in workforce development, early childhood education, and economic infrastructure. For more information, visit www.boonechamber.com/foundation.