Childcare
Childcare Business Workshops Across the Region
Advantage Valley hosted ten childcare start-up business workshops from March 2025 through January 2026, as part of its Fostering Advantages for Start-Ups & Entrepreneurial Resurgence in WV (FASTER WV) program.
Continuing the work in 2026, Advantage Valley will host a three-part series of free childcare start-up business workshops in Kanawha and Putnam counties in March, including a virtual webinar, as part of its Fostering Advantages for Start-Ups & Entrepreneurial Resurgence in WV (FASTER WV) program.
These workshops, supported by grant funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission, are designed to help prospective childcare providers navigate the steps and resources needed to start or expand a childcare center, family care facility, or family care home in the Advantage Valley region (Boone, Braxton, Cabell, Clay, Jackson, Kanawha, Lincoln, Mason, Putnam and Wayne Counties). Current childcare providers who are interested in expanding their operations are also encouraged to attend.
Advantage Valley Childcare Business Workshops in March:
Putnam County
When:
March 24, 2026, at 6:00 pm
Location:
Area 34
971 West Virginia 34
Hurricane, WV 25526
Virtual Workshop
When:
March 25, 2026, at 6:00 pm
Kanawha County
When:
March 26, 2026, at 6:00 pm
Location:
Element Federal Credit Union
1611 4th Avenue
Charleston, WV 25387
For All Three Workshops:
Click to Register Here
Webinars
Childcare Grant Resource Webinar Recorded on January 20, 2026
We would like to thank the WV Grant Resource Centers for their collaboration on this webinar and for the spreadsheet of potential funders in both the Advantage Valley region (Boone, Braxton, Cabell, Clay, Jackson, Kanawha, Lincoln, Mason, Putnam and Wayne Counties) and for the entire state of West Virginia. Click the link below for this free resource.
Get in Touch with the Presenters
Priscila Borges Marques Dos Santos
Director, West Virginia Grant Resource Centers
priscila.santos@mail.wvu.edu
Tabatha Surface
Technica/Grant Writer & Information Systems Coordinator, West Virginia Grant Resource Centers
tabitha.surface@mail.wvu.edu
Advantage Valley Virtual Childcare Business Workshop Recorded on March 25, 2026
Advantage Valley Releases New Findings on Childcare Challenges and Opportunities in Region
Meet Our Business Coaches!
Contact a FASTER WV Business Coach directly or CLICK HERE to complete an intake form and let us match you with a coach today:
Advantage Valley
Start-Up Guides for Child Care Businesses in the Advantage Valley Region
Advantage Valley is pleased to offer aspiring entrepreneurs access to the following Start-Up Child Care Guides.
The top row guides serve Boone, Cabell, Lincoln, Logan, Mason, Mingo, Putnam, and Wayne Counties.
The bottom row guides serve Clay, Jackson, Kanawha, and Roane Counties.
Childcare Homes
Childcare Facilities
Childcare Centers
Childcare Homes
Childcare Facilities
Childcare Centers
Valuable Business Resource:
Start-Up Guides for Child Care Businesses in the Advantage Valley Region
The early care and education (ECE) industry is essential to growing West Virginia’s economy. Access to ECE is an essential service and a key piece of our infrastructure. Its services allow families to work or go to school. Providers not only care for children and keep them safe; they also support their development and school readiness. ECE providers educate and prepare the next generation of workers, which directly impacts the size and quality of the future workforce.
*Thanks to the groups that contributed to the development of these startup guides, including the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, early care and education providers, KEYS 4 HealthyKids, West Virginia University John Chambers College of Business and Economics, The Ross Foundation, Appalachian Regional Commission, the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation, and Advantage Valley—the original sponsor of the startup guides.
* Special thanks to the West Virginia Small Business Development Center for updating the guides for a wider audience.