Where can I find grants to open a Daycare Center?

I would like to find any information on any Grants. To build an Daycare Center in Faulkner Country, Conway AR.

• Answer:

  It is hard to find grants to start a business. Unlike the myths that some perpetuate, federal government and even private foundations hardly give grant money for a for-profit business. And yes, grants mean PAPERWORK - lots and lots of it, that is why a cottage industry of grant writers was born. Nonetheless, you can go to the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) http://www.cfda.gov and Grants.gov http://www.grants.gov - these are two sites created by the federal government to provide transparency and information on grants. Browse through the listings and see if you can find any grant that would support a for-profit venture. Even if you buy books on "how to get grants" or list that supposedly has information on grants -- all of them are mere rehash of what CFDA has, albeit packaged differently. But still the info is the same - hardly any grants for starting a for profit business. Even SBA does NOT give out grants. From the SBA website http://www.sba.gov/expanding/grants.html "The U.S. Small Business Administration does not offer grants to start or expand small businesses, although it does offer a wide variety of loan programs. (See http://www.sba.gov/financing for more information) While SBA does offer some grant programs, these are generally designed to expand and enhance organizations that provide small business management, technical, or financial assistance. These grants generally support non-profit organizations, intermediary lending institutions, and state and local governments." Most of the federal grants are given to specific target groups with specific requirements (e.g. minority business owners involved in transportation related contracts emanating from DOT - Grant#20.905 Disadvantaged Business Enterprises Short Term Lending Program Grants are also often given to non profit groups or organizations involved in training or other similar activities (grant 59.043 Women's Business Ownership Assistance that are given to those who will create women's business center that will train women entrepreneurs For private grants, you may want to check the Foundation Center's Foundation Grants for Individuals Online. It's a subscription based website ($9.95 per month) but their opening blurb only says that the database is ideal for "students, artists, academic researchers, libraries and financial aid offices." Entrepreneurs are apparently not one of them, so I take it they also don't have listings of private foundations who give grants to would-be entrepreneurs. For more information on starting and daycare and finding financing, here are free business plans on childcare business: http://www.sba.gov/library/pubs/mp-30.doc http://www.misbtdc.org/documents/BPWORKBK.pdf http://www.misbtdc.org/documents/CDCPLAN.pdf http://sbdcnet.utsa.edu/sbic/bplans.htm You may want to read the free article "How To Start Your Own Day Care Center" http://www.powerhomebiz.com/vol40/daycare.htm It covers various aspects of starting and running a daycare center including the demand for daycare centers, how to start this business, shoestring strategies, how to operate a daycare center, tips on caring for the children, income potential, how to manage your daycare, marketing your business and other additional income potential. There are so many things to learn about the business that the first step is to read everything you can find. For in-depth information, I suggest checking out the following books: - Start and Run a Profitable Home Day Care - The Daycare Provider's Workbook - Start Your Own At-Home Child Care Business - So You Want to Open a Profitable Child Care Center : Everything You Need to Know to Plan, Organize and Implement a Successful Program It is also important that you learn the tax rules affecting daycare centers, especially if you are going to open one from your home. Here is the IRS page on child care centers: http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/industries/content/0,,id=99878,00.html