Could You Be Mississippi’s Next In-Home Child Care Provider?

Have you ever thought of opening a family child care or home-based preschool? Maybe you left teaching to stay home with your young children, but would love to bring in additional income for your family. Or you currently work at a daycare center but would appreciate more autonomy and leadership opportunities. You may simply see parents struggling to find and afford child care in your neighborhood and want to help. 

From being your own boss, to an increased earning potential, to spending more time with your own children, the benefits of starting an in-home preschool business are numerous. But why is now the time to make it happen? And how can you be sure your business will succeed? 

Wonderschool and the Mississippi Department of Health have teamed up to help.

The Demand for New In-Home Child Cares in Mississippi

Since 2020, 8.4% of child care providers have left the industry. This shortage has led to programs closing, in an industry that was already short-handed before the pandemic. The state of Mississippi has referred to this dilemma as an “urgent need,” and has built new partnerships to improve the local child care field over the coming years. 

MDHS is currently focusing on recruiting and supporting new in-home child care providers through training, business coaching, and other free resources. A substitute teacher pool is also being established to ensure businesses can continue to provide care when illnesses or personal matters pop up.

What does this mean for your business? Free support is available, and families looking to enroll are plentiful. 

The best time to start a new family child care business in Mississippi is now.

The Support You’ll Receive as a New Child Care Business Owner

By partnering with Wonderschool, MDHS now offers each of the following services at no cost to new Mississippi child care providers:

• Grant reimbursements —access between $10,000 to $25,000 in financial grants. Applications due August 1, 2024. More details below

• Wonderschool Academy — an online training program filled with resources to master the business side of your child care venture (think taxes, curriculum, finding families, and more). 
• Licensing support — making the process easier and faster than it would be on your own.
• Free website — to improve your online presence.
• Child care finder — an online child care directory that helps families find your services.
• Business support — cohorts and individual coaching for new and existing child care providers.
• Child care management tool — for tracking leads, site tours, enrollments, waitlists, and parent communications all in one place.
• Access to the Mississippi child care substitute teacher pool — for your vacations and sick days.

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Apply for Grant Reimbursements in 2024

For programs opened after October 1, 2023 and before August 1, 2024 you are eligible to grant reimbursements. New in-home child care providers can be reimbursed up to $10,000, and a center-based provider can be reimbursed up to $25,000. The child care grant can be used to cover mortgage or lease payments, utility expenditures, technology needs, licensing expenses, background checks, insurance, inspection fees, initial supplies, food costs, and more. Get in touch with us to learn more!

Starting an in-home child care in Mississippi has never been easier, and the demand is as high as ever. If you’re ready to make a career change, sign up for a free account or dig into our free resources today. MDHS and Wonderschool will be here to help you succeed every step of the way.