Childcare West Virginia: Building the Business that Supports Business – Pilot Program
On Wednesday, January, 2025 the West Virginia Small Business Development Center (WV SBDC) launched a new Childcare West Virginia: Building the Business that Supports Business initiative.
This project is funded by the Appalachian Regional Commission’s (ARC) POWER Initiative and is in partnership with the West Virginia Workforce Resiliency Office and private childcare development firm Wonderschool.
This initiative will increase access to affordable child care by establishing new profitable childcare businesses, helping existing childcare providers operate more efficiently and allowing employers to recruit and retain workers by offsetting childcare costs.
The project area for the pilot program will include eight coal-impacted counties: Boone, Jackson, Kanawha, Lincoln, Mason, Putnam, Roane and Wirt.
The Tri-Share Pilot program is planned to launch in March 2025. The SBDC and Wonderschool are speaking with potential employers about participating in the pilot now. For more information or if you are an interested employer, please visit www.wonderschool.com/corp/west-virginia-trishare or contact wv-trishare@wonderschool.com.
For the Childcare Business Assistance program, we are actively recruiting qualified candidates who are interested in establishing their own childcare businesses and speaking with existing childcare providers about receiving business coaching and support. For more information and if you are interested in participating, please visit www.wonderschool.com/corp/west-virginia or contact wvcoaching@wonderschool.com.
Childcare Industry Resources
The landscape of the childcare industry in West Virginia has many different rules and regulations that can be challenging for entrepreneurs to navigate. That is why the WV SBDC has developed resource guides to assist small businesses with this information. Below, you will find childcare guides divided by geographic regions. These guides are designed to aid small business owners and startups along with one-on-one assistance from one of our Business Coaches. To become a client of WV SBDC and benefit from this assistance, click the “Become A Client” link above.