Shared Services Network

Strengthen Your Business While Focusing on What is Most Important — the Children

Child Care Aware of Kansas was awarded a Child Care Quality Improvement and Support System grant from the Kansas Department for Children and Families to establish Shared Services for licensed Kansas child care programs. The overall goal of this opportunity is to support early care and education programs throughout the state to enhance the well-being, health, and development of young children.

We recognize the critical connections between supported, financially sound early care and education programs and their ability to be successful in providing affordable, high-quality early care and education to children in their communities.

Contact a Regional Community Consultant

Regional Community Consultants (RCC) work with early childhood professionals to reach shared goals and best practices. We pride ourselves on our compassion and integrity for child care professionals. We aim to support child care professionals and ensure they have the necessary resources to succeed in their businesses.

How Shared Services Support Providers

By participating in a Shared Service Network, child care providers benefit from services that cost less — and that are often more efficient — than what the programs could do on their own.

Regional Community Consultants provide compassionate, professional support with:

  • CLASS Observations and support in setting goals
  • Provider-driven technical assistance – virtual, in-person, or over the phone.
  • Access to Go NAPSACC
  • Access to 16+ hours of KDHE approved in-service training for providers at no cost.
    Connection to Shared Services Network Hubs
  • Opportunities for In-Person or Virtual Learning Community Meetings for child care providers to network and connect with other providers in their area are held monthly.
  • Access to Consumer Education
  • Coaching in Developmentally Appropriate Practices
  • Assistance in finding state and local resources
  • Serving as a point of contact between child care providers and community contacts

“At its core, Shared Services is a simple idea: organizations can reduce costs and improve the strength of management and the quality of services by sharing administrative functions with other organizations that provide the same types of services. By joining forces, [Early Childhood Education] programs are able to stay small, preserving intimacy is important to families, while also able to improve long term financial strength and management capacity and the ability to provide a high-quality service.”

Current Shared Services Offerings

Child Care Aware of Kansas Hub

Individual Retirement Account (IRA)

An individual retirement account (IRA) offers tax benefits that can help you save the money you’ll need for your retirement. IRAs come in two versions:

  • Traditional IRA. Invest after-tax money (may be deductible when filing taxes); defer taxes on earnings until withdrawal, usually during retirement.
  • Roth IRA. Invest after-tax money; withdrawals of contributions are always tax-free, while the withdrawal of earnings are tax-free if it is a qualified distribution. 

Both choices offer significant tax advantages and investment compounding potential, giving you the flexibility to make withdrawals during retirement as tax rates rise or fall.

Learn more here.

All Hubs

Child Care Management Software: Zero Cost to You: Register by April 30th

Seize the opportunity to elevate your child care operations with CCMS at absolutely no cost. Register through Child Care Aware of Kansas by April 30th to not only save money but also become part of a supportive community committed to the success of child care providers throughout the state. Learn more about our partners below, and contact us to get started!

The foundation of most Shared Service Networks is child care management software, which can help providers communicate with families and staff; set up reminders; handle scheduling and calendars; manage billing, reporting, and enrollment; and much more. The software also helps providers determine where additional support is needed, such as janitorial, maintenance, or administrative services.

We have partnered with the companies below to offer this software to KDHE licensed providers at no cost. 

Learn more about these partners from the links below, or contact a Shared Services consultant

Our Child Care Management Software Partners

Elevate your early education platform with the #1 child care management platform on the market! Quick to set up, and even easier to use: Brightwheel is built to save you and your staff time. 

Your dream, all-in-one child care management system,
powerful, not overwhelming. Playground has every feature you need to effortlessly run an early child care program — from child management to HR.

Compare both partners here

Quick Links

Informational Webinar for Providers

Are you a licensed child care provider and want to learn more about the Shared Services Network? Watch the recording of the informational webinar explaining how the Shared Services Network can benefit your program. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Learn more about the Shared Services Network, Learning Communities, and Child Care Management Systems

Help is a Click Away

Need more assistance? Our friendly consultants are here to help you every step of the way. Contact a Regional Community Consultant today!

Shared Services Network Hubs

Hubs have the responsibility of managing provider-driven services to a group of child care programs. These entities are often based locally, serving a network of providers in the same community or region.

Benefits of Participating

When Providers Need Medical Help

As childcare providers, we are great at making sure that the children we are tasked with taking care of are warm, dry, fed and are safe. Do you have a plan as the provider if you have a medical emergency?

Read More »

Four Things to Know About the Recent Measles Outbreak

With measles cases on the rise, you may be wondering what you can do to keep the children in your care safe and your program doors open. Although measles was once quite common, it can now be prevented with the use of vaccines. According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control), most measles cases that occur today occur in unvaccinated people.

Read More »
Kansas Department for Children and Families Logo

Funding provided by the Kansas Department for Children and Families