🧊 CCDF Funds Frozen - 4 Steps To Protect Your ECE Core

Today’s Issue: ECE Funds Frozen; Creating a Magical Family Experience; ECE in the News = 1.5 cups of coffee..

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🥶 Frozen ECE Funds: Oh boy. Federal childcare funds, specifically those tied to the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), are being temporarily frozen or put on hold across ALL 50 states until states provide additional documentation and verification showing the funds are being used correctly. So what caused this? A viral video alleging widespread fraud at some centers in Minnesota. Goes to show; how quickly your centers can be represented via video is scary, and importantly, impactful. Read more 👉👉👉 HERE!!

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🎓 4 Areas to Protect ECE Operations

Last week, we covered insights from industry experts that speak to the changing times from pre-COVID through today. The underlying message: Protect your core.

Providers that rely on CCDF or subsidies could be affected BIG TIME, including:

• Private for-profit centers that contract with the state to serve subsidized children.

• Nonprofit providers participating in state subsidy programs.

• Family home and smaller group providers receiving reimbursements.

Centers that don’t take subsidies are less affected, but disruptions still impact demand in local markets. It’s a ripple effect.

That is why protecting your core is so critical. Just improving your staff’s time spent can make a HUGE impact to your value proposition.

See Below👇👇. Most centers focus their time on Low Value areas. Our blog post tackles how to turn Low Value time into High Value results.

👇‼️ Our blog post covers the foundations of what you can do to turn your team’s time into VALUE below.👇‼️👇

🧚‍♀️“Be Our Guest” - Creating a Magical Customer Experience

We all know that first Impressions mean EVERYTHING. It doesn’t matter if you are a nonprofit, corporation or a home center. That first “feeling” a family gets is what determines if they choose you.

Spoiler Alert: This webinar is an hour long. But it’s focused on how to create that first Magical Customer and Parent Experience. It’s legit. Feel free to listen at it a 2x speed. But HUNDREDS of ECE leaders listened to it and LOVED it. 👇‼️

ECE In The News

🗞️ 2025 News Recap: We try to gather as much information as possible. But seeing we are in 2026, we found this link that has a running list of 2025 ECE headlines and updates. More 👉👉 HERE

🆓 Free Preschool for Higher Income Families?!: As states continue to work through the challenges and loopholes of providing free preschool, California seems to be struggling with the opposite effect. High income families are driving the enrollment designed to help families in need. Read more 👉👉 HERE?

The Internet is a Playground:

🗓️ On this Day in History: In 1838, Samuel Morse demonstrated the telegraph, a device which used electric impulses to transmit encoded messages over a wire. Tip: Create a simple slide to teach kids how communication evolved over the last 100 years! 🆘

👑 Celebrity Parenting: Check out Ciara’s thoughts on how to raise a kid.

🐾 Aww: Cats breakdancing.

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