The Women’s Business Development Center (WBDC) invites childcare industry business owners or those interested in learning more about the industry to its annual Early Childhood Education Entrepreneurship Summit, Rise Up: From Educator to Entrepreneur. There is no charge to attend. The sessions are INCCRRA certified and childcare providers can earn up to 3 hours of professional development credits. This year’s event will be held virtually for the first time on Saturday, November 14, and will be presented simultaneously in English and Spanish. Themed “Pivoting through the Pandemic”, the Summit will focus on the challenges and opportunities created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the first segment, Tales from the Front, two childcare providers, Kimberlee Hendricks, Owner of A Child’s Space, and Daphne Williams, CEO and Director of Smarty Pants, will discuss challenges impacting the childcare industry. The second segment, Ask the Experts, will feature experts from a range of specializations: architecture and interiors, legal, finance, banking, and childcare cooperatives. The 2020 Early Childhood Education Entrepreneurship Summit is sponsored by The Coleman Foundation, the Polk Bros. Foundation, and the U.S. Small Business Administration. More information on the Summit can be found on the Rise Up: From Educator to Entrepreneur, www.wbdc.org. Registration is required and free.