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«Back to all edWebinarsThe Childcare Start-Up Roadmap
Thursday, July 10, 2025 @ 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm EDT
Presented by Marnie Forestieri Zettler, Founder and CEO, Young Innovators Academy
Moderated by Laura Wilhelm, Ed.D., VP of Professional Learning Services, Kaplan Early Learning Company
Sponsored by Kaplan Early Learning Company
Learn more about viewing the live presentation and the recording, earning your CE certificate, and using our new accessibility features.
This edWebinar is designed for educators considering purchasing an existing center, buying a franchise, or starting your own brand from the ground up. This edWebinar gives you a clear, actionable roadmap of the things to consider when entering the industry. Key learning objectives include:
1. Clarify Your Vision
- Define your why for starting a childcare business.
- Understand the different types of childcare models (home based, centers, franchises, etc.).
2. Assess Your Readiness
- Evaluate your mindset, motivation, and leadership potential.
- Assess your financial preparedness and risk tolerance.
- Understand what personal and professional skills you’ll need to succeed.
3. Understand the Business Basics
- Learn how to create a business plan tailored to childcare.
- Understand startup costs, budgeting, and potential funding sources.
- Explore legal structures and business registration requirements.
This edWebinar will be of interest to future childcare entrepreneurs as well as school leaders at the early childhood level.
About the Presenter
Marnie Forestieri Zettler is the CEO and Founder of Young Innovators Academy. She is an entrepreneur at heart with a passion for introducing innovative approaches and business models. As a successful operator of large childcare centers, she has been recognized nationally, presented at national conferences, and written books for parents, children, administrators, and educators. Marnie started her career as a CNN journalist, transitioned into the role of a VP of marketing for a telecommunications company, and launched a childcare franchise. Marnie is passionate about using research to develop content that introduces young learners across all market segments to the mindsets and skills that will help them become the fearless problem solvers of tomorrow. At Young Innovators Academy, Marnie leads a team of university professors, entrepreneurs, childcare professionals, marketing experts, and engineers. She holds a BS in business administration, a CDA, and a director’s credential.
About the Moderator
As the Vice President for Professional Learning at Kaplan, Laura Wilhelm, Ed.D., draws on decades of experience teaching young children and early childhood professionals, starting with toddlers in the 1980s, followed by PreK-third grade in urban and suburban schools, and as a university lab school director. Since earning her doctorate in ECE curriculum and instruction in 1999, she has served as a program director, full professor, national validator for the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), and a site visitor for the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Programs (CAEP). She enjoys planning professional development, speaking at conferences, leading study tours, visiting early education programs around the world, and returning home to her family. She is the author of The Neglected Child: How to Recognize, Respond, and Prevent (2013); Treasure Baskets: Heuristic Learning for Infants and Toddlers (2017); Enticing Environments for People Under Three (2021); and Living Loose Parts: Creatures of Curiosity (2024), all from Gryphon House.
Learn more about viewing the live presentation and the recording, earning your CE certificate, and using our new accessibility features.
Join the Classroom Management for Early Learning community to network with educators, participate in online discussions, receive invitations to upcoming edWebinars, and view recordings of previous programs to earn CE certificates.
For more than 50 years, Kaplan Early Learning Company has been a champion for play. From our research-based curricula to enriching classroom environments and innovative technology solutions, Kaplan’s products and services inspire a lifelong love of learning in children and educators. We are architects of learning good and defenders of the imagination. We live for inseparable bonds and open minds. We encourage the eager and inspire the inspirers. We transform lives through play.
