Child care deserts are areas in great need of child care services

​Half of Minnesota childcare providers are unsure how long they’ll remain in business. Childcare options are drying up and families are struggling to get to work due to the lack of family daycare support. Even with the unpredictability of enrollment, hiring challenges, and inflation, sisters, Ginger Olson and Amy Steiner, opened their fifth Compass Child Care Center over the last year.

Communities from Isanti to Ramsey reap the benefits of a successful childcare business that started from one unified passion of providing quality care. Olson and Steiner, realizing the dire need families were facing, knew their passion could align into a community solution supporting families in finding care for their children and ultimately aiding the community workforce. 

​Compass Child Care opened its first location in Coon Rapids on October 3rd, 2017. When they opened their second location in Blaine on September 3rd, 2019, they were already 50-60% full. Indicating that their business plan was a solution to the immediate needs of their community.

A few months after opening their second location in Blaine, they acquired 2 more locations, one in East Bethel and one in Isanti. Isanti was already an operational business but transitioned to Compass officially in January 2020. Olson and Steiner knew that a company transition would be challenging for families, so they made slow updates and changes to the center, to ease the transition for families. Directors, Sam and Lisa, both worked at other locations before stepping in as management and have created an incredible trust with families at both acquired locations.

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