Current Opportunities
See below for open or upcoming opportunities for child care providers.
Read and Reflect with a Summer Book Club
The Commission on Teacher Credentialing’s ECE team is hosting a summer book club on Lisa Murphy’s Play: The Foundation of Children’s Learning. The book club is open to all and will invite attendees to reflect on the reading and consider practical applications.
Meetings will be held from 1-2:30pm on the below dates:
- Part 1: Wednesday, July 10
- Part 2: Monday, July 29
- Part 3: Wednesday, August 14
Register ASAP on the CTC website and email ece@ctc.ca.gov with any questions.
Support Your Staff Through Paid Family Leave
California’s Paid Family Leave (PFL) program is currently accepting applications from small businesses for grants up to $2,000 per employee taking paid family leave. The program is intended to help small businesses pay for costs that occur when employees take leave, including hiring and training to cover the employee’s absence. To be eligible, small businesses must have between 1 and 100 employees and at least one employee using PFL on or after June 1, 2024. The grant period will be from June 1, 2024 to May 31, 2026, or until funds run out.
To find more information and apply, visit the Paid Family Leave website.
Equip Your Child Care Business to Succeed with LApreneur
The Mayor’s Office of Business and Economic Development and the Economic and Workforce Development Department have partnered to launch LApreneur, a free, 14-week program for aspiring and current business owners to access entrepreneurship education, one-on-one assistance, networking, and more. LApreneur is open to City of Los Angeles residents and individuals with businesses in the City. Learn more on the EWDD website and submit your interest for the 2024-2025 cohort here.
Get Free Support for Your Child Care Business
The City of Los Angeles Economic and Workforce Development Department’s BusinessSource Centers offer free services to Angeleno business owners and entrepreneurs to help small businesses succeed. Services and programs include one-on-one consultations, trainings, and information on accessing capital. Services are available in Spanish, Armenian, French, Korean, Mandarin, Russian and Vietnamese, depending on the location. Find a BusinessSource Center near you on the EWDD website.
The County of Los Angeles Department of Economic Opportunity has also announced the Economic Mobility Initiative, a new hub offering free individualized support for LA County small business owners, entrepreneurs, and nonprofits. The hub features over a dozen community-based organizations to connect visitors to services and resources including technical assistance, training, and access to capital. Learn more about the Economic Mobility Initiative here.
Repair Storm Damage with the SBA Disaster Loan Program
If you or your business were affected by recent severe weather, the Small Business Administration (SBA) can help. Federal SBA disaster loans up to $2 million are available for businesses and private nonprofits to repair or replace damaged real estate or equipment. Additional funds are also available for improvements to prevent and minimize future disaster damage.
SBA disaster loans up to $500,000 are also available for homeowners repairing damaged real estate. Up to $100,000 is available for homeowners and renters repairing damaged personal property, including vehicles.
Apply for property damage by July 16, 2024, and for economic injury by February 18, 2025. To learn more and apply, visit SBA’s website. Interested individuals may also contact the SBA at (800) 659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.
Explore the World of Business Grants with PACE
The Pacific Asian Consortium in Employment (PACE) offers a monthly workshop for business owners to learn about upcoming business grants. The workshops, which focus on opportunities for businesses owned by women and people of color, cover topics like grant types, current opportunities, and qualities of successful applications.
Upcoming webinars will be held on:
- August 20, 2024 @ 1:00pm
- September 17, 2024 @ 1:00pm
Visit PACE’s website today and register for the webinars here.
Email CEspiritu@pacela.org for more information.
Get Business Support through the Legacy Business Program
The City of Los Angeles is proud to launch the Legacy Business Program, an ongoing initiative to support the visibility and sustainability of long-standing Legacy Businesses with tangible benefits such as technical assistance, promotional support, and access to grants and loans. The program aims to foster economic empowerment by encouraging the use of participating legacy businesses throughout Los Angeles.
A “Legacy Business” is defined as a business open to the public that has been in operation in the same community for 20 or more years. A Legacy Business must also meet three of the following four criteria:
- It contributes significantly to its community's history or identity.
- It sustains and cultivates distinctive cultural traditions or practices.
- The business is not franchised or affiliated with a national corporate chain.
- It provides vital goods and services in a language and manner that is culturally accessible to the community.
To find more information, including the application link, informational webinars, and contact details, visit the Economic and Workforce Development Department (EWDD) website. The Legacy Business Program is brought to you by the Los Angeles City Council, Mayor Karen Bass, and the EWDD.
Support Young Dual Language Learners through Free QSLA Resources
First 5 LA and Quality Start Los Angeles (QSLA) have launched “Two Languages, Twice The Opportunities,” a campaign to increase awareness about the importance of multilingualism in children. Helping children learn their home language supports greater awareness of their culture, creates more meaningful connections with friends and family, and helps them enter kindergarten ready to succeed. Being multilingual can lead to improved academic, social, financial, and career outcomes.
Learn how to create impactful learning opportunities for dual language learners in your early learning program here.
You can also point families to resources that support their dual language learner on the QSLA website in English, Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Armenian, Khmer, and Korean. QSLA also has online bilingual brochures on the “Two Languages” campaign for sharing with families. Each brochure is available in English and one of six additional languages. Check them out here: Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Armenian, Korean, Khmer.
Become an Early Educator through the Assistant Teacher Apprenticeship Program
Led by the Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity, the Early Care and Education Assistant Teacher Apprenticeship Program is a two-year program to train individuals interested in becoming early childhood educators. The program is open to LA County residents and includes 180 hours of free community college coursework and 2,000 hours of paid on-site learning. Participants will graduate tuition debt-free with a State-issued Associate Teacher License and a job with an early education employer.
Find more information on upcoming cohorts on the DEO website.
LA County Releases New Infant/Toddler Toolkit for Child Care Providers
The Los Angeles County Office for the Advancement of Early Care and Education (OAECE), in collaboration with Public Counsel, has released Child Care for All: Information for Child Care Providers on Expanding Infant and Toddler Care in Los Angeles County. The free toolkit guides family child care homes and community-based child care centers on how to serve more infants and toddlers. The online resource reviews topics including staffing ratios, making changes to physical space, and business model considerations.
The toolkit is available in English, Armenian, Chinese, Korean, Russian and Spanish. A recorded webinar on expanding child care programs to serve more infants and toddlers is also available online in English and Spanish. These resources, as well as upcoming trainings and free professional development opportunities, can also be found on the OAECE website.
CDTC Offering Stipend to Cover Child Development Permit Application Fee
The Child Development Training Consortium (CDTC), which provides services and support to students and professionals working with young children, offers a Permit Stipend Program where it covers the child development permit application fee for eligible applicants. Covered application fees include those for first time permits, permit upgrades, and renewals.
July 2024 Update: Stay tuned! CDTC will be opening applications for their 2024-2025 stipends in August 2024. Check back here or on the CDTC website.
Health Care and Training Benefits for Providers
Child Care Providers United (CCPU) is a union of over 40,000 home-based (family child care and family, friend, and neighbor care) child care providers in California working in partnership with parents, early childhood education advocates and state legislators to fix the state’s child care crisis and improve the profession and the quality of care. Their 2023 contract with the State includes a first-in-the-nation retirement fund, health care reimbursement fund and professional development opportunities for providers.
Health Care Reimbursement
CCPU’s Health Care Reimbursement Fund has $100 million to help home-based child care providers pay for out-of-pocket health care expenses including prescription drugs, co-pays, deductibles and monthly premiums. Eligible providers must be enrolled in a qualifying health insurance plan and be serving at least one child receiving child care subsidies. Click here to apply and find contact information or review the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to learn more.
Development Opportunities
CCPU’s Training Fund provides tuition assistance (up to $5,000 each year) and high-quality workshops that support home-based child care providers in pursuing ongoing education and professional development. Opportunities also include a paid peer-to-peer mentorship program. Eligible providers must serve at least one child receiving child care subsidies. Click here to learn more about the Training Fund and register for learning opportunities.
Become an Associate Teacher through UCLAExtension
Earn an Early Childhood Education-Associate Teacher Certificate at low or no cost through the UCLAxCareerBridge Initiative! The ECE Associate Teacher Program prepares individuals to become an Associate Teacher in a preschool
or child care setting for children ages 0–5. After completing this 12-month, part-time program, participants will be eligible to apply for an Associate Teacher Child Development Permit through the State of CA. The first cohort will be offered fully in Spanish for Spanish-speaking students.
To qualify for the program, you must:
- Be a resident of the State of California.
- Meet the minimum qualifications: High school diploma/GED, eligibility to work in the U.S., and comfort with basic computer functions.
- Attend an information session and the student orientation.
- Complete the prerequisite course.
Those with financial need will be given priority. For more information, including about financial assistance, visit here. You can also email careerbridge@uclaextension.edu or call (310) 206-2560. To learn about other state and local stipends for ECE courses, visit here.
Get Free Virtual Behavioral Health Services Today!
The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) has launched the Behavioral Health Virtual Services Platform, which offers free web- and app-based behavioral health services, including care navigation, moderated peer communities, and crisis and safety resources. The platform has two web- and app-based applications: Brightlife Kids, for parents or caregivers of children ages 0-12, and Soluna, for teens and young adults ages 13-25.
Brightlife Kids offers behavioral health coaching for parents, caregivers, and kids. Learn how to build non-verbal communication skills, navigate milestones, teach toddlers how to share, manage separation anxiety, and more.
Services are cost-free and do not require insurance or referrals. To learn more and download the app, visit CalHOPE.
Get Free Business Support Through the Open Air Economy Collaborative!
The Open Air Economy Collaborative provides holistic business supports such as micro-loans, business coaching, legal assistance, and financial education to Black and Latina women micro-entrepreneurs working to formalize and sustain their small businesses in Los Angeles. These integrated services support micro-entrepreneurs, like family child care providers, to build and grow strong businesses.
To learn more about the Open Air Collaborative, visit their website.
Complete the Survey
To apply for services, fill out a confidential, 10-15 minute survey.