Latest / The Inspired Stories Podcast / The Outdoor Classroom: Tiffany Madrid's Nature-Based Approach to Childcare | Childcare Series

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The Outdoor Classroom: Tiffany Madrid's Nature-Based Approach to Childcare | Childcare Series · The Inspired Stories Podcast

• 0:04
  Welcome to another edition of Inspired Stories, where leaders
• 0:07
  share their experiences so we can learn from their successes,
• 0:10
  how they've overcome adversity, and explore current challenges
• 0:13
  they're facing. Welcome to another edition of
• 0:18
  the Inspired Stories podcast, where leaders share their
• 0:21
  experiences so we can learn from their successes and be inspired
• 0:24
  by how they've overcome adversity.
• 0:26
  My name is Anthony Kotaspodi, and today's guest is Tiffany Ana
• 0:29
  Madrid, founder of Strong Foundations Learning Center, a
• 0:33
  childcare center in 1000 Palms, California.
• 0:37
  They post their rates directly on their website
• 0:40
  whichcanbefound@strongfoundationslearningcenter.org. Their tuition includes all meals
• 0:45
  and snacks. They even serve a vegetarian
• 0:48
  menu. Theirs is a play based center.
• 0:51
  They strongly believe that the workers of our country include
• 0:54
  children. Their play is not leisurely.
• 0:57
  Many of the materials they use resemble those that adults
• 1:00
  identify with leisure. But children don't engage in
• 1:03
  leisurely activity. They build, they hit, they run,
• 1:06
  they test, they negotiate, they venture, they shout, they cry,
• 1:09
  they talk, they listen, they get hurt, they try again.
• 1:14
  They cope endlessly with the tasks of being human.
• 1:17
  They believe that when a child works at his own level of
• 1:19
  interest, competence and understanding, he is making
• 1:22
  steady progress toward independent thinking, creative
• 1:25
  flexibility, easy adjustment to new situations, and other
• 1:29
  important curriculum goals. Now before we get into all that
• 1:32
  good stuff, today's episode is brought to you by my company,
• 1:36
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  To find out if your company qualifies, contact us today at
• 2:00
  Add Back benefitsagency.com. Now back to our guest today, the
• 2:03
  founder of Strong Foundations Learning Center.
• 2:06
  Tiffany, I appreciate you making the time to Share your story
• 2:08
  today. Good morning.
• 2:10
  I'm so happy to be here. So Tiffany, let's go back to the
• 2:14
  beginning. When did you first start your
• 2:16
  daycare and what was the inspiration behind doing so?
• 2:20
  Yeah. So I opened in July of 20/20/12
• 2:25
  and prior to that I had worked for a child care Center for
• 2:31
  eight years and that child care center was ran out of the same
• 2:35
  building that I'm currently operating in.
• 2:38
  The owner decided to retire and that left the building vacant
• 2:43
  and I talked to the landlord and was able to work out a lease and
• 2:48
  got a business loan and started a child care center.
• 2:53
  So it wasn't that you were taking over the existing 1, You
• 2:57
  didn't buy the existing business.
• 2:58
  That one had wound down and then you were starting again, having
• 3:03
  to find your own students. Is that right?
• 3:07
  Correct. Yeah.
• 3:08
  I started off with 17 my first week that I opened and then by
• 3:13
  the first month I was at 30 children and then by the end of
• 3:17
  six months I was already at 125. So it moved, it filled real
• 3:22
  quick. Yeah, I did.
• 3:25
  How did you get those first 17 so quickly?
• 3:28
  Those 17 were from the previous childcare center.
• 3:32
  Those were the 17 that chose to stay with me.
• 3:36
  OK. And then by the end of the month
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  you were at 30. That's not quite doubling, but
• 3:41
  pretty close. How did that happen?
• 3:44
  So a lot of families that are enrolled in my center are low
• 3:48
  income families. So they provide, they get
• 3:50
  substances from the county which pays for their childcare center
• 3:53
  or their childcare. And so with the Riverside County
• 3:58
  Office of Education, I'm a provider that accepts that
• 4:01
  funding. So I'm on like a list.
• 4:04
  So when parents receive the funding, they're given a list of
• 4:06
  child care centers and I'm on there.
• 4:08
  So honestly, that's the only advertising that I have to do.
• 4:14
  And is that still hold true till today?
• 4:16
  You don't do any traditional marketing or advertising.
• 4:19
  All those folks are coming from that list that you're on.
• 4:22
  Yes, correct. There's just such a big need for
• 4:25
  child care right now that advertising is really not
• 4:28
  necessary. What's the process of getting on
• 4:34
  that list being approved to accept these state subsidies?
• 4:40
  So there's a website which is the Riverside County Office of
• 4:44
  Education. They have locations in all, all
• 4:47
  of our local cities nearby and parents would go in or actually
• 4:50
  they could go online and fill an application now.
• 4:54
  And then they'll get a call back anywhere from a month to say six
• 4:58
  months. And then they'll just complete
• 5:00
  the application process, you know, providing their financial
• 5:03
  information. And then if they can prove that
• 5:05
  they're in need, the county will issue them a certificate, and
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  then that certificate can be used at preschools that accept
• 5:11
  it. And so how do you get to be a
• 5:14
  school that can accept this funding?
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  You have to obviously get in touch with Riverside County
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  Office of Education and let them know that you're interested and
• 5:25
  you sign up for it and make sure that you have qualified staff,
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  you have the right environments. I mean there are basic
• 5:31
  qualifications that you would have to meet.
• 5:36
  Why don't all daycares go through this process?
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  Because in a way, they kind of tell you how to run your school.
• 5:45
  You know, you have to do things their way.
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  And I think most schools do accept it.
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  Though to be honest with you, I only know of one or two in our
• 5:55
  valley that don't. And so this is a county by
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  county basis, not a state program.
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  To my knowledge, yes, it is a county.
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  And so when you were first getting started, you got a
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  business loan to help get things rolling, was that difficult?
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  Actually no, because I had a friend that I was able to ask
• 6:18
  and was able to loan me the money.
• 6:21
  Oh great, So you didn't have to go through SBA or the
• 6:24
  traditional bank loan process? No.
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  That's terrific that that makes things a lot smoother coming out
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  of the gate. And the nice thing is that you
• 6:34
  had, I think you said eight years of experience working in
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  the very same physical space in the same industry in this in
• 6:42
  child care. So it's not like you were coming
• 6:45
  into this blind like you, you knew how a center needed to run.
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  I don't know, maybe you knew the software tools or the forms that
• 6:53
  you needed or the steps to follow.
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  Like, you know, the infrastructure was kind of there
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  for you already because you've been working it in it so long.
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  Yeah, and I actually started when I was 15, so I kind of was
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  a helper. So I was like all around.
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  And then I slowly just started working every area.
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  I was the infant and toddler teacher than the infant toddler
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  director. I did the preschool and the
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  preschool director, and then I did school age and school age
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  director. So I got a little bit of
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  experience in those eight years in every part of the school.
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  And then I also ran the office for a year.
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  I ran the kitchen for a year. Like I was just that person that
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  was thrown everywhere so that when I was able to start the
• 7:36
  business, I didn't feel nervous or scared at all because like
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  you said, I knew the insurance and outs of the business.
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  What I didn't know was the financial part of it, the
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  business part of it. You know that part.
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  I didn't have as much knowledge as I I wish I had.
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  On the job? On the job training though,
• 7:55
  right? Definitely.
• 7:56
  Oh yeah, definitely. Like as you took over the
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  business and you had to start figuring those things out, were
• 8:01
  there people that you could go to as mentors or advisors to
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  kind of help you get up to speed?
• 8:08
  Yeah, so the landlord actually was helping me in the beginning,
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  and then now I have the person that does my taxes.
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  She's a lifelong friend and she really helps me out big time.
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  So I go to her a lot. That's great.
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  I want to go back to the state subsidies that make it more
• 8:30
  affordable for folks to access child care.
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  Talk to me about what the landscape for that looks like
• 8:39
  today. Is there enough funding?
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  Should there be more? Is there more on the way?
• 8:44
  Is it being pulled away? Talk.
• 8:47
  Talk me through that. OK, so in the past the state
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  would give Riverside County Office of Education dollars and
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  those dollars would go to providing free child care or low
• 9:00
  cost child care for families in need.
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  Now the state has moved to something called transitional
• 9:07
  kindergarten. So they're putting their funding
• 9:10
  in elementary schools who are now opening a new grade, which
• 9:14
  is called transitional kindergarten, which is taken the
• 9:17
  year before kindergarten. So basically that's their way of
• 9:20
  providing free preschool childcare to our families.
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  However, my issue with that one, it it really hurts private
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  preschools because they're taking our our pre-K program.
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  And two, in a preschool setting it's 1 teacher to 12 four year
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  olds with a class size of no more than 24.
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  And the reason for that is they're still young, they're
• 9:49
  still 4. They still need supervision.
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  When you get into a school district, the ratio then becomes
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  1 to 28. The class size can go up to 32.
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  The teacher may or may not have an aide.
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  And if they do have an aide, they may not have them all day.
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  These children at 4 are expected to be, you know, very
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  independent, and not all children are.
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  So I just don't feel like the school districts are qualified
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  and prepared environmentally and staff wise to provide, you know,
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  preschool education. Yet that's where our dollars
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  have gone. And I think that for me is the
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  biggest concern is what happens to the children who don't fit
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  that perfect mold for a four year old in an elementary
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  school, especially with our huge numbers of children with special
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  needs. They have just skyrocketed.
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  So those children don't fit. So now they're coming to places
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  like my school where it's a private preschool and I have
• 10:50
  qualified staff who can work with children at that age in
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  those group sizes and children with special needs.
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  And yes, the the quality of care is better, but the cost is high.
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  And if the funding is not there, how?
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  How are they going to afford that type of childcare?
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  And so how do they, what options are available to people in that
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  situation? Right now there is still RCOE
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  funding. However, I believe that those
• 11:16
  dollars are going down because the dollars are being sent to
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  the elementary school. So we're going to kind of see
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  how this transitional kindergarten works for the
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  elementary schools. You know, this is our third year
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  of doing it. And every year the window gets
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  bigger and bigger. So the first year they only
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  allowed kids in a birthday of these three months.
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  The later months of the year, October, September, October,
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  November, December. Now if you're born June through
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  December, you can right? That was last year, sorry.
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  And now this year it's open to anyone who's 4.
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  So this is their first year where they're going to have, you
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  know, full classrooms. So we'll we'll see.
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  I'm not really sure what what the answer is there.
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  Do you have you seen your enrollment numbers decrease then
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  because some people are going to this a Free State sponsored
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  version of the class? I pretty much do not have a four
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  year old classroom anymore. Oh wow.
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  Yeah. And I think another big fear
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  that I have is I think that the next step will be RCOE telling
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  these parents we are not going to provide child care funding
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  for you because your child can go to TK because there is a
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  transitional kindergarten spot available for you at whatever
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  elementary school you can go to. We're not going to provide
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  funding for children at 4 anymore.
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  I think that that is definitely my biggest fear at this at this
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  time. So it's a waiting game.
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  We're going to wait and see what they decide.
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  Is there any way to influence this process?
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  Do they seem to be open to feedback from the owners of
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  childcare centers? I mean, there's definitely
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  opportunities for us to put our, our voices out there, which we,
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  we try, you know, to do that. But at the end of the day, I
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  really think it's going to it's going to take our parents, you
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  know, they need to make sure they're voting for the right
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  people. And it's, you know, election
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  season is coming up. And I think it's really, really
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  important that people pay attention to what these
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  candidates can do for them and. When you say our parents, you
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  don't mean my parents and your parents, you mean the parents of
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  the kids that you're serving. Obviously, yes, children,
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  parents of children in the state of California, in the country.
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  I mean, I'm not really sure what other states offer, but in
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  California we definitely have a lot of funding that goes to
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  child care, and I want it to stay that way.
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  Our kids need it. Yeah, I can tell this is an
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  issue that you're pretty passionate about, making sure
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  that early childhood education is accessible not just to the
• 13:54
  children of the parents who can afford it, but all of the
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  children. Right.
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  I don't, I don't. Is there an answer for, you
• 14:02
  know, how to make that happen? Obviously it, you know, it takes
• 14:04
  more dollars to take care of more kids and it's important,
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  especially at this stage of life.
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  But I don't, I don't know how do we get from here to there.
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  Like you said, just allocating dollars towards that, making
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  that a priority, taking care of our children, making sure that
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  our children are always have education and food.
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  Those are the two things that it's important.
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  All our kids should have fair, equal rights to those two
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  things, and early childhood education has to be made a
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  priority as well. Tell me about the food.
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  Tell me about the menu that you guys offer because it's it's all
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  included. All meals and snacks are part of
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  the tuition. What?
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  What can the kids expect to have on hand?
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  So we serve a vegetarian menu, which I know can sound a little
• 14:51
  intimidating, but it's really not.
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  We serve very typical normal things like quesadillas,
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  spaghetti, oatmeal, eggs, scrambled egg, burritos.
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  We do a little bit of tofu, we do a little bit of soy stuff to
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  mix it up. Everything is fresh fruits,
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  fresh vegetables. We have a full time chef.
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  She makes all of our meals here on site.
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  We serve breakfast, an AM snack, a lunch, and APM snack.
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  We eat family style, which means that the children serve
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  themselves. We all eat at the table
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  together. I am funded by the USDA food
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  program, so they do give me a little bit of dollars to help
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  make sure that we're feeding everybody with the healthiest
• 15:33
  nutritious meals that we can. So that's that's very helpful.
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  But I think for me, the food, why it's so important to me is
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  because their diets play a big part in their education and
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  their development. So it's important that our kids
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  are not being fed a bunch of sugar, fake dyes, all kinds of
• 15:55
  liquids full of sweeteners. So we try really hard just to
• 15:58
  make sure that they're eating a natural, healthy diet.
• 16:04
  That's terrific. So tell me about the education
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  part of it. Walk me through your approach to
• 16:10
  curriculum and early childhood education.
• 16:13
  OK. Yeah.
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  So we're play based, which a lot of people feel like, oh, we just
• 16:18
  throw the kids in the backyard and say run wild.
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  And that's very much not what it is.
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  So I like to make sure I clear that up in the beginning.
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  So what play based means is that we educate children through
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  experiences, through activities. So yes, they have the freedom to
• 16:36
  choose their activities or choose their areas that they
• 16:39
  want to be in. However, no matter what area or
• 16:44
  activity they choose, we will be fostering their education
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  through that activity. So, for example, if I have a
• 16:51
  child who's all about cars and building with blocks, I'm not
• 16:55
  going to force him to go paint. I'm going to let him build with
• 17:00
  these blocks and these cars and think, how can I incorporate
• 17:03
  painting into the blocks and cars that he's already
• 17:06
  interested in? So that way children when, when
• 17:10
  they are interested in a subject or, or something, they want to
• 17:14
  learn and it makes it so much easier for us as educators.
• 17:19
  And also it creates a very relaxed environment which helps
• 17:23
  children learn. So we, we also spend a lot, a
• 17:26
  lot of time outside. So every classroom I have has
• 17:29
  its own playground outside, right outside their classroom,
• 17:33
  sliding glass door. So in their yard, they have
• 17:37
  grass, mud, sand, trees. They have all the elements, all
• 17:41
  the loose parts, and they get to go and be outside.
• 17:45
  Why children are happier outside?
• 17:48
  They just are. So are we as staff, you know,
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  And also, there's just so much out there to learn.
• 17:54
  Science, engineering, I mean just so much endless
• 17:59
  possibilities. While it is hot out here, we do
• 18:03
  a lot of water play. So we are outside all the time
• 18:06
  year round. We just make it fun and safe for
• 18:09
  them. And it's it's going really
• 18:11
  great. I think that having a play based
• 18:13
  philosophy, the kids are happy. They don't cry when they get
• 18:17
  dropped off. They cry when they have to go
• 18:18
  home. You know, they love it here.
• 18:21
  So I think it's, it's the right, it's the right way to raise
• 18:26
  children, educate children. I'm a big believer in play and,
• 18:29
  you know, not being so structured and rigid.
• 18:31
  Oh. That's terrific.
• 18:33
  I don't know what that does to the parents psyche to have their
• 18:36
  kids be upset to see them, but certainly reassuring that
• 18:40
  they're they're not sad to be there during the day.
• 18:43
  Because I know as a parent who put, you know, their kids in
• 18:46
  child care for a number of years, yeah, it was always on
• 18:49
  the back of my mind, like, what's, you know, what's my son
• 18:51
  doing? Is he OK?
• 18:52
  Is he playing? Is he sad?
• 18:54
  Is he hurt? Is he tired?
• 18:56
  Is he eating? So wow, That's great that you've
• 18:58
  created an environment where the kids are so happy to be there.
• 19:01
  Yeah. And a quick note on that.
• 19:04
  During COVID, we made a big change and went to electrical or
• 19:09
  electronic communication. So I downloaded an OR.
• 19:14
  I purchased an app called Brightwheel and it was one of
• 19:17
  the greatest things that came out of my COVID experience.
• 19:21
  This app allows me to communicate with my parents in
• 19:24
  real time. So my teachers are logging when
• 19:27
  the kids are eating, when they're going to the bathroom,
• 19:29
  when they're sleeping, incidents that happen, fun things that
• 19:33
  happen, pictures, videos, and it's all on this app that is
• 19:37
  safe and secure and allows us to share, like I said, in real time
• 19:41
  with the parents so that they're not at work wondering what's
• 19:44
  going on with our with my kid. They can go on and they can see
• 19:47
  and it makes them feel so much better.
• 19:49
  And I just absolutely love it. It's one of the greatest things
• 19:52
  I've ever done and I plan on continuing for sure.
• 19:56
  Yeah. And again as a parent that with
• 20:00
  kids at a child care center that have a similar app.
• 20:03
  Man, I look forward to getting those pictures and those
• 20:05
  updates, especially, you know, when I knew that my son had had
• 20:10
  a difficult morning or, you know, a tough time the evening
• 20:13
  before and I wasn't sure how they were going to do then.
• 20:17
  You know, I can communicate that to the teachers during the drop
• 20:19
  off. And they were even better about
• 20:23
  sending updates to give me that reassurance.
• 20:25
  So it's great that you've got an app like that in place for
• 20:28
  parents because that that does give us a lot of Peace of Mind.
• 20:31
  Yes. So I'm kind of curious, what do
• 20:36
  you feel Tiffany sets your child care center apart from maybe
• 20:42
  some of the others that are out there?
• 20:47
  I think that in order to have happy children you have to have
• 20:52
  happy staff and I'm very conscious and aware of my staff
• 21:00
  morale and also my staff's relationship with me.
• 21:05
  I'm very hands on. I'm the owner, I'm the director,
• 21:08
  I'm also the lead school age teacher.
• 21:11
  I'm here every day in the trenches with my staff.
• 21:14
  I also love what I do so I don't want to be stuck behind a
• 21:17
  computer just running the business.
• 21:18
  I want to be a teacher at the same time and I think that as a
• 21:22
  team we collectively have the same goals, but we all, we all
• 21:30
  really just get along with each other.
• 21:31
  And I make sure that, you know, everyone is happy and we work
• 21:35
  our problems out and we're really, really great team.
• 21:38
  And I really feel like my team is what makes this place what it
• 21:42
  is. Without my team, I don't think I
• 21:45
  would be where I am today. A lot of my girls have been here
• 21:47
  with me since day one and they work so hard and they're just so
• 21:53
  passionate for what they do. And I just, I really believe
• 21:56
  that the team makes the environment, you know, if we can
• 22:00
  feel good and relaxed and happy and safe, the kids will feel it
• 22:03
  too. That's great.
• 22:06
  The environment that you're describing obviously sounds like
• 22:09
  one that, you know, once people get into that employment
• 22:13
  environment with you, they're more likely to stay because they
• 22:16
  feel like they're part of a team.
• 22:18
  Everybody's getting along. They look forward to being
• 22:21
  around the folks that they work with.
• 22:23
  How do you find new people and and bring them into that
• 22:29
  environment? What's that recruiting process
• 22:31
  look like these days? That is my biggest struggle
• 22:34
  these days for sure since COVID. I just feel like pre COVID if I
• 22:39
  put out an A job I'd go on indeedorcare.com you know?
• 22:44
  And I pay this monthly rate to put an ad out.
• 22:47
  I would just pay one month and I'd get 25 applicants.
• 22:50
  I'd interview a few, find the one I like.
• 22:53
  Good to go now since COVID, in the last three months I have
• 22:58
  paid to have applicants and I've hired 1 and I've probably had
• 23:06
  three people actually seriously come in and interview for the
• 23:09
  position and two of them I did not.
• 23:11
  I couldn't hire and so I only chose the one.
• 23:15
  I do get a lot of people that apply that do not have the units
• 23:18
  from college which I can't hire. So if you don't have college
• 23:23
  courses, you can't supervise children in the state of
• 23:27
  California. So a lot of people apply for the
• 23:29
  job thinking they don't need anything.
• 23:30
  Well, in order to be a qualified preschool teacher, you do, you
• 23:33
  have to have education. So that's kind of been a
• 23:36
  downfall too. But I'm not sure.
• 23:39
  I just feel like a lot of people have left the field.
• 23:41
  I lost in 2020. I lost probably eight teachers
• 23:46
  that chose not to come back. That's a big hole to fill.
• 23:52
  Definitely. So I'm at 154 is the most
• 23:55
  children I can have and right now I'm at 90.
• 23:59
  I could go higher with my kids, but I'm not because I don't have
• 24:02
  the staff. So right now, my staff is what's
• 24:05
  really, really hurting my business.
• 24:08
  Wow, that's powerful. And do you think most of the
• 24:12
  daycares around you are experiencing the same kind of
• 24:15
  shortage of, you know, good labor or is it, you know,
• 24:18
  something, the ones? Who have the ones who have
• 24:20
  survived COVID? Yes, they are struggling just as
• 24:23
  much as I am. And that's an interesting
• 24:27
  qualifier that you throw out there, the ones that have
• 24:29
  survived COVID, which says that there are many who did not.
• 24:34
  I was very blessed. I was trying to save to purchase
• 24:39
  a new location. I wanted to own my own location
• 24:42
  instead of lease it. So I had been saving a lot of
• 24:46
  money and I had about $50,000 saved up and that is what got me
• 24:51
  through COVID. If I didn't have my backup
• 24:53
  savings, I would have been, I would have been gone too.
• 24:57
  So between my savings and all the help and support that I got
• 25:01
  from the state of California and the federal government, I don't
• 25:04
  think I would be here where I am today.
• 25:06
  So I'm really grateful for that. Yeah, I've heard this.
• 25:10
  Story again and again from the survivors, not from the folks
• 25:14
  who didn't make it that yeah, a lot of their friends, a lot of
• 25:17
  their peers had centers that that just couldn't survive that
• 25:21
  couldn't shoulder the the debt burden, couldn't keep the doors
• 25:25
  open, couldn't keep paying staff that, you know, without the the
• 25:29
  kids being there. And, you know, and it, it kind
• 25:32
  of goes back to your earlier point about, you know, needing
• 25:35
  some of these subsidies to be able to, you know, give access
• 25:41
  to, to child care to more people, you know, and it, it
• 25:44
  feels like it even a more foundational level, like there
• 25:47
  need to be some grant or loan programs that are available for
• 25:51
  people to open or reopen centers that got decimated during COVID.
• 25:56
  Yes. Yes, yes, yes.
• 25:59
  I totally, totally agree with that.
• 26:02
  I think that we need to pay our teachers more money.
• 26:04
  That's what I think. I think that if we could get
• 26:06
  some more dollars, that would really help us pay our teachers
• 26:09
  more money. It's really hard for me to say,
• 26:12
  hey, come work for me at $18.00 an hour and do this really hard
• 26:16
  job. I mean, this is not, this is a
• 26:18
  very hard job and it can be very thankless sometimes.
• 26:22
  So it's difficult to ask them that when I know they can go
• 26:25
  work at in and out for $25.00 an hour.
• 26:28
  And that's where I struggle and that's where the ones that have
• 26:32
  stayed are here because their heart is here and they can.
• 26:36
  And some people couldn't, they had to leave because they
• 26:39
  financially couldn't. And I understand that and I'm my
• 26:41
  heart's with them. But the ones that have stayed,
• 26:44
  you know, it's time, it's time that the state gives us money to
• 26:49
  help pay these teachers more. And all they talk about is
• 26:54
  elementary and you know, school, public school teachers and
• 26:57
  getting them more money and getting them more money.
• 26:59
  But the conversation needs to be had about preschool teachers as
• 27:01
  well. They're just as important as
• 27:04
  school teachers. Yeah, this is a point.
• 27:07
  That's been covered a lot on this show here is right.
• 27:11
  Why are, you know, once your kids, at least where I live,
• 27:15
  once they turn 5 or 6 and they go to kindergarten, why are
• 27:17
  those teachers paid so much more than the the teachers who helped
• 27:21
  take care of, you know, from infant up to that point?
• 27:24
  Those years aren't any less important, arguably more
• 27:27
  important, but the the pay structure is completely,
• 27:33
  completely different. Yeah, and.
• 27:35
  Benefits. They get benefits.
• 27:36
  You know, for a small business like me, I can't afford to do
• 27:39
  that. If I could, I would.
• 27:41
  And and I believe most child care centers would.
• 27:45
  But it's very. Difficult for me to raise my
• 27:49
  prices. You know?
• 27:52
  Like I said, it's $1500 a month for an infant and that's just so
• 27:55
  I can keep my doors open. If I want to pay my teachers
• 27:58
  more, I'd have to ask for $2000 a month.
• 28:01
  That's a lot of money to ask from a single mom with three
• 28:05
  kids doing the best she can waitressing tables.
• 28:09
  Like I just so I morally struggle with the raising my
• 28:12
  rates too. And even if I did make that
• 28:15
  decision, who can afford that? We need help you make a
• 28:22
  compelling. Case Tiffany What are some of
• 28:25
  the most common concerns that parents have when starting their
• 28:29
  kids at a new school like yours, and what can you tell them to
• 28:32
  put their minds at ease? I think that they worry that
• 28:36
  they're going to cry all day and they're not going to be taken
• 28:39
  care of. So I do tell my parents, you
• 28:42
  know, some children struggle the first two weeks.
• 28:45
  There's going to be a lot of tears.
• 28:46
  But don't worry, we got a lot of hugs.
• 28:48
  We got a lot of arms. We're going to be holding them
• 28:51
  and hugging them and encouraging them to play new fun things, go
• 28:54
  for a walk. Like I said, we're very relaxed
• 28:58
  environment and so the kids aren't, it's not so structured.
• 29:02
  So the kids are like so stressed out.
• 29:04
  I feel like when a child comes in for the first day, very
• 29:08
  little is expected. You know, we just kind of get
• 29:11
  through the day, get to know each other and then the
• 29:13
  Brightwill app is huge. That's how I feel parents feel
• 29:17
  comfortable leaving their kids. I also personally interview
• 29:21
  every parent, do a walkthrough with them, give them my cell
• 29:25
  phone number, tell them who I am, where I'm from, what I've
• 29:27
  done. I think that that personal
• 29:30
  connection and interaction means a lot.
• 29:32
  You know, if if you don't trust me enough to give me your car
• 29:35
  keys, you can't give me your child.
• 29:37
  So if they're going to leave me their baby, they need to know
• 29:40
  who I am. And so I think that's really
• 29:42
  important. And a lot of childcare center
• 29:44
  owners are not as hands on like that.
• 29:46
  And that is the number one thing I hear from parents that are new
• 29:49
  starting. The fact that we even are
• 29:51
  getting a chance to meet you, let alone you're the one
• 29:54
  enrolling us, is just crazy because most child care centers
• 29:57
  we've toured, we have to set an appointment and we won't even be
• 30:00
  able to meet the owner until a month after we've already
• 30:02
  started. And that's, you know, makes
• 30:04
  parents feel a little nervous. Well, I like that.
• 30:09
  I remember when we first enrolled our oldest son in child
• 30:14
  care and it was a similar situation where it was the owner
• 30:18
  who gave us the tour. You know, they were still a
• 30:21
  little bit smaller. They, they grew, you know, from
• 30:24
  that point. But it was so nice being able to
• 30:27
  talk to her directly and what she looks for in hiring people
• 30:30
  and just, you know, hear her story that that really gave us a
• 30:34
  sense of calm and comfort and was like, at that point, you
• 30:38
  know, we were almost begging, yet please let us in.
• 30:40
  This is the place that we want to be.
• 30:43
  Yep, and I hear that a lot too from a lot of parents because we
• 30:47
  do have a waiting list, especially from our for our
• 30:49
  infants and toddlers. The need for infant toddler care
• 30:52
  is just so big right now in this valley.
• 30:56
  I believe we just lost another infant toddler center out here.
• 31:00
  So that's another big, you know, downfall for our community.
• 31:05
  Ioffer a total of 13 infant toddler spots and that's not
• 31:10
  very much. And I consider myself to be one
• 31:12
  of the bigger ones in the valley.
• 31:14
  So that that really shows you a lot of preschools don't even
• 31:17
  offer infant toddler care. So because the ratios.
• 31:20
  That are required for that are so, so much more of a financial
• 31:26
  burden. You need more teachers per kid,
• 31:29
  which means you got to charge more, you know, for those kids.
• 31:32
  And like you said before, like the parents are having a hard
• 31:34
  time affording this already, right?
• 31:37
  Right. But this is kind of what I tell
• 31:39
  myself is if I can keep that number low and I can and I can
• 31:43
  get in a parent that can afford it and we can meet each other
• 31:46
  that compromise. Once you get a baby, that baby's
• 31:49
  with you until they're five. And if you look at it as an
• 31:52
  investment, I really just feel like my infant and toddler, I, I
• 31:57
  make enough money to pay the bills, right?
• 32:00
  I don't really make profit off my infant and toddler center.
• 32:02
  However, it's provides enrollment, long term enrollment
• 32:07
  and it's also providing a service to the community that
• 32:09
  they need that we need, you know, so if you look at it that
• 32:13
  way, I really think it's important that a, a child care
• 32:15
  center has an infant and toddler program.
• 32:19
  Now with. Transitional kindergarten going
• 32:22
  to the state, Do you see increasing the younger age
• 32:27
  brackets? That's my plan.
• 32:29
  Yes I plan on taking my fours classroom re licensing it which
• 32:33
  may take a few months to an infant toddler program and then
• 32:37
  being able to open at least 12 more infant toddler spots.
• 32:41
  OK. Well, that would certainly.
• 32:43
  Be welcome news in your area, considering that you guys just
• 32:47
  lost one of your centers there. Yes, definitely.
• 32:51
  Tiffany. What advice do you have for
• 32:53
  parents who are looking at multiple schools and trying to
• 32:57
  decide which one is best for them?
• 33:00
  OK. In the state of California, you
• 33:02
  can look up any child care center through the Community
• 33:08
  Care Licensing Division website, which is the state website, and
• 33:12
  you can type in the child care center's name and it will show
• 33:15
  you all the things that they've been cited for.
• 33:19
  And I think that's really important because after you've
• 33:23
  been cited for something, you only have to share that for two
• 33:26
  years. And then after that, you no
• 33:27
  longer have to share it. In our valley right now, we have
• 33:31
  quite a few schools that are under investigations.
• 33:35
  And so I always tell parents when they're looking, it's
• 33:37
  important to check the website because it'll show you exactly
• 33:41
  what they've been cited for. And then you can ask questions
• 33:43
  on how did you fix that? How do what, what's going on now
• 33:47
  that I don't have to worry about that from happening again.
• 33:50
  So I would say definitely check that #2 how much are they
• 33:54
  getting to move their bodies? It's really, really important
• 33:57
  that children are able to move their bodies.
• 34:00
  So are they getting 30 minutes of playtime or in the mornings?
• 34:04
  Or are they getting an hour and a half of playtime?
• 34:07
  Because a lot of preschools only provide 30 minutes of playtime
• 34:10
  in the morning. The rest is sitting down in a
• 34:13
  chair. That's not appropriate for a
• 34:15
  three-year old. At least that's not what I would
• 34:17
  want for my child, you know, So things like that, making sure
• 34:20
  that they're getting that the time to move their bodies.
• 34:22
  And then last, discipline. How are they disciplining your
• 34:26
  child? Because all schools do it
• 34:28
  differently and you want to make sure that it aligns with what
• 34:30
  you're doing at home. How do you approach discipline
• 34:36
  for me? Personally, I believe that it is
• 34:40
  us working with the child in that individual moment.
• 34:43
  So I do not believe in time out. If a child hits another child
• 34:49
  because that child took their shovel, it's getting down on
• 34:52
  their level and saying, whoa, whoa, whoa, what happened here?
• 34:55
  Oh, you took his shovel? Why?
• 34:57
  Why did you take his? Oh, you want one?
• 34:58
  Oh, well, where are the shovels? Can we all go find a shovel?
• 35:02
  How can we make this right? You hit him, let's say sorry and
• 35:05
  just working with the children so often we want to, you know,
• 35:10
  punish, punish, punish. And we have to remind ourselves
• 35:12
  they're not criminals, they're children and they need to be
• 35:16
  told 1000 times it's not OK to run in the classroom because
• 35:20
  they're children and it's OK. So patience too, you know, as
• 35:24
  long as everyone's safe, we can be patient and we can keep
• 35:27
  working on it. You know, when kids are not
• 35:29
  being safe, then that's when we get a little bit more use our
• 35:32
  mom voice, you know, And but again, it's still just having
• 35:35
  the conversations. If I do think a child needs time
• 35:38
  away, for example, if they are constantly hurting their
• 35:41
  friends, and we've tried and we've talked and we've talked to
• 35:44
  them, yeah, they might need to do an activity by themselves for
• 35:46
  a little bit to cool down and relax and then come back and try
• 35:50
  again. But they are never left with
• 35:52
  nothing and they are never left alone.
• 35:54
  So I think it's important that children know that they have us
• 35:57
  to guide them and support them rather than throwing them in a
• 36:00
  corner saying I don't want to deal with you right now.
• 36:05
  Can you think of maybe a specific example of a particular
• 36:08
  child that has thrived under your care?
• 36:11
  Sometimes getting into something specific is kind of fun and
• 36:15
  interesting. OK.
• 36:16
  So I kind of have a name for myself down here.
• 36:20
  I am one of the only preschools down here that will accept
• 36:24
  children with special needs and challenging behaviors.
• 36:28
  And I take a lot of pride in that because the numbers are
• 36:33
  growing and growing and growing. This is our job now.
• 36:37
  Part of the job description is being able to educate children
• 36:41
  with special needs. If any preschool teacher hasn't
• 36:44
  figured that out yet, they need to start educating themselves
• 36:48
  because these kids are not going away.
• 36:51
  The numbers are only increasing. So for me, a play environment is
• 36:56
  perfect for a child with special needs because if they need to
• 37:00
  scream, yell, move their body, have fidget toys, whatever it
• 37:04
  is, we make it to where they can do that.
• 37:07
  Oh, I can tell your voice is really loud and you need to get
• 37:10
  it out. Let's go outside for a minute.
• 37:12
  And one teacher takes that child outside, lets them run around
• 37:15
  and gets their energy out rather than forcing them to stay in the
• 37:18
  classroom and getting in trouble for these behaviors that if they
• 37:23
  would just take them outside for a minute, they'd be OK.
• 37:26
  They need movement, they need to be loud, they need gross motor,
• 37:31
  they need sensory. They need all of that in order
• 37:34
  to learn self regulation. And so for me, my story would be
• 37:38
  I have a child who has autism and was kicked out of three
• 37:43
  preschools and came here and within, I would say a month, he
• 37:51
  was coming in the door just fine.
• 37:53
  The first month was a little rocky.
• 37:55
  I think a lot of kids are kind of traumatized by other schools
• 37:58
  and then they come here and and it takes a minute for them to
• 38:02
  realize, oh, we can take our shoes off.
• 38:04
  Oh, cool. You know, I feel like I'm at
• 38:05
  home list little things like that.
• 38:08
  So this child now has been with us for two years and he's now in
• 38:13
  elementary school and he struggles still in elementary
• 38:16
  school, but then comes here and totally fine.
• 38:19
  And I think for me, that's just proof that the environment, the
• 38:23
  staff, the teachers, you know, we really play a big part in in
• 38:29
  a child's behavior. It's not just about them, their
• 38:33
  children, you know. And so he's coming there.
• 38:38
  Now as part of like an aftercare program that you have.
• 38:41
  Yeah. So our big.
• 38:42
  Kids are candy through 5th grade.
• 38:45
  They're with us after school every day from 2:30 until 5:30,
• 38:49
  and then in the summer and spring break and Christmas
• 38:51
  break, we have them full time. OK.
• 38:54
  Tiffany, what's a serious challenge that you've had to
• 38:57
  overcome either in your personal or professional life, and what
• 39:02
  did you learn going through that experience?
• 39:08
  Oh man, there's so many. I only get to pick one.
• 39:12
  OK, I'm, I'm going to have to go with the financial burden.
• 39:17
  Not not just financial, but also just the idea that as a business
• 39:21
  owner, you really are expected to know what forms you need to
• 39:26
  fill out for the government, for taxes.
• 39:28
  I mean, just all of it. There's no class, there's no
• 39:33
  training. I just figured it out as I went
• 39:37
  along and man, I messed up a lot, but I learned a lot as I as
• 39:41
  I did it. So maybe I wish I would have
• 39:46
  maybe hired someone to help me with that.
• 39:49
  But again, you know, I was just starting off.
• 39:51
  I didn't have the money for that.
• 39:52
  I wasn't even paying my payroll taxes in the beginning because
• 39:56
  it was hard and and that was the one thing I could not pay and
• 39:59
  continue my business. But then that debt becomes, you
• 40:03
  know, a huge heavy thing on on your chest and and you have a
• 40:06
  hard time sleeping at night, you know, and I had to work years to
• 40:10
  dig myself out of that hole. Would I have done it
• 40:12
  differently? Probably not.
• 40:15
  Because that was the only choice that I had at the time.
• 40:18
  Now as I'm. Older and you know, I've worked
• 40:20
  through it. I'm, I paid my debts off, I'm
• 40:22
  back to saving money again. I'm trying real hard to get
• 40:25
  another location so we can grow and it's going great.
• 40:29
  But man, I wish there was somebody, somebody that could,
• 40:33
  you know, hold your hand along the way.
• 40:35
  It would, it would have been really nice just for the
• 40:37
  financial part of it and the and the state regulations and
• 40:41
  federal regulations that part of it.
• 40:44
  Yeah, no, I. Hear you that that's a lot to
• 40:46
  take on if you haven't had any background or education in it
• 40:49
  before, right? What's something you wish you
• 40:54
  could teach a younger version of yourself, Tiffany?
• 41:01
  Probably. Not to have so much stress and
• 41:05
  anxiety of what's going to happen.
• 41:07
  Having a little bit more faith in God and trusting Him because
• 41:12
  the older I'm getting, the more I'm doing that and the more
• 41:15
  peace I'm finding within myself and man, He always provides and
• 41:20
  He always takes care of us. If you have your heart in the
• 41:23
  right place, I, I, I believe that.
• 41:25
  I believe that God will take care of you, and He's definitely
• 41:28
  done that for me. That's terrific.
• 41:33
  What's a fun fact most people wouldn't know about you,
• 41:35
  Tiffany? About me.
• 41:39
  Let's see, I grew up in the mountains.
• 41:42
  So. I'm very outdoorsy and I am very
• 41:48
  I'm into hiking and camping and the river and I'm just a big
• 41:54
  believer in risk taking. Yeah, I'm just I'm very
• 41:59
  outdoorsy. And I think that's a lot of the
• 42:00
  reason why I'm so passionate about what I do is, you know, my
• 42:04
  own personal children are now growing up in a city with
• 42:06
  concrete and, you know, small little park.
• 42:09
  And I feel so guilty. I just feel so guilty that
• 42:13
  they're not getting what I got as a child.
• 42:15
  And so if I could at least provide this for these children
• 42:19
  in this community, zero to five, at least they get that those
• 42:23
  first five years of their lives, they can have what I had.
• 42:25
  I think that makes, that's why I'm so passionate about it.
• 42:29
  Which mountains? Did you grow up in the San?
• 42:32
  Bernardino Mountains. I don't know if you've ever
• 42:33
  heard of Idyllwild area. No, but it's.
• 42:41
  Beautiful area that you grew up in and lots to do outdoors.
• 42:44
  Yeah, we had. Snow and weather, you know, in
• 42:48
  the desert down here, we don't get any of that.
• 42:50
  So yeah, just, you know, chickens and horses and just
• 42:54
  freedom as a child, being able to go walk around your
• 42:57
  community, go on hikes, go on long bike rides by yourself
• 43:01
  without your parents, things that these kids don't get to do
• 43:03
  anymore. Tiffany, are there any?
• 43:07
  Specific mentors, books, other podcasts that have helped shape
• 43:13
  you or your professional career. Yes, the.
• 43:16
  Queen of all preschool teachers is Bev Boss and I absolutely
• 43:21
  love and adore her. Another really great one for
• 43:25
  parents out there is Janet Lansbury.
• 43:28
  She has a great website with amazing webs with a bunch of
• 43:32
  resources, but she also has a podcast and it's really good.
• 43:36
  It's really short, simple. I always encourage parents to
• 43:41
  check her out. Janet Lansbury.
• 43:43
  So those would be my two big ones.
• 43:46
  Great. Thanks for sharing those.
• 43:48
  I'll have to check out. I haven't heard of Bev Boss.
• 43:51
  Where is she out of? She's here in California, I
• 43:54
  don't remember the exact city, I did go to her school.
• 43:57
  She recently passed away, but she has a lot of really great
• 44:00
  stuff on YouTube and she's really big on on the play
• 44:04
  philosophy, so that's why I really, really love her.
• 44:08
  That's great. I'll have to check that out.
• 44:11
  I just have one more question for you, Tiffany.
• 44:13
  But before I ask it, I want to do 2 things.
• 44:15
  If you're listening today and you like today's content, please
• 44:18
  hit the subscribe, like or share button on your favorite podcast
• 44:21
  app. Tiffany, I want to let people
• 44:24
  know the best way to get in touch with you.
• 44:25
  What would that be? You could give us a call here at
• 44:29
  the school, our can I give her phone number?
• 44:31
  Absolutely. 76. 03432163 I'm available in the mornings, in
• 44:39
  the afternoons I'm with my school age kids.
• 44:43
  Great last. Question for you, Tiffany.
• 44:46
  I'm curious, how do you see your industry evolving in the next 5
• 44:51
  years? What do you think the big
• 44:53
  changes are that are coming? I think we're going to do.
• 44:57
  Away with the pre Ki do believe that I think that preschool will
• 45:02
  be zero to three. I think that's going to be the
• 45:05
  biggest change for sure. Yeah, I'm also a little nervous
• 45:10
  about staffing. I'm not sure what the solution
• 45:13
  is. Yeah, it's tough.
• 45:16
  When California has passed a law that mandates a much higher
• 45:22
  minimum wage for fast food restaurants and that doesn't
• 45:28
  apply to you and financially can't even work for you if if it
• 45:32
  were. Yeah.
• 45:34
  So like you said, a lot of your employees are just financially,
• 45:38
  they've got to make the decision to go somewhere else.
• 45:40
  Yes. Unfortunately.
• 45:44
  And I lied. I actually.
• 45:45
  Have one more question for you. I noticed that you have quite a
• 45:48
  bit of artwork there on your arm and that takes a lot of
• 45:52
  dedication and commitment. I'm curious if there's any good
• 45:55
  stories behind what what you've got there I.
• 46:00
  Just have always been a very artistic person.
• 46:04
  I took a lot of art, ceramics and stuff like that in school.
• 46:08
  I do a lot of murals on walls. I just, I really love art.
• 46:12
  I'm really into it. I think it's important that we
• 46:15
  express our emotions and our thoughts and our feelings
• 46:17
  through art, especially children.
• 46:20
  Especially children who are going through things.
• 46:23
  And so I wanted to share my artwork with the world, so I put
• 46:28
  it on my body. It's.
• 46:30
  Beautiful. Thank you.
• 46:32
  Well. Tiffany, I want to be the first
• 46:34
  one to thank you for sharing both your time and your story
• 46:37
  with us today. I really appreciate it.
• 46:39
  You're welcome. Thank you for.
• 46:40
  Having me, folks. That's a wrap on another episode
• 46:43
  of the Inspired Stories podcast. Thanks for learning with us
• 46:46
  today.