The Spark
Sevier County is one of Tennessee’s most popular tourist destinations and one of its toughest places to find child care. When the pandemic hit, already-scarce programs shuttered. Nationally, an estimated 16,000 child care programs closed permanently in COVID’s first two years. At Dollywood, a common problem was reported on employee surveys: they couldn’t find child care. Dollywood’s HR team had explored building an on-site center, but the math didn’t work. Hosts work evenings, weekends, holidays, and early-morning prep shifts. Covering everyone would have required a center running nearly 24 hours a day, seven days a week, a prohibitive investment for any employer, let alone one with a heavily seasonal workforce.
The Solution
In June 2021, Dollywood took a different path. Rather than build a building, the company partnered with Upwards (formerly WeeCare), a care benefits platform that provides access to more than 200,000 vetted and licensed caregivers nationwide, including family child care homes, nannies, and babysitters.
The partnership has two components. First, Upwards’ dedicated care navigators help enrolled hosts find, tour, and enroll their children at licensed, safety-certified family child care homes near their home or the park. The network includes full-time, part-time, backup, drop-in, after-school, and overnight care, covering the nontraditional hours that mirror Dollywood’s operating calendar. Second, Dollywood provides a monthly stipend: $100 for each host’s first child and $50 for each additional child. In Sevier County, where the median cost for infant care runs between $650 and $900 per month, that stipend covers roughly 10–15% of costs. That is not everything, but it is a meaningful offset for hourly workers.
Critically, every host is eligible regardless of income, role, or hours worked. The roller coaster operators, the housekeeping staff, the guest room attendants, and the marketing team all have equal access. That universality was a deliberate choice. Child care needs affect everyone, so the company wanted to ensure the program could benefit all hosts.
The child care program sits within a broader benefits ecosystem that signals how seriously Dollywood takes workforce retention: an on-site Family Healthcare Center for hosts without a primary care doctor, free meals every shift, a loyalty bonus program, and Herschend’s Grow U initiative covering 100% of tuition, fees, and books for any host pursuing further education, available from day one of employment.
The Results
In the year following the program’s launch, Dollywood’s overall staff retention increased by 11%. The retention rate cannot be attributed solely to the child care program, as a number of benefit programs were introduced and refined at the same time. However, the emphasis on benefits that authentically demonstrated care for hosts reinforced the value of a happy, productive workforce.
While not all hosts have children, the program is an important benefit for those who take advantage of it. Dollywood is also keeping its options open. As they learn more about who uses the benefit and how, they may increase the stipend amount or, down the road, revisit on-site care if the data justifies it.
“It is clear that child care needs are vital to the well-being of everyone. We hope that other employers will see the benefits and provide them for their employees as well,” said Eugene Naughton, Dollywood Parks & Resorts President.
THE BLUEPRINT
THE BLUEPRINT
Investment: $100/month per host’s first child + $50/month per additional child. No facilities cost. No construction. The per-employee annual cost is $1,200–$1,800 depending on family size, a fraction of what it costs to replace a single hourly worker.
Timeline: Launched in weeks, not months. Dollywood announced the partnership in June 2021; hosts began enrolling immediately. Upwards handled all provider matching, enrollment, and ongoing support.
Partners: Upwards (formerly WeeCare), a care benefits platform connecting employers with vetted, licensed caregivers nationwide. Upwards manages concierge matching, provider vetting, enrollment, and around-the-clock care support.
Key Decision: Choosing a flexible care network over a single building. Dollywood’s nontraditional schedule (evenings, weekends, holidays, early mornings) would have required a 24/7 on-site center, which would have been cost-prohibitive and operationally complex. Upwards’ network already operated on flexible hours, spanned multiple care types, reached rural communities where centers didn’t exist, and scaled to every host regardless of shift or location.
Their Advice: “Child care arrangements can be overwhelming to most families. As any parent can attest, you can breathe easier when you know your kids are taken care of. For our hosts who participate, we want to help take some of that stress.” Eugene Naughton, President