More about Mainspring

First Steps Kent is helping to address the business challenges of child care through the Mainspring Early Care Alliance. Building on the Shared Services framework developed during an initial pilot project phase, First Steps Kent began implementation of Mainspring in 2023.

Mainspring Early Care Alliance successfully recruited a paid, 11-member, licensed, in-home child care advisory group. It is designed to be responsive to and reflective of the community, ensuring that early care alliance resources are invested wisely and fairly.

A detailed matrix was designed by the Mainspring leadership team to assure that an advisory team with diverse backgrounds and representative of Kent County communities was convened. The results were a group of providers who are: 

• 57% women of color  
• 2 members whose preferred language is not English 
• 4 bilingual members  
• 2 members from rural Kent County  

The initial advisory members will serve an 18-month term. Five to six members will be replaced with new members, while five to six will remain on for 12 additional months.

Out and About with the Mainspring Advisory

Advisory team members are in the community, working to build relationships to bolster the early care and education profession. Two highlights include the People First Economy Summit, held in Kalamazoo, where there was a strong focus on strengthening small businesses, and the West Michigan Hispanic Chamber of Commerce events, where members network and learn about tools and resources available to them.

The Mainspring advisory and staff team also went to the Opportunities Exchange Shared Services Technical Conference in Phoenix for professional learning and development of new and innovative partnerships. In addition to typical agenda items, there was an interactive workshop, aimed at helping advisory members develop a few specific tools to support their own wellness and mental health.