Our condolences to Leticia Johnson
Recently retired director of Young Minds Child Care Center, on the loss of her ex-husband on March 21, 2008. Arrangements were scheduled for Wednesday March 26, 2008 at Frank Bell Funeral Home located at Classon Avenue & Sterling Place in Brooklyn, NY.
We Offer Our Condolences…Wednesday, March 26th, 2008
Our condolences to Leticia Johnson, recently retired director of Young Minds Child Care Center, on the loss of her ex-husband on March 21, 2008.
Arrangements were scheduled for Wednesday March 26, 2008 at Frank Bell Funeral Home located at Classon Avenue & Sterling Place in Brooklyn, NY.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
Start-up funds for For-Profit Child Care Businesses
Over the past few years child care programs have began to be regarded as profitable businesses. As a result many people are seeking advice to obtain grants to start their own for-profit child care business, expand an existing for-profit program or upgrade their facilities.
The not so good news is that funding for the development and operations of child care programs to serve low and middle income families, has largely fallen within the purview of the federal, state and local governments that only fund not-for-profit organizations.
Generally, some grant makers will consider funding some of the “non-tuition” activities or cost of not-for-profits. However, almost no foundation will fund the child tuition or direct care cost of a child care program; whether the program is for-profit or not-for -profit.
Of course there is always the rare exception, so if you decide to research the possibility of a grant, try to think about what makes your program exceptional or unique and highlight those aspects when you request funding.
I suspect that finding start up capital for your for-profit child care business will be a real challenge, but worth the effort. The first thing that I would advise is that you avoid letting anyone sell you a grant writing package or materials, or write you a proposal before doing some preliminary research yourself.
Below are two funding sources that we suggest you explore:
As an independent child care business owner you can try the Foundation Grants for Individuals, a service of the Foundation Center at http://www.fdncenter.org/ which is part of the Foundation Library located on 5th Avenue in New York City. There may be something unique about you personally, the way you do business or perhaps how you plan to provide care to a special population of children that would make your proposal appealing to a grant maker.
In New York State one government source that will help for-profit programs with start-up funds, but will not provide funds for ongoing operations, is the New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS). These funds are intended to increase the supply of child care programs for working families in New York State regardless of their income. Opportunities for start-up funding are offered sporadically so you should put yourself on the mailing list for notification when Requests for Proposals (RFP)’s become available. The OCFS website is https://ocfsws.state.ny.us/obl
The OCFS RFP is particularly helpful because it will give you an overview of the resources and thought process necessary for developing a quality child care program. Good Luck!!
The not so good news is that funding for the development and operations of child care programs to serve low and middle income families, has largely fallen within the purview of the federal, state and local governments that only fund not-for-profit organizations.
Generally, some grant makers will consider funding some of the “non-tuition” activities or cost of not-for-profits. However, almost no foundation will fund the child tuition or direct care cost of a child care program; whether the program is for-profit or not-for -profit.
Of course there is always the rare exception, so if you decide to research the possibility of a grant, try to think about what makes your program exceptional or unique and highlight those aspects when you request funding.
I suspect that finding start up capital for your for-profit child care business will be a real challenge, but worth the effort. The first thing that I would advise is that you avoid letting anyone sell you a grant writing package or materials, or write you a proposal before doing some preliminary research yourself.
Below are two funding sources that we suggest you explore:
As an independent child care business owner you can try the Foundation Grants for Individuals, a service of the Foundation Center at http://www.fdncenter.org/ which is part of the Foundation Library located on 5th Avenue in New York City. There may be something unique about you personally, the way you do business or perhaps how you plan to provide care to a special population of children that would make your proposal appealing to a grant maker.
In New York State one government source that will help for-profit programs with start-up funds, but will not provide funds for ongoing operations, is the New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS). These funds are intended to increase the supply of child care programs for working families in New York State regardless of their income. Opportunities for start-up funding are offered sporadically so you should put yourself on the mailing list for notification when Requests for Proposals (RFP)’s become available. The OCFS website is https://ocfsws.state.ny.us/obl
The OCFS RFP is particularly helpful because it will give you an overview of the resources and thought process necessary for developing a quality child care program. Good Luck!!
Recruitment, Hiring and Retention of Staff
Just because we have strong business skills doesn’t necessarily mean that we have strong supervisory skills. Actually we may be at our best, and feel most comfortable when working alone. Usually however as our business grows we have no choice but to bring on employees.
Of course our first task when we bring on a new employee is to share our vision and mission. We want them to know, not guess, what we are about. But the next steps are just as crucial.
In our role as supervisor and manager we are responsible for moving our employees, as well as ourselves, towards the goals and objectives of our business. It is always the wrong choice not to put in the time and energy that is required to provide orientation, training, ongoing supervision and motivation to new employees. After all people can only do what is expected of them if we let them know what we expect. It is unfair to our employees not to receive guidance and direction from us.
We should also understand that each unsuccessful hire costs us time and money, because we then have to start over with the recruitment, interviewing and hiring process. Actually if we have too much staff turnover our business may develop a reputation as an un-friendly work place. That could work against us because the best prepared people may have doubts about working for us.
If you are a person who has difficulty speaking openly and directly to people about correcting their mistakes, you should push yourself to be more assertive. Remember that it is a business relationship and the sooner you and the employee are on the same page about expectations, the greater the chances are for a productive relationship going forward. Below are several behaviors that all managers and supervisors should try to cultivate:
Demonstrate an attitude of openness and willingness to explain and answer job related questions; let the employee know that if you don’t know the answer you will find it and get back to him or her;
Encourage workers to work independently without bothering you every minute, but check up on him or her regularly to make sure that they are on the right track;
Allow workers to work in their own style as long as they are producing the results that you want and are not offending co-workers, or clients (the children or the parents);
Don’t forget to verbally acknowledge good job performance;
Try to remain objective and don’t show favoritism for one worker over another;
Never talk about another worker’s job performance with another worker; we should always speak one on one with the person in question;
Avoid making general statements to the whole staff in order to get a point across to one or two people; that is a disservice to those who are performing well;
When we are having a bad day we shouldn’t take out our frustrations on our staff and bring down the spirits of the whole workplace, we should excuse ourselves and have some alone time until we can pull it together. No matter what we think, tension among staff can be felt by the children and the parents; making for an uncomfortable time for everyone.
Make no mistake about it, most of us aren’t born with the ability to effectively supervise groups of people. It takes self discipline, focused organization, objectivity, a clear sense of purpose and the ability to be supportive while maintaining professional boundaries.
Of course our first task when we bring on a new employee is to share our vision and mission. We want them to know, not guess, what we are about. But the next steps are just as crucial.
In our role as supervisor and manager we are responsible for moving our employees, as well as ourselves, towards the goals and objectives of our business. It is always the wrong choice not to put in the time and energy that is required to provide orientation, training, ongoing supervision and motivation to new employees. After all people can only do what is expected of them if we let them know what we expect. It is unfair to our employees not to receive guidance and direction from us.
We should also understand that each unsuccessful hire costs us time and money, because we then have to start over with the recruitment, interviewing and hiring process. Actually if we have too much staff turnover our business may develop a reputation as an un-friendly work place. That could work against us because the best prepared people may have doubts about working for us.
If you are a person who has difficulty speaking openly and directly to people about correcting their mistakes, you should push yourself to be more assertive. Remember that it is a business relationship and the sooner you and the employee are on the same page about expectations, the greater the chances are for a productive relationship going forward. Below are several behaviors that all managers and supervisors should try to cultivate:
Demonstrate an attitude of openness and willingness to explain and answer job related questions; let the employee know that if you don’t know the answer you will find it and get back to him or her;
Encourage workers to work independently without bothering you every minute, but check up on him or her regularly to make sure that they are on the right track;
Allow workers to work in their own style as long as they are producing the results that you want and are not offending co-workers, or clients (the children or the parents);
Don’t forget to verbally acknowledge good job performance;
Try to remain objective and don’t show favoritism for one worker over another;
Never talk about another worker’s job performance with another worker; we should always speak one on one with the person in question;
Avoid making general statements to the whole staff in order to get a point across to one or two people; that is a disservice to those who are performing well;
When we are having a bad day we shouldn’t take out our frustrations on our staff and bring down the spirits of the whole workplace, we should excuse ourselves and have some alone time until we can pull it together. No matter what we think, tension among staff can be felt by the children and the parents; making for an uncomfortable time for everyone.
Make no mistake about it, most of us aren’t born with the ability to effectively supervise groups of people. It takes self discipline, focused organization, objectivity, a clear sense of purpose and the ability to be supportive while maintaining professional boundaries.
Monday, March 17, 2008
What Resources Do We Have?
The authors of this site, between them have over a hundred years of child care business experience from afterschool programs, day care & headstart centers, to training in home child care providers we have done it all and have raised millions of dollars in grant funding in the process.
This page will be a virtual roledex of the businesses, services, products & government contacts you need to run yourbusinesses easier and more profitablity.
We’re just getting started but we will be updating this page soon and continously, so come back soon.
In fact, why not subscribe to our FREE newsletter and be the first to know when we make updates to our site with alerts direct to your inbox. Its easy click here to get started!
This page will be a virtual roledex of the businesses, services, products & government contacts you need to run yourbusinesses easier and more profitablity.
We’re just getting started but we will be updating this page soon and continously, so come back soon.
In fact, why not subscribe to our FREE newsletter and be the first to know when we make updates to our site with alerts direct to your inbox. Its easy click here to get started!
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
The Cutting Edge
By Freddie Hamilton
I have long believed that information and knowledge leads to empowerment. The more information we have, the greater our ability to make informed decisions about our own lives and to help those that we love. When we have good reliable information we can plan accordingly. There are many changes afoot in the reshaping and delivery of child care services in New York City. We expect that over the next two to three years the landscape will look completely different for the child care community. But in the end the quality and image of child care will be directly reflective of how much we, in the child care community, participate in shaping this new reality. As Sweet Honey in the Rock sings so eloquently,” We are the ones that we’ve been waiting for”.
ChildCareBusinessConnections.com/blog will try to serve as a connector of the dots and the bridger of the gaps in information for the child care community. We will provide information and present a relevant forum for stakeholders to share information and concerns.
More importantly, we will support and encourage you to see your child care program as the business that it is. No matter how noble our intentions, if we don’t watch the bottom line to maximize our income and reduce our expenditures; if we don’t develop the business, marketing and management skills necessary to run a successful business; if we don’t understand financing and money management; if we don’t understand the regulations, policies and the politics; if we don’t know how to access funding and resources, then we won’t be there to help the children and families that we love.
Changes afoot for Child Care Service Delivery
From time to time we check out the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) website to see what’s on the horizon. The most recent look was pretty startling. The Rethinking Child Care initiative is in full swing with promises of a full roll out by September 2009. Although many questions are answered on the ACS site, many more are not. The important thing to remember is that this is a work in progress. As with any new endeavor, rules and policies may be evolving for quite some time. In addition there may be differing interpretations of how things should be implemented. Both center based and private centers should pay close attention to this initiative because it will change the face of child care as we currently know it. One key here is automation. I believe that the child care system, in terms of referrals, enrollment, attendance, payment and other processes will be fully automated; similar to the way that the child welfare system is automated. Those who have programs that are ready to go from day one will have a competitive advantage in plugging into the new system. In future blogs we will discuss some of the other things that programs can do to be prepared for the changes that are coming. Of course every change brings opportunity to those who are alert to the possibilities.
Personal Development
There is an old but true saying that if you want to keep getting the same results…. Keep on doing what you are doing! For most of us becoming motivated to get better at what we do is always a challenge. However, time and energy invested in self improvement is recognized as one of the main ingredients of a life well lived and pays off in many ways. For instance, we know that spiritual growth has both tangible and intangible benefits. The tangible benefits are usually observable by others from our positive attitude and by how we treat our neighbors and loved ones. The intangible benefit may come from the peace and confidence that we experience when we believe that our lives are guided by a higher power. Similarly, formal education or training is only the beginning of a lifetime of learning. When we invest time and effort in expanding our knowledge about our work or about the world in general, we benefit by becoming more open to new ideas and new people. Often it propels us to better living and economic conditions. Continuous learning is particularly important for those of us who are role models for children. Sometimes we may even learn a new and better way of doing something or a new approach to an old problem. Each week in this blog we will try to address the issue of personal growth and development. Hopefully through your responses and comments we can create a forum for sharing new knowledge about personal development.
Thanks for Logging on,
Freddie
I have long believed that information and knowledge leads to empowerment. The more information we have, the greater our ability to make informed decisions about our own lives and to help those that we love. When we have good reliable information we can plan accordingly. There are many changes afoot in the reshaping and delivery of child care services in New York City. We expect that over the next two to three years the landscape will look completely different for the child care community. But in the end the quality and image of child care will be directly reflective of how much we, in the child care community, participate in shaping this new reality. As Sweet Honey in the Rock sings so eloquently,” We are the ones that we’ve been waiting for”.
ChildCareBusinessConnections.com/blog will try to serve as a connector of the dots and the bridger of the gaps in information for the child care community. We will provide information and present a relevant forum for stakeholders to share information and concerns.
More importantly, we will support and encourage you to see your child care program as the business that it is. No matter how noble our intentions, if we don’t watch the bottom line to maximize our income and reduce our expenditures; if we don’t develop the business, marketing and management skills necessary to run a successful business; if we don’t understand financing and money management; if we don’t understand the regulations, policies and the politics; if we don’t know how to access funding and resources, then we won’t be there to help the children and families that we love.
Changes afoot for Child Care Service Delivery
From time to time we check out the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) website to see what’s on the horizon. The most recent look was pretty startling. The Rethinking Child Care initiative is in full swing with promises of a full roll out by September 2009. Although many questions are answered on the ACS site, many more are not. The important thing to remember is that this is a work in progress. As with any new endeavor, rules and policies may be evolving for quite some time. In addition there may be differing interpretations of how things should be implemented. Both center based and private centers should pay close attention to this initiative because it will change the face of child care as we currently know it. One key here is automation. I believe that the child care system, in terms of referrals, enrollment, attendance, payment and other processes will be fully automated; similar to the way that the child welfare system is automated. Those who have programs that are ready to go from day one will have a competitive advantage in plugging into the new system. In future blogs we will discuss some of the other things that programs can do to be prepared for the changes that are coming. Of course every change brings opportunity to those who are alert to the possibilities.
Personal Development
There is an old but true saying that if you want to keep getting the same results…. Keep on doing what you are doing! For most of us becoming motivated to get better at what we do is always a challenge. However, time and energy invested in self improvement is recognized as one of the main ingredients of a life well lived and pays off in many ways. For instance, we know that spiritual growth has both tangible and intangible benefits. The tangible benefits are usually observable by others from our positive attitude and by how we treat our neighbors and loved ones. The intangible benefit may come from the peace and confidence that we experience when we believe that our lives are guided by a higher power. Similarly, formal education or training is only the beginning of a lifetime of learning. When we invest time and effort in expanding our knowledge about our work or about the world in general, we benefit by becoming more open to new ideas and new people. Often it propels us to better living and economic conditions. Continuous learning is particularly important for those of us who are role models for children. Sometimes we may even learn a new and better way of doing something or a new approach to an old problem. Each week in this blog we will try to address the issue of personal growth and development. Hopefully through your responses and comments we can create a forum for sharing new knowledge about personal development.
Thanks for Logging on,
Freddie
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