Doorway to Learning Receives Scholarship Support

Sturgeon Bay, Wis. (March 26, 2025) – Doorway to Learning has been awarded a Community Investment Grant by United Way of Door County to assist families with childcare costs in 2025. The grant will provide $30,000 in scholarships to community families, especially those considered ALICE (Asset Limited Income Constrained Employed).

Doorway to Learning provides early childhood education for 146 children year-round at its Gordon Road center and is currently accepting enrollment for its school-age Summer Camp which will utilize its Egg Harbor Road center to provide programming for up to 60 children. Traditional childcare costs range from $230 per week for 3–4-year-olds to $300 per week for infants and one-year-olds which equates to $11,960 and $15,600, respectively. Per the US Census Bureau, the Sturgeon Bay median household income is $56,882, making scholarship availability crucial to families’ ability to access care.

Tuition scholarships are awarded to families through an application process in which income is verified to be at or below 350 percent federal poverty levels (FPL) or navigating childcare costs equating to 20 percent or more of their household income. These families do not meet requirements to receive Wisconsin Shares subsidies; Wisconsin Shares is a state program which provides tuition assistance for families at or below 200 percent FPL. Currently, 30 percent of families at Doorway to Learning qualify for Wisconsin Shares and estimates at least another 30 percent are ALICE.

“We know many Door County families are paying more for childcare than their mortgage and health insurance. Childcare scholarships ease the burden and allow the family to purchase other essentials they might not be able to afford without a scholarship,” stated Molly Gary, United Way of Door County’s Childcare Community Coordinator.

Doorway to Learning provides child-centered care to foster creativity, independence and empathy through developmentally appropriate play and learning activities for ages six weeks to 12 years old. For more information about Doorway to Learning, please call 920-818-0877, or visit the “Doorway to Learning” Facebook page.