By Inspired by her mother and motivated by her son’s needs, Clarivel Martinez built a child care career that allows her to provide the care her family—and others—deserve.
“I started looking for a job that would allow me to spend more time helping my son, especially during the school day,” said Martinez, whose son has ADHD and autism. “And that’s when I started working as an assistant at a child care center.
“I knew I had to stay working with kids because of how good I felt mentally and physically. So, I started to look for information on what I needed to do to open my own daycare facility.”
In May 2022, she realized her dreams and received her license to open a family child care home. But soon after opening she realized she needed to expand.
“I started with six kids in my house without doing any structural changes other than adding a play area, some toys, a small dining room table and some books,” Martinez said. “So, I knew I needed to remodel my home, but I also felt like I needed support on the business end of things.”
Finding Support
That’s when Martinez connected with Ana Jose, director of business development and program manager at Michigan Women Forward, who was launching an early childhood education program to support in-home providers like Martinez, who often face challenges in accessing resources, professional development and business growth opportunities.
“Recognizing this gap, we set out to create a program that would address these issues holistically, blending education, financial support and business management training,” said Jose.
The pilot program launched in 2023 and provided training in marketing, finance and bookkeeping. It was spurred by a report from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, which showed that more than 7,000 children in the area lack access to quality early childhood care and education. And while providers are struggling with slim profit margins, the cost of care for low- and middle-income families is prohibitively high, the report showed.
Home-based early care and education providers support about one third of young children in child care, and families choose them for many reasons, including flexibility, affordability and the ability to provide culturally and linguistically relevant care.
“We were seeing how difficult it was for early child care educators to do their work while also taking care of their business,” Jose said. “A lot of people going through this program, they just think that they’re just child care providers and we wanted to help them shift that mindset because they are not just some child care providers – they are also business owners.”
In partnership with First Children’s Finance, a national nonprofit organization that provides business development assistance and loans to child care businesses, the Michigan Women Forward program helped providers in Kent County stay up to date in their bookkeeping and maintain healthy business finances.
“It was very important for us to supplement that, so we went ahead and partnered with a marketing person, a bookkeeper and also an accountant who had the expertise working with ECE (early childhood education) providers to come in and help them understand what the best strategy is for their business,” said Jose. “The participants have five months to sit down with someone, one-on-one, and provide all their finances and have these organized into a system that make sense for them.”
With $600,000 in funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and $180,000 from the Wege Foundation, the program has successfully hosted two cohorts and provided support to 25 early childhood providers.
“The foundation saw this partnership with Michigan Women Forward as a strategic investment that bridges our early childhood education and employment equity work,” said Tracie Coffman, program officer for the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. “In general, being a small business owner requires support, but being a small business owner of an early childhood center or home-based provider requires specialized support, designed specifically for this sector’s unique challenges, and that is what this program offers. We are excited to see these participating businesses become more financially secure, and some even expand, to better serve children and families in Grand Rapids.”
Jose is hoping to expand the program across Michigan, continuing to support both business owners and families throughout the state.
“As a parent, when quality child care isn’t available, people often feel like they have no choice but to stay home or rely on family members who may not have the training or experience needed to care for their children,” she said. “No one should have to give up their job or their child’s access to a good education simply because affordable, accessible child care isn’t an option.”
Tata’s Day Care LLC: A Mother’s Legacy
Martinez, who now owns Tata’s Day Care, LLC, provides care for children ranging from infants to 12-year-olds, supporting English and Spanish-speaking families.
“It’s all about supporting families in a way that works for them,” she says. “Every child is welcome here. They come from all walks of life, each with their own unique story, but one thing remains constant—my commitment to helping them succeed.”
Tata’s, which is named after Martinez’s mother, employs two full-time assistants, two part-time assistants, an emergency staff person, a cleaning contractor and a maintenance contractor. Martinez has also hired a dedicated transportation provider to bring children from school to her facility.
Participating in the Michigan Women Forward program was an important part of Martinez’s development plan. In 2023, Martinez completed more than 200 hours of continuing education, taking additional classes to improve her English language skills and to care for children with diverse needs.
“The early childhood education program with Michigan Women Forward was instrumental in helping me get my business off the ground,” she said. “The program helps child care providers like me with the process of registering their business with the state, providing guidance on finances, bookkeeping, taxes, marketing and much more.”
Martinez’s goal is to expand her business to serve more children. She is working toward her associate’s degree in child development and saving to purchase a larger space for her child care center.
“I’m taking it step by step,” she says, “but I know where I’m headed.”
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