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Mark your calendars!
April 1-7: Week of the Young Child
April 4, 12:30 p.m.: Webinar: The Leading Role of Higher Education in Enhancing ECE Systems Capacity - This session will explore the role of higher education in leveraging philanthropic dollars to build capacity in public ECE workforce systems. Zero to Five Montana's Carrie Spotted Bear is a panelist.
April 6, 9-11 a.m. - Reading at the Rotunda, hosted by Child Care Connections - Preschool age children are invited to the Rotunda to listen to a story read to them by local “celebrities”. All the children in attendance will receive a bag with free books.
Montana Child Care Business Connect Tiny Training Webinars
(1:30-2 p.m.) More info below!
April 6: How do Mentorships Work?
April 20: How to Utilize a Business Advisor
May 4: How to Write a Budget
May 18: How to Price Your Services
June 1: How to Manage Your Money
June 15: How to Sustain a Business Without One-Time Funding
June 29: How to Organize Your Community Around Child Care Solutions
April Legislative Update
With less than one third of Montana’s 68th Legislative Session remaining, bills are moving rapidly as we approach an important deadline today, on April 4 – the last day to transmit revenue and appropriations bills.
In the last three months, Zero to Five Montana has provided testimony on 31 separate occasions across topics including: ensuring young children have access to early learning resources to build reading skills, creating a child care subtrust to make much-needed investments in the child care system, continuous eligibility for the CHIP program, and helping more parents afford child care across the state.
We are committed to acting as the bridge between our state’s parents, providers, small businesses, community members and your representatives. We will continue to monitor legislative action and will let you know about opportunities to share your story and use your voice to prioritize Montana’s young kids and families.
As always, we invite you to join us on Thursdays at 12:30 p.m. to learn more about bills and hearings or tune into our weekly update videos on social media on Fridays. Don’t forget, you can also check out our early childhood bill tracker at www.zerotofive.org/2023-legislative-session.
Please reach out to info@zerotofive.org, or someone from our policy team, if you have questions. You can also email us to join the advocacy email list.
You might have seen that child care costs are rising, and the criteria for parents looking for child care subsidies has changed. That's why it's more important than ever to have a solid business plan in place. If you're not sure where to start or what steps to take next, give us a call today and we'll help you get your plan up and running!
If you haven't already, don't forget to book yourself in for a free consultation with us so we can talk through what's going on with your business at the moment and make sure everything is running smoothly and efficiently as possible!
On the Road
Shelby and Jason
In March, Community Navigator Shelby Whelan and Senior Child Care Business Advisor Jason Nitschke traveled to Hardin to participate in Big Horn County’s Resource Partner event for entrepreneurs in the region. Eleven entrepreneurs attended alongside 11 resource partners. Montana Child Care Business Connect's presentation focused on how childcare contributes to workforce shortages in and around Big Horn County.
APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN:
Business Accelerator Mentorship Program
Montana Child Care Business Connect is launching a new program to support the growth of licensed/registered child care in Montana!
This hybrid mentorship-business accelerator targets new and expanding licensed/registered child care operations across the state, providing a 12-month, intensive framework to help business owners start or grow their licensed/registered child care business.
The program is free, thanks to a generous grant from Montana DPHHS, and includes business resources, ECP-compliant training, networking and support, and financial incentives to support your business! Participants will receive stipends and ECP training hours, as well as valuable professional development opportunities.
To be eligible to mentor a business, you must have experience in small business start-ups and operations (specific licensed/registered child care experience preferred but not required).
To be eligible to be a protégé and receive mentorship, you must be starting a new licensed/registered child care business in Montana (concept to first year of operations) or substantially growing an existing business.
If you, or someone you know, are considering opening a new licensed/registered child care business, are significantly growing an existing child care operation, or if you want to share your knowledge and give back, apply today!
Applications are open now and close on April 10. The program launches in May of this year.
Email all complete applications and documents to connect@zerotofive.org.
With questions about the mentorship program, contact Montana Child Care Business Connect's Program Manager, Rhonda Schwenke, at RhondaS@zerotofive.org.
Upcoming Webinars
These free offerings are part of a webinar series specific to different aspects of business practices for business owners/directors/managers. Participants must attend a minimum of four of the seven offerings to receive two hours of ECP credit.
Missed a Tiny Training webinar? Subscribe to our YouTube channel to access past recordings. Or visit childcarebusinessconnect.com.
Upcoming in-person events:
April 19: Community Capacity Cohort gathering | Butte, MT
May 2-3: Business Mentorship Program launch | Billings, MT
September 12-14: Annual Child Care Business Summit | TBD
In the News
- Montana Child Care Connect Launches Mentorship Program - Whitehall Ledger
- Child care crisis: Teachers 'need to be able to sustain ourselves' - NPR
- What will it take to build a sustainable early care and education system in the US? - EdSurge
- To grow the economy more equitably, invest in early childhood - The Hill
