KidsPark is a national franchise that opened with a simple mission: to provide accessible, responsible hourly daycare for families who can’t—or don’t want to—use full-day childcare. Parents can drop off their kids anytime during operating hours for as little or as much time as they need. No reservations are required, and parents pay by the hour.
The model proved to be a success. Now, 37 years later, KidsPark is a national franchise, with daycare centers operating in nine states. Sisters Beth Christie and Heather Alanis jumped in 17 years ago, opening the first KidsPark center in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
“We have families who use us five days a week. or parents who just
drop in as needed,” said Beth.
KidsPark strives to support low- and middle-income parents, for whom
standard childcare may be prohibitively expensive—potentially pushing
them out of the workforce for years. Many parents manage to juggle
conflicting work shifts to ensure one can always be with the kids. Even
so, they still need affordable care during the overlap, when both are at
work. “The hourly drop-off allows them to minimize their childcare
costs,” said Beth.
Currently, parents pay $12 per hour for one child, and an additional
$6 per hour for each sibling—less than many independent babysitters.
“Having quality staff that can take good care of your children and
keeping rates low for parents, it’s definitely a balancing act,” said
Beth.
KidsPark typically hires young people, often college students. All
the current teachers are in their 20s. The directors are in their
30s.
From the beginning, immigrants have been vital to the success of
KidsPark Arlington. “We’ve always relied in the childcare industry on
people who have come here from another country, or are first- or
second-generation,” said Heather.
Often these young people are studying to become nurses or
schoolteachers. Beth said, “It’s just fun to see caregiving as a
personality type.”
“The young women who work for us tend to be very family oriented,”
she said. “We have, over the years, hired cousins and sisters because we
believe they work so well together, and all of them have come from
immigrant families.”
Immigrants and children of immigrants also bring bilingual skills, which benefit children from all backgrounds, particularly in a diverse area like Dallas, where immigrant workers serve vital roles in construction, manufacturing, healthcare, and more. “We want our staff to reflect our customers,” said Beth. “We’ve loved having teachers that are bilingual.”
“The teachers that have come from immigrant families have generally been the kindest, most diligent, hard workers,” said Beth. “I have found myself in awe of some of the young women who have come through the center, their work ethic. And they’ve brought so much love to the center.”
