New Growth MO Community Development

05/28/2026

Two child care related fellowship opportunities are now open for the 2026–2027 year:

The Early Care and Education Leader Fellowship -
For early education providers and parents/caregivers of children ages 0–5 who want hands-on experience engaging elected officials and advocating for children and families.

The Health Leaders Fellowship -
For healthcare providers and parents/caregivers interested in learning more about Missouri health policy and building advocacy skills alongside other community leaders.

Do you care deeply about the well-being of children and families in Missouri? Are you someone who wants to better understand how decisions are made at the state level — and how your voice can help shape them? One of these could be for you!

Both fellowships are designed to help participants:

Better understand the legislative process
Build advocacy and leadership skills
Connect with others passionate about children and families
Gain real-world experience engaging policymakers

Fellows will be eligible for a $1000 stipend with active participation.

Learn more and apply: https://www.newgrowthmo.org/post/child-care-and-health-fellowships-now-open-2026

Apply today! Selections to be made in June.

05/28/2026

If you know a rural entrepreneur with a bold idea and a strong story, this could be a big opportunity. 🇺🇸💡The U.S. Small Business Administration recently launched the Freedom 250 Patriot Pitch Competition, celebrating 250 years of American entrepreneurship with a nationwide competition and a $1 million prize pool.

Businesses that have used certain SBA funding programs may be eligible to compete for national recognition and significant cash prizes.

The competition is looking for small businesses that are:

✨ Innovating in their industry
✨ Creating jobs and economic opportunity
✨ Strengthening American competitiveness
✨ Ready to grow and scale their impact

Applications are open through June 10, and finalists will pitch live in Washington, D.C. later this year.

At New Growth and the New Growth Women’s Business Center, we love seeing rural entrepreneurs step into opportunities like this. Sometimes small-town businesses are doing world-class work — they just need the right stage to showcase it.

Learn more and check eligibility here: https://preview.sba.gov/freedom-250/

05/26/2026

Last week, Sheridan Garman-Neeman and Kim Carter of New Growth attended the Kauffman Indicators of Entrepreneurship event at the National WWI Museum and Memorial in Kansas City.

For 30 years, the Kauffman Indicators of Entrepreneurship has tracked trends in business creation, startup activity, and entrepreneurial job growth across America. The data helps communities, policymakers, and organizations better understand what helps small businesses thrive — especially in changing economic times.

Attendees heard remarks from Dr. DeAngela Burns-Wallace, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, former U.S. Small Business Administration Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman, economist Dr. Robert Fairlie, and others focused on the future of entrepreneurship in America.

One important takeaway: startups continue to drive new job creation nationwide, even as challenges remain for sustaining long-term growth. Small businesses still create a large share of new jobs and opportunities in communities across the country.

New Growth appreciates the opportunity to be part of the conversation alongside leaders and organizations working to strengthen entrepreneurship and economic opportunity. We believe rural entrepreneurs matter deeply to the future of our communities, and events like this help strengthen ideas, partnerships, and strategies that support people working hard to build businesses, create jobs, and keep rural communities vibrant. 🌱

05/25/2026

On this Memorial Day, we honor those who served — including many of our neighbors right here in rural Missouri. 🇺🇸

And as we celebrate, we're also thinking about the families building futures in these same communities — families who face very real barriers every day.

112 of Missouri's 115 counties are classified as child care deserts. For working families in rural areas, finding affordable care is one of the hardest parts of staying rooted here.

Veterans. Farmers. Small business owners. Working parents. New Growth is here for all of them — because rural Missouri deserves the resources to thrive.

👉 Learn more about our work at newgrowthmo.org

05/23/2026

Here's something most people don't realize: child care and rural economic development are deeply connected. 👶🌾

In west central Missouri, most rural communities are child care deserts — places where families can't find affordable, reliable care. When parents can't find care, they can't work. And when they can't work, rural businesses can't grow.

At New Growth, we see this connection every day. Through our Women's Business Center, we support child care providers who are building businesses that fill critical gaps — giving families access to care and giving parents the ability to work, grow, and stay rooted in rural Missouri.

Child care. Small business. Rural community thriving. It's all connected.

We're working on all of it — and you can be part of the solution.

👉 Learn more at newgrowthmo.org/category/business-of-child-care

05/21/2026

This Small Business Month, your gift does something real. ❤️

When you give to the New Growth Women's Business Center, a rural entrepreneur — maybe a woman running a farm stand, a childcare provider, or a Main Street shop owner — gets matched with a free business counselor.

She strengthens her finances. Accesses our credit building programs. Applies for a microloan.

Then? She hires someone. Maybe two people. Those are jobs that give a young person a reason to stay in rural Missouri.

That's the ripple effect of your gift.

👉 Donate today at https://newgrowthmo.harnessgiving.org/campaigns/20147
Or text GROWTH to 26989.

05/19/2026

Do you care deeply about the well-being of children and families in Missouri? Are you someone who wants to better understand how decisions are made at the state level — and how your voice can help shape them?

Two fellowship opportunities are now open for the 2026–2027 year:

🌟 The Early Care and Education Leader Fellowship
For early education providers and parents/caregivers of children ages 0–5 who want hands-on experience engaging elected officials and advocating for children and families.

🌟 The Health Leaders Fellowship
For healthcare providers and parents/caregivers interested in learning more about Missouri health policy and building advocacy skills alongside other community leaders.

Both fellowships are designed to help participants:
✔️ Better understand the legislative process
✔️ Build advocacy and leadership skills
✔️ Connect with others passionate about children and families
✔️ Gain real-world experience engaging policymakers

Fellows will be eligible for a $1000 stipend with active participation.

Learn more and apply: https://www.newgrowthmo.org/post/child-care-and-health-fellowships-now-open-2026

Apply today! Selections to be made in June.

05/18/2026

Customer Service Excellence training next week!

✨ Elevate Every Customer Interaction ✨

Great customer service doesn’t happen by accident—it’s built with the right skills, mindset, and practice.

Join us for Customer Service Excellence, an engaging, hands-on training designed to help employees strengthen communication, handle tough situations with confidence, and create consistently positive customer experiences that build loyalty and trust.

Through real-world scenarios, group discussion, and practical exercises, participants will walk away with tools they can use immediately to represent their organization at a higher level.

📍 In-person training with Nikki Freeman
📅 May 29, 2026
🕗 Morning Session: 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM
🕧 Afternoon Session: 12:30 PM – 4:30 PM
📌 Location: State Fair Community College – Fielding Room 291, 3201 West 16th Street, Sedalia, MO 65301
💲 Cost: $249 per person

Seats are limited—choose the session that works best and invest in stronger customer relationships, one interaction at a time.

05/18/2026

Strong child care systems don’t happen by accident. They grow when communities invest in the people and organizations supporting providers behind the scenes.

Rondle Dines, Director of the New Growth Women’s Business Center, recently attended the Opportunities Exchange 2026 National Conference, joining organizations from across the country focused on strengthening child care businesses and early childhood systems.

Under the theme “Reframe. Reimagine. Retool.,” the conference brought together leaders, innovators, funders, and practitioners to explore new tools, best practices, and creative strategies that help bolster child care providers and the families and communities who depend on them.

The timing aligns closely with several recent New Growth efforts focused on strengthening child care access in rural Missouri, including:
• Connecting employers to the statewide Child Care Works program, which helps businesses offer child care cost-sharing as an employee benefit
• Launching the Family Child Care Champions program to support four new licensed home-based child care providers
• Developing additional business support services for rural child care providers

From technology and business support systems to collaborative approaches that reduce burdens on providers, the conference highlighted how supporting child care is also supporting workforce participation, local businesses, and thriving rural communities.