Muncie & Delaware County BY5 Early Childhood Initiative

09/15/2026

We kicked off our first ever GROWing Together Business Series for childcare ministry and center leaders on Saturday! It was a wonderful time getting to know one another and learn all about our leadership strengths with Jennifer Lee Consulting. 9 leaders from 8 programs and 3 counties will participate in the fall cohort, strengthening business practices and their impact on the families and communities they serve. Funding for this series is made possible through Indiana Economic Development Corporation! 🍃🧡

09/09/2026

Our friends in Ivy Tech’s Early Childhood Education department have some wonderful training opportunities this fall, and we’re excited to be part of them!

Our Associate Director of Childcare Resources, Emma Dragoo, will be sharing her knowledge and helping facilitate many of these hands-on sessions. The first training kicks off tonight, but there are still plenty of opportunities to sign up for the sessions ahead!

And did we mention they’re FREE and include dinner + a kit of materials to take back to your classroom? Each training is a great opportunity to build practical skills, learn new strategies, and connect with fellow early childhood educators.

Choose Muncie or Anderson, whichever works best for your schedule. If you’d like to attend more than one topic, please register for each training separately.

📅 Read the session descriptions and register here: https://www.muncieby5.org/training-center-dates

09/04/2026

We are grateful for the wins from the last public hearings around Indiana childcare licensing requirements — including restoring the title “early childhood professional.” Because early childhood professionals are brain architects, not babysitters. 🧠

The work isn’t finished. We have until October 2 to keep speaking up and make sure more voices from the field are heard.

The state has posted a Notice for a Second Public Comment and a Notice for Public Hearing for the Indiana Proposed Child Care Rules Changes affecting Child Care Centers, Licensed Child Care Homes, and Registered Ministries.

The public hearings have been scheduled for October 2, 2026. The public Hearings are as follows:

Child Care Centers; Emergency or Temporary Closures: 9 am on 10/2.

Licensed Child Care Homes: 10 am on 10/2

Registered Child Care Ministries - School Age - CCDF Rule: 11 am on 10/2.

Find out more:
https://inaeyc.org/indiana-proposed-child-care-rules-revisions/

09/02/2026

Extra, extra, read all about it! 📰 There are BIG things happening at BY5!

This winter, we completed a new 2026–2028 Strategic Plan, and we’re excited to share more in the coming months about the four pillars that are helping center and guide our work: Equip, Empower, Elevate, and Endure.

We’re also settled into our new home in the Ivy Tech Fisher Building and are grateful for our growing partnership with Ivy Tech’s Early Childhood Education Department. And our team continues to grow as we welcomed Hazel Crow as our new part-time Program Coordinator!

These changes represent more than new plans, new spaces, and new faces—they reflect our continued commitment to strengthening early childhood education and building a stronger community for children, families, educators, and our future workforce.

Want to learn more about our strategic plan and how you can be part of the work? Visit muncieby5.org/donate

08/31/2026

Early educators, don’t miss these upcoming trainings! 🌱

Our Naptime Nuggets series with Purdue Extension East Central Region kicks off THIS WEEK! More Than Emotion Words will be broken into four virtual sessions throughout September, making it easy to learn and grow during naptime. Whether you’re in East Central Indiana or joining us from beyond, we’d love to have you!

💻 Virtual Naptime Nuggets: Free for PLI+ members | $15 for non-members
📅 September 2, 9, 16 & 23 | 1–2 p.m.

Prefer learning in person? Join us September 24 from 6–8 p.m. at the Ivy Tech Fisher Building in Muncie for the same training in an in-person format!

All registration links are in the comments. We hope to see you there!

08/28/2026

We’re always grateful for opportunities to share why early childhood matters and the work BY5 is doing to support early childhood professionals and children in our community.

Thank you to Dr. Jeff Bird, WMUN Muncie, and Muncie Journal for taking the time to spotlight BY5 and giving us the opportunity to share more about our mission and the work happening across Delaware County. We’re proud to be part of a community that believes in investing in children from the very beginning.

Read the full article below!

By Dr. Jeff Bird— MUNCIE, IN—BY5 is a 501c3 organization dedicated to leading efforts in East Central Indiana to prepare children for school. It recognizes that the first 5 years of life are integral to developing the human brain and setting the tone for children’s future. The statistics are i...

08/26/2026

ONE SPOT LEFT!

Ready to GROW? Join BY5 and Jennifer Lee Consulting for the FREE GROWing Together: Indiana Child Care Leadership & Business Series!

Designed for child care directors, owners, and leaders across 11 East Central Indiana counties, this hybrid series covers leadership, workforce development, business & financial management, recruitment and retention, program quality, and more.

📅 September 12–November 17

Register now: https://forms.gle/MDhe1tHa8QboucRR6

This series is made possible through funding by CCF. The Community Collaboration Fund (CCF) is a program of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) designed to inspire new, community-led collaborations and programming that drive entrepreneurial education, tech enablement and small business acceleration statewide. CCF grants enable Entrepreneur Support Organizations (ESOs) to implement initiatives that serve Indiana’s entrepreneurs and small businesses and fill critical ecosystem gaps across Indiana’s regions.

08/24/2026

It’s not too late to register for this week’s PLI session, Rituals for Resetting!

Join BY5’s Assistant Director of Childcare Resources, Emma Dragoo, for a beginning-of-the-year reset with simple ideas to refresh your classroom and reconnect with purpose and joy.

Conveniently scheduled during naptime and offered virtually!

Thursday, August 27 | 1:00–2:00 p.m. | Zoom
FREE for PLI+ members | $15 for non-members

Register now: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/pz9e44q