In March 2007, FCF made a loan to Atrebla Early Learning Center in Minneapolis, a licensed child care program serving children from six weeks up to 12 years, to help it expand its facility and serve more children between the ages of six weeks and fifteen months, the developmental period when quality child care can have its greatest impact and yet is most difficult for parents to find. Atrebla is one of a small number of child care centers working hard to address the needs of families with non-traditional work schedules.  Operating in three shifts 24 hours/day, from 6:30 A.M. on Monday until 12:30 A.M. on Saturday, Atrebla meets the needs of the growing number of working families whose job schedules don't fall between the hours of nine to five.

Owner Alberta Smith is dedicated to providing a safe, secure and friendly environment where children can enjoy learning while having fun.  "We can't just close our doors at 6 p.m. when we know so many working families, especially low-income families, are working nights or swing-shifts", said Smith.  Parents whose work schedule changes frequently are very hard-pressed to find stable, high-quality care, she noted.

A Mississippi native, Smith moved to Minnesota in 1973 and spent nearly 20 years working in the field of early childhood education before taking the step of starting her own business in 2000 in south Minneapolis.  In 2002, she opened a second center in north Minneapolis.  Smith is currently in the process of seeking accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).  "You can add licensed spaces, you can add night shifts, you can expand the ages served, but if you don't add quality, too, then you're not offering what matters the most," said Smith in explaining her drive to obtain what many regard as the field's highest external measure of quality in child care centers. 

Atrebla's program is described more fully at its webpage, www.atrebla.com.