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- A Dancing Moose?
A Dancing Moose?
Plus: Artificial Intelligence Assistants to test in your school!
Issue # 14: (3-4 minute read….or about 1/2 a cup of coffee ☕)
🗳️ Quick Reader Poll
🔦 Provider Spotlight: Jennifer Duffield w/ Dancing Moose Montessori in Utah
🌎 World Headlines
🧑🧑🧒 ECE News & Perspective
🤖 AI and your Center
Reader Poll:
The Ecential Team is working on several exciting projects, and we want to hear from you—our valued reader!
Our goal is to provide content, insights, and resources that help you save time, boost enrollment, attract and retain quality staff, and grow your revenue. To ensure we’re delivering the most valuable information for the industry, we’d love your input.
Please take a moment to share your feedback:
Which type of key information would be most valuable to you? (Only check the option that ranks as your highest priority) |
Your input will help shape the resources we create to better serve you and the industry. Thank you for being part of The Ecential community!
ECEntial Spotlight:
Jennifer Duffield is the founder of Dancing Moose Montessori, a community-centered institution serving the Salt Lake area with three of the most welcoming and high-quality Montessori schools around. I had the pleasure of interviewing Jennifer on the Childcare Business Podcast in 2021, where she shared some of her secret strategies for identifying and retaining top-notch teachers. Her approach goes beyond simply offering a job—she provides her team with a sense of purpose and a nurturing environment. Although this conversation is nearly four years old, the insights Jennifer shared remain just as relevant and impactful today!
IN THE NEWS
American Eagle Flight 5342 crashed into the Potomoc River Near Washington D.C last week after colliding with a military helicopter just before landing at Reagan National Airport. All 60 passengers and 4 flight crew were killed along with the 3 soldiers aboard the helicopter. This marks the worst aviation disaster in the U.S. since flight 587 crashed in 2001 leaving JFK International Airport. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims. 🙏
American-Israeli dual national Keith Siegel was among three hostages released yesterday as part of the continued ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel. As of today, 18 hostages have been released since the current agreement went into effect on 1/19/25.
President Trump’s cabinet picks faced varying degrees of scrutiny and questions during their confirmation hearings last week. In particular, Tulsi Gabbard, RFK Jr., and Kash Patel faced intense questions from senate members.
ECE stories that we think matter:
Fran Simon with Early Childhood Investigations Webinars announced that the technology company Playground has purchased the business.
Why would a CMS provider like Playground acquire a media resource? Simple: brand awareness, access to thousands of potential customers, and the power to shape content that influences buying decisions.
Unfortunately, the 100 year old Riverside Church’s Preschool in New York City is facing closure.
These stories have become all too common over the past few years. But we remain highly optimistic about the future of our industry — and our friends at Technavio have data to back it up!
This week, we spoke with ECE leaders from Michigan and Georgia who have connections at the state level, and we’re hearing that some states are exploring the idea of launching their own substitute teacher platforms. The goal? To create a reliable resource for centers facing staffing shortages. Stay tuned—there’s more to come on this topic soon!
Last week, the Office of Budget and Management under President Trump’s direction released a memo to pause all federal financial assistance programs, impacting organizations such as Head Start! Early Learning Nation had this take for those interested in a deeper dive of the impacts.
AI for your school:
An increasing number of business owners are turning to AI tools to streamline and enhance various aspects of their operations. Here’s a quick list of three tools you might want to try.
Lindy.ai
Child care owners can use Lindy.ai to automate administrative tasks, optimize staff scheduling, simplify parent communication, and boost enrollment processes—all powered by AI-driven insights—helping save time and increase operational efficiency.
Fyxer.ai
Fyxer.ai offers a range of use cases, but our favorite is its ability to join your digital meetings and provide an accurate, detailed, and actionable summary as soon as the meeting ends—delivered straight to your inbox in an executive email. Imagine every team member receiving a summary of key points from your staff meeting, without you having to lift a finger!
ChatGPT
By now, most of us are familiar with ChatGPT (by OpenAI), the groundbreaking AI tool. Here at The Ecential, we regularly use it for research, brainstorming ideas, and even for spelling and grammar checks. This powerful tool can help enhance your school newsletters, staff memos, and parent communications too!
Parting Thoughts:
🚗 Isn’t it amazing how you’re always the perfect driver? Everyone else seems to make those irritating little driving mistakes, but not you 😂. Me either!
🫎 Did you know that the plural form of the word moose is……….also moose?
YOUR VOICE COUNTS
Is there a topic you want more info on or want to share a funny story? Then let us know! Shoot us a quick email at [email protected]. This newsletter is for you, and well, you should have a say, don't’ you think?
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