BENTON, Ark. — Recent changes to childcare in Arkansas have had some local facilities concerned.

“We only have 10 days to figure all of this out,” explained Larissa Dixon, who works at Toodle Tots Daycare in Benton.

That’s because on October 1, 2025, changes involving how childcare facilities receive state funds will become official.

In the past, the “Better Beginnings” system sorted Arkansas childcare centers into one of six levels based on quality and reimbursed them based on that.

“You get assessed, and you invest all this money and time, and you get to certain levels where you get certain levels of pay,” Dixon explained. “When you get these levels of pay, then you use that money to put into the quality of care for your children.”

However, that won’t be the case beginning in Octobe

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