Table of Contents Table of Contents ....................................................................................................................................... 1

Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................... 2

Planning for the Bigger Picture ............................................................................................................ 2

Finding a Path to Success ...................................................................................................................... 2

Studying the Pieces ................................................................................................................................ 3

Nutritious Meal Plan ......................................................................................................................... 3

Customized Curriculum ................................................................................................................... 3

24-Hour Daycare Services ................................................................................................................. 3

Building a Masterpiece .......................................................................................................................... 3

Don’t Lego of Success ................................................................................................................................ 4

Putting the Pieces Together .................................................................................................................. 4

Nutritious Meal Plan ......................................................................................................................... 4

Customized Curriculum ................................................................................................................... 4

Spanish Program ................................................................................................................................ 5

Safe, Convenient Location ................................................................................................................ 5

24-Hour Daycare Services ................................................................................................................. 5

Building a Stable Platform .................................................................................................................... 6

The Value of Success .......................................................................................................................... 6

Achieving Success .................................................................................................................................. 6

Building Blocks for the Future ......................................................................................................... 6

Attachment: Destani’s Daycare Start-Up Budget .................................................................................. 7

Don’t Lego of Success 2

Executive Summary Planning for the Bigger Picture Jasmine is a happy, enthusiastic little girl in Lancaster, Texas.

Even though both of her parents work full-time, it’s difficult to

make ends meet. They have to commute to Dallas for their job,

which puts them on a tight schedule. Each month is a struggle to

support their small family, and their low income forces them to

stick to a strict budget.

When Jasmine’s mother had to go back to work, the family was

faced with a challenge: finding an affordable, quality daycare.

Jasmine’s parents have no options for their daughter’s care.

Neither parents can afford to quit their job to stay home with

Jasmine, but Jasmine is only 3 years old. She’s too young to start school, and staying home alone

is out of the question. Most importantly, Jasmine’s parents do not want Jasmine to sit in front of

a television all day long; they want her to learn.

Unfortunately, Lancaster is a daycare desert and the nearest daycare is over 15 minutes away, in

the opposite direction of their commute. Daycares outside of Lancaster are expensive and don’t

offer flexibility with their hours. For working families, finding an educational daycare is a

nightmare due to the shortage of quality daycares in South Dallas.

Finding a Path to Success Destani Lewis, a Financial Counselor at Texas Oncology, is all too familiar with the obstacles

low-income families face when seeking child care. Destani worked in several South Dallas

daycares and was appalled to find that television became the standard daycare curriculum.

Destani knows that life is precious and that our children are suffering at the hands of other

daycares.

Destani seeks funding to open an education daycare to serve low-income families and children

in South Dallas. She is determined to serve others and passionate about the education and

welfare of low-income children, who often do not have the same opportunities as middle-class

children. Destani’s daycare will offer the following services to the South Dallas community:

Nutritious Meal Plan

Customized Curriculum

Safe, Convenient

Location

Spanish Program

24-Hour Services

Don’t Lego of Success 3

Studying the Pieces Nutritious Meal Plan According to the Texas Education Agency FITNESSGRAM Assessment, 49% of the children in

Dallas County are classified as overweight or obese.

Destani’s daycare will provide nutritional education and nourishing food. The nutritional

education and nutritionally-sound food choices will motivate children and their families to be

healthy – improving their quality of life and extending their lifespans.

Customized Curriculum Low-income children in Dallas County consistently underperform

academically, as they typically do not receive enough help after class or

have access to educational technology.

Destani’s daycare will have a customized curriculum to engage

children and build their academic confidence. Destani’s daycare will

provide individualized homework help. Her daycare will also provide

learning technologies such as Leap Pad learning tablets and monitored

Wi-Fi access.

24-Hour Daycare Services There are no 24-hour daycare facilities in the area, making families choose between their child’s

safety and a crucial income stream.

Destani wants to eventually expand her daycare services to a 24-hour business. With a 24-hour

daycare, parents are assured that their children are safe and fed for the evening.

Building a Masterpiece The following proposal details Destani’s plan to create educated, healthy, and happy children

by opening a daycare in South Dallas.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Destani Lewis by phone at (555) 555-5555

or by email at DestaniLewis@email.com.

Don’t Lego of Success 4

Don’t Lego of Success

Putting the Pieces Together

Nutritious Meal Plan According to the Texas Education Agency FITNESSGRAM Assessment, 49% of the children in

Dallas County are classified as overweight or obese. With such staggering numbers of

overweight children, Destani knows that nutrition is a critical issue in her community. We have

built our children bigger, but have we really taken the time to build them better?

Concurrently, the KIDS COUNT Data Center reported that over 27% of children in Dallas

County receive Supplemental Nutritional Assistance. Unhealthy choices and food insecurity in

low-income households are slowly killing children in South Dallas.

Destani’s daycare will provide nutritious meals and snacks for children throughout the day,

and will accommodate food allergies. Because Destani will ensure that the children receive

enough meals and snacks each day, the children will not be food insecure. Low-income children

don’t always have access to at home, but they will be food secure at Destani’s daycare.

Destani’s daycare will also provide nutritional education to children and their families. The

knowledge of nutritionally-sound food choices will motivate children and their families to be

healthy – improving their quality of life and extending their lifespans. Providing substantial

food will also give the children more mental energy and create a focused and interactive

learning environment.

Customized Curriculum In 2011, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) reported that 59% of Dallas County third-grade

students failed to meet Commended Performance standards on the TAKS Reading Exam. That

same year, the TEA reported that 43% of Dallas County high school students did not graduate

within four years. Low-income children in Dallas County consistently underperform

academically, as they typically do not receive enough help at school or at home.

Destani’s daycare will have a customized curriculum to engage children and build their

academic confidence. The curriculum Destani will implement will engage children in active

learning. The curriculum is well-rounded and includes reading, math, and science

programs. Destani’s teachers will provide a new lesson each day, as well as individualized

homework help for the children in her after-school services. This extra service ensures that

students complete their homework and tackle new academic challenges. By providing a

challenging curriculum for the children, Destani’s daycare will offer children a solid

educational foundation before they enter grade school.

Don’t Lego of Success 5

Spanish Program According to the KIDS COUNT Data Center, over 51% of children in Dallas County are Latino.

With such a large Hispanic population, Destani believes that bilingual education is essential to

her community.

Destani wants to establish a Spanish program within her daycare, a feature that is not offered

by many daycares in Dallas County. Latino children often feel stigmatized for speaking Spanish

at school, but Destani’s daycare will give them confidence in their heritage and culture.

Children who come from English-speaking households will have the opportunity to learn a

foreign language and may be ahead of their peers upon entering grade school.

Learning a foreign language while children are still developing their language skills makes it

easier for children to learn a new language. By teaching Spanish alongside English, Destani’s

daycare will help children communicate more effectively within their community.

Safe, Convenient Location With so few daycares in Lancaster, finding a safe and convenient daycare can be overwhelming

for most families. The City of Dallas is only safer than 8% of cities in the United States. With

crime rates at such a high rate, families need a safe daycare for their children.

Destani’s daycare will have a security system so she can monitor the facility at all times. Her

daycare will also have a webcam system – a feature that allows parents to check in on their

children while they learn and play. Destani’s daycare will provide its own transportation for

children after school, making the journey from school to daycare safer. Destani wants parents to

feel safe leaving their children at her daycare – whether it’s just a few hours or overnight.

Destani has a specific facility selected in an area that desperately needs safe daycare services.

Located within the DFW metroplex, Destani’s daycare will be beneficial to the community

because it will be the sole daycare in the area. The existing facility can be wired for her security

systems and benefits the families in the community who do not have access to close childcare

services.

24-Hour Daycare Services According to Census Data in 2011, over 4 million children were left without supervision for

more than 6 hours every week on average. Low-income families often have multiple jobs, which

leaves many children home alone at night. There are no 24-hour daycare facilities in the area,

making families choose between their child’s safety and a crucial income stream.

Destani wants to eventually expand her daycare services to a 24-hour business. The 24-hour

feature will benefit single parents who work night shifts and are unable to be with their

children. With a 24-hour daycare, parents are assured that their children are safe and fed for the

evening. Destani and her staff give parents the peace of mind that their children are not alone

while they are working.

Don’t Lego of Success 6

Building a Stable Platform

The Value of Success Destani is fully committed to her daycare’s success in South Dallas. Although she has been

saving her own money to fund the daycare, Destani is still not financially able to open a daycare

without outside funding. The initial start-up of Destani’s daycare requires more funding

because Destani needs to purchase a building, a van, furniture, and supplies for the daycare.

Her daycare has several up-front, one-time costs, which has made it difficult for Destani to open

on her own. Attached you will find an estimated first-year budget for Destani’s daycare.

Destani’s main cost will be her quality full-time and part-time staff members. Destani wants

employees who care about the children and actively teach and engage throughout the day. The

entire community will benefit if she pays her employees a living wage: the children will have

enthusiastic, committed teachers, and members of the community will be able to focus on one

job when providing for their own families.

Destani’s daycare will be sustainable because the community currently has no other local

daycare options. Destani will be the only person fulfilling the community’s needs. Destani will

cater to many families who work at night, including parents who work at the big box stores in

the neighborhood. As Destani invests time and care in the community’s children, the

community will continue to invest in Destani.

Achieving Success

Building Blocks for the Future After her first year in an educational daycare, Jasmine started

elementary school. While most of her classmates learned the

alphabet, she already knew how to read. When her classmates

struggled in their classes, she had one-on-one help with her

homework. While many of her classmates ate junk food, Jasmine

knew how to make healthy choices in the lunch line.

The daycare’s influence continued to spread throughout Jasmine’s

life. In middle school, Jasmine’s friends started drinking on the

weekend. Jasmine decided to spend her time volunteering and

studying. In high school, Jasmine’s freshman class was over 1,000 students. By her senior year,

the class was reduced to 600 students. While many of her classmates dropped out of school,

Jasmine walked across the stage at graduation.

Destani wants the best nutrition, curriculum, location, and security possible for the children.

Destani’s daycare will positively affect the children in her community academically,

nutritionally, and financially. By funding Destani’s daycare, you are directly investing in the

children and the future of Dallas. You will guarantee that the South Dallas community finally

has the resources to build its children better.

Don’t Lego of Success 7

Attachment: Destani’s Daycare Start-Up Budget

Monthly Annual One-Time Cost Facility $3,600.00

Building Beds $600.00 Utilities $1,080.00

Building Insurance $200.00 $2,400.00 Chairs $250.00 Vehicle $4,440.00

Security System $100.00 $1,200.00 Tables $100.00 Staff $142,080.00

Annual Cost $3,600.00 Desk $50.00 Furniture $1,100.00

Cubbies $100.00 Supplies $1,800.00

Total Cost $1,100.00 Food $13,920.00

Monthly Annual Total Start Up $168,020.00

Electricity $700.00 $8,400.00

Water $100.00 $1,200.00 One-Time Cost

Internet $70.00 $840.00 Curriculum $1,200.00

Phone $20.00 $240.00 Books $300.00

Annual Cost $1,080.00 Office $600.00

Toys $100.00

Learning Technology $400.00

Monthly Annual Webcams $200.00

Van $300.00 $3,600.00 Computer $700.00

Van Insurance $70.00 $840.00 Television $400.00

Annual Cost $4,440.00 Total Cost $1,800.00

Monthly Cost Annual Cost

Full Time Staff (4) $7,680.00 $92,160.00

Part-Time Staff (2) $1,600.00 $19,200.00

Director (1) $2,560.00 $30,720.00

Annual Cost $142,080.00

Monthly Annual

Breakfast $400.00 $4,800.00

Lunch $600.00 $7,200.00

Snacks $160.00 $1,920.00

Annual Cost $13,920.00

Total Budget

Food

Furniture

Supplies

Facility

Utilities

Staff

Vehicle