Now in its sixth year of helping people with a passion for working with children and families open their own child care business, the Child Care Business Lab, a program of Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI), celebrates the opening of 15 new child care providers across the state and seeks participants for its upcoming 2026 cohort.

CEI’s Child Care Business Lab Graduates Expand Access to Child Care in Their Communities

From October 2024 through September 2025, CEI’s Child Care Business Lab alums collectively opened 15 new child care services licensed for a total of 377 children across the state. Collectively, these businesses span eight counties, with one each in Cumberland, Franklin, Hancock, Penobscot, Sagadahoc, Waldo, four in York, and five in Androscoggin. Since launching in February 2020, the CEI Child Care Business Lab has supported the opening of 50 child care providers licensed for a total of 1,027 children.

What differentiates the CEI Child Care Business Lab from other similar programs across the country is that the programming is model agnostic and believes that what works in one community may not be right for another community. As such, eight of the newly opened providers are home-based, six are center based, and one is a nursery school. The child cares have a diverse range of owners including solo entrepreneurs, multi-person co-ops, nonprofits and tribal governments.

Applications for 2026 Get Licensed Program Close Jan. 9

All 15 businesses completed the CEI Child Care Business Lab’s Get Licensed program. New child care entrepreneurs face many of the same challenges and risks that other small business owners encounter, but with the added complexity of operating in a highly regulated environment. Child Care Business Lab: Get Licensed is a no-cost group-based program that empowers entrepreneurs to open a successful child care service. In addition to preparing their license application, participants will complete a business plan, three-year financial forecast, and child care policies. To support the financial sustainability of the new business, participants will also receive free, ongoing, one-on-one business advising. People who are interested in opening a home-based child care business (family child care) or a facility in a commercial space are both eligible to participate. Most workshops are conducted live via Zoom with two in-person learning days.

Participants interested in earning their license can participate in the next Child Care Business Lab: Get Licensed cohort, starting April 2026. Interested participants must complete the program registration form at www.cognitoforms.com/CEIMaine/JoinCCBL by January 9, 2026, at 5 p.m. More information is available at https://www.ceimaine.org/child-care

About CEI

Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI) is a Community Development Financial Institution and 501(c)3 nonprofit that works to build a more equitable economy by growing good jobs, livelihoods and small business ownership, while advancing a just transition to a climate-resilient future. CEI integrates finance, business expertise, and policy solutions in ways that make the economy work more equitably.  

CEI designed the Child Care Business Lab with help from Maine Roads to Quality, the Maine Department of Health and Human Services Office of Child and Family Services Children’s Licensing and Investigation Services, and the Maine Association for the Education of Young Children. During its 48-year history, CEI has advised and/or provided over $19 million in financing to more than 300 child care businesses, helping to create or preserve more than 6,000 child care slots.For more information, visit www.ceimaine.org.