Support for Rural Child Care Programs Coming Soon
Running a Child Care Program Means Wearing a Lot of Hats
If you run a child care center or provide care from your home, you already know the work goes far beyond caring for children. On any given day, you may also be handling billing, supplies, paperwork, scheduling, technology, licensing requirements, communication with families, staffing concerns, and countless other tasks that keep your program running.
That’s why the New Growth Women’s Business Center is coordinating with partners across the state to launch a new no-cost support program specifically for rural Missouri child care programs beginning September 2026.
This hands-on program is designed to help child care directors and home-based child care owners save time, strengthen business operations, and connect with practical support from people who understand the unique challenges of rural child care.
Participants may receive support such as:
- Ideas and tools to save time and money on purchases and business tasks
- Help with keeping attendance full and making payments and billing easier to manage
- One-on-one guidance and support
- Opportunities to connect with other child care professionals facing similar challenges
The program will also help childcare programs connect with useful statewide resources, technology tools, and support networks. That may include help accessing MO-SECA’s Show Me Child Care Resources, support using systems like Tootris to participate in Missouri’s new Child Care Works program, and guidance connecting with training and learning opportunities that support strong child care businesses.
For many rural child care programs, finding time to research programs and learn new systems can feel overwhelming. This support is designed to help make those processes easier and more manageable.
Whether you think of yourself as a business owner or simply someone passionate about caring for children and supporting families, the reality is that strong child care programs are also important small businesses that help communities thrive.
Ten rural Missouri child care programs, whether new or existing, home-based or center-based, will be selected for the first year of this program, which will run from September 2026 through April 2027.
Interested in learning more or being considered for the program? Fill out the Child Care Business Support interest form.
Questions? Contact the New Growth Women’s Business Center at wbcinfo@newgrowthmo.org or call 417-282-5636.
Or, if you’d like to help strengthen child care in your rural community, donations and sponsorships can help us support even more child care businesses, helping communities maintain and grow access to affordable child care for local families while ensuring children and grandchildren have more opportunities close to home.