Childcare starts with something small and grows to have large impacts. Close to a year ago the Start Small; Build Your Childcare Business program was started to help support new business owners create childcare solutions in the Copper Country. The program led by the Copper Country Great Start Collaborative, works with the Keweenaw Community Foundation and Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance to guide childcare providers through the process of earning state licenses, developing programming, and learning how to create a sustainable business model.
After we gathered the data, we held some community gatherings and came up with a plan to address the shortage that we discovered. – Iola Brubaker, Director Copper Country Great Start Collaborative
When you have a really large issue, it can be very overwhelming to kind of bite all of that off. And so it was what kind of small steps can we take? And so I had heard about the initiative with the Marquette Community Foundation and their economic development organization and Great Start Group. – and Robin Meneguzzo, Executive Director, Keweenaw Community Foundation
The challenge has been, especially coming out of the pandemic, we did not have, lost childcare providers, which meant people who were working had to either stay home with their kids or find jobs that gave them flexibility to still care for their children or use alternative. Providers such as grandparents, friends, etc. So it affected the full-time workforce availability. – Jeff Ratcliffe, Executive Director, Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance
In 2022 the Houghton County Commission earmarked American Rescue Plan Act funds for the development of a program after the CCGSC completed an analysis of childcare needs. The Collaborative’s study found Houghton County needed over 600 new slots to fit families’ needs. But providers also had needs themselves.
We know and I know as an economic developer that one of the most successful ways of assisting someone start a business is to take them by the hand and walk them through the process. Guide them, mentor them if needed, coach them, be able to direct them to the available resources. Again, if there’s financing, work with them directly to prepare. A successful financing application, etc. So again, it’s giving somebody the leg up and not just letting them try to figure it out. – Jeff Ratcliffe, Executive Director, Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance
So our Start Small Coach has 20 years of experience working in in-home and center-based child care. So she knows her stuff and that has included some director level and some business ownership. So she does is she partners one-on-one and she has used a developed curriculum based on the Marquette County Spark program but customized it for our community and what our childcare providers are looking for. – Iola Brubaker, Director Copper Country Great Start Collaborative
I would say our role has also been that we have a lot of different relationships and so as some funding needs have come up for certain projects, we either, whether that’s coming from KCF directly or from greater networks that we’re part of, we have been able to help secure some of that funding as well. So that would be another role that we’ve helped play. – and Robin Meneguzzo, Executive Director, Keweenaw Community Foundation
CCGSC director Iola Brubaker adds that new and incoming childcare providers who have gone through the program have expressed that without guidance from a specialist, it would be difficult to keep going.
So Gabby’s Guppies was an existing childcare program at home. They had started as a family home, which means they could only serve six. They doubled that into a group home and could serve 12. And with moving to this new space, they’ve had to pull together a lot of resources, potential staffing, and potential funding to upgrade the space that they’re looking at. But they’ll be able to open, I believe it’s 40 some slots. And that is three times the capacity they currently have. And some of those are going to be infant slots, which are the highest-demand slots we have in the community. – Iola Brubaker, Director Copper Country Great Start Collaborative
But Gabby’s Guppies, that plans to open a center inside the Hancock Community Hub this spring, was not the only success story to come out of the Start Small program.
There are also three in-home or family-home child care for families that prefer that more home-like setting. One is already licensed and has some space for children. If you need to know, you can call our office and we’ll help you get connected to them. And two more are soon to be open. And we’ll be hopefully helping promote those programs out as soon as they are ready. – Iola Brubaker, Director Copper Country Great Start Collaborative
Iola Brubaker emphasizes that Start Small is free for childcare providers seeking assistance with state licensing and business assistance. The Collaborative and the Start Small group have also had conversations with larger organizations interested in developing childcare solutions in their communities. Those interested in learning more about the Start Small Build Your Childcare business program can find more details here.
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