Little Sprouts Learning Center in Granby permanently closed its doors in October. Since the sudden closure, the day care announced that it would be turning over all of its assets to Grand Kids Learning Center.

Grand Kids Learning Center currently operates two child care centers in Fraser and is currently working on an expansion project in Fraser. The child care operation will soon have four locations following the acquisition of Little Sprouts.

Originally, the Granby child care center was expected to reopen as Grand Kids before the end of the year. However, reopening a business that deals with children prompts a lengthy licensing process.

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Ashley Bobo, the executive director of Grand Kids Learning Center, says that because of licensing requirements, the Granby location is not expected to reopen until 2024.

Once state officials award a “pre-approval,” Grand Kids in Granby will begin to hire staff and assemble classrooms. Currently, interviews are being held for the Granby location and some previous Little Sprouts’ staff members are anticipated to return. However, Bobo did share that finding qualified staff has been challenging.

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“We are also finding it difficult to find a fully infant-qualified teacher to oversee the infant room,” Bobo said.

State licensing has requirements that teachers and staff must meet. For example, an infant program early childhood teacher must have a minimum of 455 hours of verifiable experience in the care and supervision of children under 3 years old.

A site director for the Granby location will also be installed to oversee day-to-day operations. Bobo hopes to have directors and teachers in place as soon as their initial child care license is approved.

The final step in the licensing process includes classroom inspections where state officials visit and physically examine the space. This entire process takes time and the child care center is at the state’s “scheduling mercy,” according to Bobo.

In the meantime, Bobo says that work is ongoing to prepare for reopening.

The inside of the building has been repainted. Workers are also deep cleaning and adding more storage space to the building. Classrooms were also fitted with new furniture and other classroom materials.

Bobo says that she is excited to grow and to expand child care services in Grand County through this acquisition.

Grand Kids Learning Center was awarded the prestigious Colorado Shines rating of level 4. Colorado Shines is a comprehensive quality rating and improvement system put forward by the Colorado Department of Early Childhood.

“Our mission has always been to provide quality early childhood education to the young learners in our community, and we are committed to create an even greater impact through expanding our services,” Bobo said.

For families who used the Little Sprouts Learning Center before, Grand Kids intends to serve the displaced families, if they choose to return. However, child care licensing includes capacity numbers for each classroom. Children also must meet the correct age range that corresponds with classroom capacity.

Bobo also shared that there had been conversations prior to the closure about merging. The sudden closure, however, hastened these conversations.

“We’ve stepped up to the best of our ability to expedite our plans,” Bobo said.

About 150 families are currently on their waiting list for child care from Grand Kids, according to Bobo.

Early childhood education accessibility in Grand County has long been a source of frustration for many individuals in Grand County. A lack of child care services has many effects on a community. Families without reliable child care are unable to participate fully in the workforce.

Bobo says that people should “stay tuned” for more information about Grand Kids’ plans to expand child care services in Grand County.