In many cities, towns, and communities, there simply aren’t enough childcare providers to meet demand — and the childcare that is available, isn’t affordable and/or has a mile-long waitlist.
Local nonprofit childcare centers work to alleviate some of this strain, providing children of all ages with a safe and reliable place where they can be supervised, fed, participate in enrichment activities, get homework help, and more while their parent(s) are working.
Like all nonprofits, each of these childcare centers need insurance to operate — but, because they work with children, they also need additional types of mission-specific coverages, too. “One-size-fits-all” coverage usually isn’t enough.
So, what do nonprofit childcare centers need most from their insurance?
Meet some nonprofit childcare centers.
We talked with several NIA-insured nonprofit childcare centers, from all different parts of the country, about what they need most from their insurance coverage to help advance their missions.
In their own words…
Untitled No. 1 (Santa Monica, CA)
“Untitled No. 1 has a mission to serve our community by offering families and children a joyous and engaging preschool experience, replete with opportunities to learn from nature and from one another. We are a full-day, year-round preschool, and mostly serve working families.
Because children learn best in diverse settings, Untitled No. 1 admits families evenly spread across income levels and provides scholarships to achieve this balance.
All snacks and lunches are provided, and one-third of our enrolled students receive full scholarships while another third receive partial scholarships calculated on a sliding scale.
We maintain socio-economic diversity, which is unique because preschool in the U.S. is our most highly segregated level of schooling.”
— Laila Taslimi, Founder & Board President, Untitled No. 1
Cupertino Co-op Nursery School (Cupertino, CA)
“Cupertino Co-op Nursery School is a preschool for children, a parent education program for their adults, and a loving community for their families. Our mission is to support families of young children as they learn and grow together in community.
We provide preschool classes for ages 2 through 5, parent education classes for enrolled families, and nature program classes for children and their adults to explore and learn together outside.”
— Jennie Ivazian, Director & Preschool Teacher, Cupertino Co-op Nursery School
The Nanny Loft (Lehigh County, PA)
“The Nanny Loft works to provide personalized, quality childcare for all families in our community, regardless of their economic means, in order to keep families together and help them thrive. We envision a network of safe and sustainable care that prioritizes the well-being of children and families.
We provide long-term nanny and short-term babysitting services to families in need of childcare and a household assistance service for families that are looking for help with other aspects of life.
We also partner with Safe Sitter® to teach a course about staying safe at home to young teens in the community. We partner with Acton Academy to host an annual Children’s Business Fair that facilitates outreach in the community and empowers children.
In 2026, we will provide emergency respite care (in the form of childcare or household assistance) to local foster families and other underserved populations.”
— Logan Maniscalco, Communications Coordinator, The Nanny Loft
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ventura County (Camarillo, CA)
“We are a youth-serving organization who matches youth with an adult mentor from their community. We serve youth facing adversity or in need of extra support.
We also have youth sites, where after-school programs are held for free. This includes childcare. Our mission is to empower potential of youth.
We have two spaces where youth can come after school to have supervised fun and have a safe space to hang out and do schoolwork.
We match high school students with elementary or middle school students in a mentoring relationship, and we also offer a school club where high schoolers can lead in ways to improve their community and make a positive impact.
Our Mentor Academy pairs youth with someone in a career industry they are interested in (i.e. auto mechanics, finance, art, and education), so they learn what it’s like to work in that field.”
— Nakita Hake, Director of Marketing, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ventura County
What did these nonprofit childcare centers need most from their insurer?
Affordable — and available — coverage
“We needed an insurer that would bind us — and at a manageable cost that would fit in our budget.”
— Laila Taslimi, Untitled No. 1
Competitive rates and comprehensive coverage
“We needed an insurance provider that offered competitive rates and comprehensive coverage.”
— Jennie Ivazian, Cupertino Co-op Nursery School
Coverage that many insurers don’t want to offer
“We originally established The Nanny Loft as an LLC, but knew we wanted to be a nonprofit organization. As we were conducting that transition, we were confronted with a significant insurance rate increase from year one to two as an LLC.
Because the nanny and babysitting industry is unregulated, most insurance companies during the underwriting process are hesitant to approve the insurance coverage leading to high premiums and changing rates that we were then experiencing within our first 15 months.
This solidified our need to transition into a nonprofit; we could not have our staff, children, and families we serve be exposed to potential risks.”
— Logan Maniscalco, The Nanny Loft
Affordable rates and strong coverage offerings
“We needed affordable rates and coverage offerings that met our specific needs.”
— Nakita Hake, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ventura County
How did these nonprofit childcare centers hear about NIA?
A broker’s recommendation
“Our previous broker had given up on finding insurance for us. From those not familiar with what is unique to preschools within the education sector, the qualification questions were pretty absurd.
Our new insurance broker found NIA to bind our liability policy. NIA came in prepared not only to handle not-for-profit organizations, but our specific type as well.”
— Laila Taslimi, Untitled No. 1
A professional support organization
“We belong to the California Council of Parent Participation Nursery Schools and, as such, were introduced to NIA.”
— Jennie Ivazian, Cupertino Co-op Nursery School
Researching insurance providers
“While researching during the transition from an LLC to a nonprofit, we saw that NIA insures organizations that help vulnerable communities — that other insurance companies typically are hesitant or unwilling to cover.”
— Logan Maniscalco, The Nanny Loft
Since becoming an NIA member, how has that relationship helped these nonprofit childcare centers?
Nonprofit expertise at an affordable price
“We appreciate that NIA exists and have found this to be a good fit for us as a small nonprofit. We really appreciated the ease of the process to bind coverage.”
— Laila Taslimi, Untitled No. 1
Quick responses and additional perks
“We have been with NIA for as long as I have known! I like that I can reach out and ask questions whenever I need to and am always able to find answers.
I also appreciate the consulting services, webinars, and perks through PurchasingPoint®, such as the Staples Advantage program.”
— Jennie Ivazian, Cupertino Co-op Nursery School
Affordable coverage and strong customer service
“NIA has amazing tools and resources that are forward-thinking. As a start-up nonprofit, there are so many things we didn’t realize we needed that we now have access to under NIA.
We have used the employee handbook builder, BOARDnetWORK, and screening services, which have helped us improve our board communication and bring on and maintain high-quality employees.
The broker NIA matched us with has been our first and only broker, incredibly receptive, and amazing.
Additionally, at one point our president and founder, Dilia Coppedge, reached out to NIA’s CEO Pamela Davis and was able to have a conversation over the phone with her to discuss nonprofit-related obstacles.
Everyone we have worked with thus far — from our broker to the CEO — has shown that NIA employees and their partners wholly encompass the NIA mission.”
— Logan Maniscalco, The Nanny Loft
Easy, efficient coverage
“We have been happy with NIA for so long, that we have never felt the need to find another provider.
They provide all of our needs in an easy and efficient way. They have great resources like webinars and screening services that are crucial for our daily operations.”
— Nakita Hake, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ventura County
Nonprofit childcare centers need an insurer that sees the value of their mission.
Why do nonprofit childcare centers get their insurance coverage from NIA?
It’s easy: Working families need quality and affordable childcare — and nonprofits need quality and affordable insurance coverage in order to be able to provide that to them.
NIA provides nonprofit childcare centers with the coverages that meet their specific risks, connects them with additional resources to help them reduce those risks, has a team that’s accessible and responsive — all at prices that are fair and equitable.
After all, when you’ve got a mission to provide care to children — you need an insurance provider that wants to help you succeed.
