HARTFORD, Conn. — A groundbreaking partnership between the Women’s Business Development Council (WBDC) and the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood (OEC) has been extended through June 2027. This extension renews their mutual commitment to support child care businesses through the WBDC Child Care Business Support Program and Opportunity Fund. The renewal, resulting from WBDC’s successful response to OEC’s Request for Proposals, provides $6 million to fund this innovative program over the next three years.

The WBDC Child Care Business Support Program, designed to support, sustain, and grow child care businesses in Connecticut, has proven to not only affect economic growth and job creation in that industry but has also yielded positive outcomes for many of the state’s child care providers. Since its launch in 2020, the program has helped child care businesses create or retain 9,041 jobs and 38,108 child care slots in Connecticut.

An integral part of the program, the WBDC Child Care Business Opportunity Fund, provides grants of up to $25,000 to qualified licensed and aspiring child care businesses in Connecticut. To date, the program has provided 669 grants totaling $7.3 million to providers at every stage of business, from start-ups to those ready to expand.

“Supporting our state’s child care providers is essential for Connecticut’s economy, our families, and, most importantly, our children,” said WBDC CEO Fran Pastore. “We are excited to continue this partnership with the OEC and our state’s leadership that has had such tremendous impact on this critical industry. This innovative approach is a perfect example of how organizations like WBDC and our state leadership can work together to generate positive economic impact and create real change for individuals, industries, and the state’s economy.”

The renewal was announced on Wednesday, July 31, at the Hall of Flags in the Connecticut State Capitol. The next round of grant applications will open on August 12.

Following the announcement, members of the WBDC team visited Creative Hearts Learning Academy in Bloomfield. Creative Hearts owner Leah Fleeting is a WBDC client and grant recipient, who used the grant funds to support expansion and relocation of her business.

“Over the past four years, this collaboration between OEC and WBDC has made a measurable impact on Connecticut’s child care businesses and the families they serve,” said OEC Commissioner Beth Bye. “We have successfully created and retained vital child care jobs and ensured the availability of much-needed child care slots. This renewal signifies our ongoing commitment to strengthening the state’s child care industry and, in turn, supporting Connecticut’s workforce. We look forward to continuing this crucial work and seeing the continued positive effects on our communities.”

Since the WBDC Child Care Business Support Program was launched in 2020, the organization has worked with more than 1,800 aspiring and established child care provider businesses through over 11,000 hours of education and business advising. 79% of WBDC’s child care clients operate in an Early Childhood Education Underserved Community; 50% are persons of color; 28% are Spanish speakers.

In the last four years, child care businesses working with WBDC have:

• Accessed $47.8 million in capital, including $7.3 million through 669 WBDC grants
• Launched 100 new child care businesses
• Created or retained 9,041 jobs
• Created or retained 38,108 child care slots

Grant programs offered through the Child Care Business Opportunity Fund include:

• Start Up Grant Program: Offers one-time cash grants of up to $25,000 to help qualified individuals become licensed and operating child care providers with the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood (OEC).
• Emergency Facilities Grant Program: Offers grants of up to $15,000 to qualified child care businesses suffering severe revenue shortages to cover emergency facilities repair projects to keep their business open and operating safely.
• Expansion Grant Program: Offers grants of up to $25,000 to qualified child care businesses preparing to expand their businesses to grow their operations and create additional slots.

About the Women’s Business Development Council

The Women’s Business Development Council’s (WBDC) mission is to support economic prosperity for women and strengthen communities through entrepreneurial and financial education services that create and grow sustainable jobs and businesses across Connecticut. WBDC educates, motivates, and empowers women to achieve economic independence and self-sufficiency. Since 1997, WBDC has educated and trained more than 19,300 clients in all of Connecticut’s 169 towns—helping women to launch, sustain, and scale over 14,500 businesses, create and maintain nearly 32,500 jobs in Connecticut, and access nearly $73.5 million in capital. Since 2020, WBDC has provided more than $10 million in grants to help fuel growth in small businesses throughout Connecticut. Visit ctwbdc.org for more information.