Championing child care and community change
In West Bend, when the community sees a need, they are quick to respond and determine the best organization to tackle that issue.
For more than a quarter century, that organization has been the West Bend Community Foundation.
The community foundation has helped the greater West Bend area in various ways over the years — namely by building up the community while also supporting those in need. Through the generosity of its donors, it has invested millions in arts and culture, education, environment, health and human services and capital projects such as renovating Old Settlers Park, a popular gathering spot downtown.
Now WBCF, the Greater Milwaukee Foundation’s oldest and largest partner foundation, is taking on a more significant role by tackling one of the region’s most entrenched issues — access to early childhood education. WBCF has allocated $150,000 over the next three years to expand workforce options, advocate for increased access, invest in facilities and support agencies that address the development of children from birth to age 8. The Greater Milwaukee Foundation, which has had early childhood education as a top priority for many years, matched the investment with a $150,000 grant, and Washington County has invested $100,000 through American Rescue Plan Act funds.
“There is a tremendous amount of power when foundations work together, donors work together and community organizations all work together,” said Rob Johnson, a WBCF board member and executive director of the Kettle Moraine YMCA, the largest child care provider in the county.
This deeper focus marks an evolution at WBCF, from strictly grantmaking to more of a community leadership role. The organization started in 1999 thanks to West Bend civic leaders Cliff Nelson and Doug Ziegler, who believed that people ought to give back to the community in which they live. They put their words into action by pooling together $2 million in unrestricted funds to launch WBCF as a supporting organization at the Foundation. It now has 60 charitable funds and $83.6 million in assets.
Public-private collaboration
The seeds for this new initiative were planted several years ago. In 2020, WBCF added a nonprofit representative to its board to help strengthen its relationship with the nonprofit community. In 2023, it created a committee focused on identifying community needs that had not been met and figuring out how to address them through grants and other resources. Through a series of community conversations that year, modeled off the Foundation’s successful On the Table MKE initiative, WBCF identified early childhood care and education as a top priority.
High-quality educational programs have multiple benefits for the community. They set children up for academic, social and developmental success. When parents have access to affordable care, they’re able to take on jobs outside the home, thereby strengthening the workforce.
Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann has wanted to address that quality-of-life issue for the past five years, but said he had a hard time convincing the county board to make it a strategic priority. WBCF’s role as a convener and its proposed solutions for addressing the issue helped convince the county board to invest.
“I am really excited that WBCF has taken a lead, and we can play a supporting role,” he said. “This forges a relationship that could have a sustainable path forward to create more child care workers.”
In 2024, WBCF granted money to 4C for Children, Moraine Park Technical College and Forward Careers to bolster the early childhood education workforce. A $20,000 grant allows Moraine Park to offer scholarships to students interested in pursuing a degree in early childhood education. 4C for Children received $10,000 to provide training and certification for individuals interested in an early childhood education career or becoming a child care provider. Through its work-based learning program, funded by a $81,000 grant, Forward Careers connects interested applicants to area employers, covers the costs for training and certification, pays for an individual’s first 350 hours of work and provides coaching.
“At a time when child care costs often outpace rent, tuition, or even the net benefit of full-time work, we recognize the urgency of investing in this critical sector,” said Cindy Simons, president and CEO of Forward Careers. “Our goal is to not only raise wages but also to elevate the profession — supporting individuals as they earn industry-recognized credentials, gain hands-on experience, and pursue long-term, sustainable careers in early childhood education.”
Modeling innovative solutions
Johnson and Schoemann see the potential for the new program to serve as a model for other communities.
“The close working relationship between the county and the community foundation has really strengthened Washington County and West Bend in particular,” Schoemann said. “At the end of the day, partnerships are the things that have the biggest bang for buck and are most effective in the long run.”
Though this is a newer focus for WBCF, board president Claire Rolfs said the foundation will continue to give as it has in the past, a mixture of annual operating grants and special project support.
“We’re not walking away from the smaller grants, but we’ve grown enough that we can sustain both,” Rolfs said. “As a community foundation, our role is to take care of the community as best we can.”