As Minnesota's child care system strains under rising costs, labor shortages, and a precarious business model, one thing is clear: the traditional way of delivering child care is no longer working. But what if a new model rooted in technology and powered by employer support could help stabilize the industry and better meet families’ needs?

Enter platforms like TOOTRiS, a San Diego-based tech company revolutionizing the way employers, working parents, and child care providers connect. Think Uber for child care—not because it puts kids in front of screens, but because it brings together multiple stakeholders into one seamless system that allows for real-time matching and direct financial transactions.

Could Tech Be the Bridge Between Employers and Child Care?

For decades, employers have struggled to address the child care needs of their workforce. Onsite centers, while ideal in theory, are cost-prohibitive and inflexible. Child care needs vary widely by location, culture, faith, hours, and age group, which makes centralized solutions unrealistic for most.

TOOTRiS sidesteps that problem by offering a flexible digital infrastructure. Employers can subsidize care directly by funding their employees’ child care accounts, and TOOTRiS facilitates payment to licensed providers. That removes administrative burden and makes it easier for employers to offer a child care benefit—no new buildings, no licensing requirements, and no insurance hassles. For providers, it’s a direct pipeline to reliable revenue.

This model is especially relevant in Minnesota, where 86% of child care businesses say the industry is in crisis. For the first time, child care centers and family providers are struggling at nearly equal rates. Rising costs, especially wages, insurance, and utilities, have outpaced what parents can afford to pay. While state subsidies like the Great Start Compensation Support Program help, they often come with restrictions that don’t reflect the broader financial reality of operating a center.

Meeting Families Where They Are

TOOTRiS also solves another vexing issue: access to nontraditional hour care. Shift workers like those working in manufacturing who relied on a provider found through TOOTRiS, illustrate the platform's value. When their work moved to overnight shifts, they were able to quickly find a vetted provider who offered 24/7 care.

In Minnesota, where industries like health care, manufacturing, and hospitality operate around the clock, families are often left scrambling to find care during nights or weekends. These irregular needs rarely align with school-based programs or center-based models. A distributed network of home-based providers made visible and accessible through technology fills a critical gap.

Helping Providers Stay Afloat

Family child care providers who build their businesses around being available to shift workers embody the resilience and creativity of the child care workforce. But like most caregivers, these providers rely on thin margins. Without stable enrollment or higher reimbursement, the model is fragile.

TOOTRiS helps change that equation. By connecting providers directly to employers and managing payments, the platform increases financial stability and lowers administrative overhead. For small providers who can’t afford billing systems or marketing, this can be the difference between staying open or closing their doors.

A Scalable Public-Private Solution

Minnesota is currently seeing the cracks in its child care infrastructure widen. Survey data from the Minneapolis Fed and First Children’s Finance shows that many providers are only staying open thanks to grants. The end of flexible federal funding, rising liability insurance costs, and competition from free school-based pre-K are pushing more providers to the brink.

In this environment, employer-supported platforms like TOOTRiS could become a key part of the state’s solution. They offer a scalable, adaptable, and business-friendly model that aligns with Minnesota’s need for workforce retention, economic competitiveness, and family well-being.

With hundreds of employers already using TOOTRiS across the U.S., the model is gaining traction. In 2024, TOOTRiS CEO Alessandra Lezama presented this platform at the first-ever National Child Care Innovation Summit, co-hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Department of Commerce. Policymakers are starting to pay attention.

The Path Forward: Blend Innovation with Investment

Minnesota’s legislature has made progress in supporting child care through programs like Great Start, but public investment alone won’t fix a system this fractured. Blending public dollars with private-sector engagement, and using tech tools to connect the dots, offers a more sustainable future.

TOOTRiS isn’t a silver bullet, but it shows what’s possible when employers, providers, and families are part of the same ecosystem. With the right policy supports and incentives, Minnesota could pilot similar partnerships, giving providers more stability, families more choice, and employers a real solution to a vexing workforce problem.

As highlighted in this NPR feature, platforms like TOOTRiS are already proving their value in other parts of the country. They connect shift workers to flexible care, helping providers stay in business, and allowing employers to offer meaningful benefits. Let’s not ask whether tech can save child care. Instead, let’s ask how tech, business, and public policy can work together for Minnesota’s children, families, and future.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

Rural Pathways is launching a Minnesota-based child care platform tailored to the unique needs and values of Northern Minnesota and powered by TOOTRiS. While TOOTRiS won’t create new child care slots, the platform offers a powerful tool to sustain existing providers by improving their financial stability and connecting them with employer-backed families. In a moment where retaining current capacity is just as critical as expanding it, this solution helps employers support their workforce, families access flexible care, and providers keep their doors open.

Contact Rural Pathways to learn how your community, business, or organization can be part of this innovative, tech-driven solution. Together, we can build a stronger, more equitable child care system, one partnership at a time.

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Citation: Anderson, Charity & Gilpin, Staci. (2025). Employer-Backed Child Care, Reimagined for Northeast Minnesota. Rural Pathways News.

Employer-Backed Child Care, Reimagined for Northeast Minnesota