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PODCAST

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast

Erica Saccoccio

Because childcare leadership deserves a real conversation.If you"re looking for another leadership podcast filled with corporate buzzwords and theories from people who haven"t stepped inside a childcare center in years... this probably isn"t it.I"m Erica Saccoccio—a multi-center childcare owner, leadership coach, keynote speaker, and podcast host who still leads in the work every single day.This podcast is for childcare directors, daycare owners, assistant directors, preschool leaders, and early

education how to

All Episodes

40:21

651 You Take Care of Everyone. Who Takes Care of You?

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/10/05

Send us Fan Mail Family child care providers are used to doing it all—caring for children, supporting families, managing the business, maintaining the home, and keeping everything moving. But what happens when the person holding it all together needs a reset? In this honest conversation, we talk about the reality of running a family child care business and why taking care of your mind and body is just as important as taking care of your program. We also dig into the Family Child Care CEO™ 60-...

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27:40

The One Thing That Makes Children Love Coming to School

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/10/02

Send us Fan Mail What separates a good early childhood educator from a truly great one? Eva from Church Early Learning Center makes the case that the answer is not just curriculum—it’s consistency, compassion, and a deep commitment to helping children feel safe, inspired, and seen. Recorded live at the Connecticut AEYC conference, this conversation with host Erica Saccoccio gets to the heart of what early childhood leadership really looks like on the ground. Eva shares what it means to be mor...

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27:40

649 Stop Leading Alone: Why ECE Leaders Need Community

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/10/01

Send us Fan Mail Early childhood leadership can feel lonely, especially when you are carrying the needs of children, families, staff, and an entire program. But strong leaders are not meant to grow in isolation. In this episode of The Child Care Director’s Chair, Erica sits down with Dr. Stephanie Hinton, President of Oklahoma AEYC, for an important conversation about mentorship, professional connection, advocacy, and building stronger leaders across early childhood education. They talk about...

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24:07

648 The Leadership Mistake Early Childhood Directors...

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/30

Send us Fan Mail What if the fastest way to strengthen your early childhood program is not tighter control, but more accountability, empathy, and support? Ruth shares the leadership shifts that help educators feel seen, stay motivated, and do their best work for children and families. Recorded live at the CTAEYC conference in Connecticut, Erica Saccoccio sits down with Ruth Baugh for an honest conversation about what truly separates good programs from great ones. Ruth discusses mentoring new ...

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17:59

647 Lead Beside Them: What Great Directors Do...

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/29

Send us Fan Mail What separates a director who simply manages a program from a leader teachers actually want to work for? In this episode of The Child Care Director’s Chair, Erica Saccoccio sits down with Nicole, a preschool owner and director from Seymour, Connecticut, live at the Connecticut AEYC Conference for an honest conversation about leadership, staff support, culture, and what it really takes to build a strong early childhood program. Nicole shares why great directors cannot lead fro...

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15:32

646 What Educators Need From Their Directors

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/28

Send us Fan Mail What makes an educator feel truly supported by their director? In this episode of The Child Care Director’s Chair, Erica Saccoccio sits down with Reva Deonarine, a teacher assistant at Southfield Children’s Center, for a candid conversation about leadership from the educator’s side of the classroom. Reva shares why compassion, flexibility, trust, and transparency matter, and what it meant to have a director stand beside her during a difficult family interaction. She also talk...

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46:47

645 Why Women Keep Minimizing Their Authority at the...

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/25

Send us Fan Mail Women in early childhood education aren’t “just” anything. They’re business leaders, employers, community builders, and decision-makers—and this conversation with Kate Woodward Young makes the case for why it’s time to stop apologizing for that power. Kate and host Erica Saccoccio unpack the hidden economic force behind child care: the millions in community revenue, the jobs supported by quality programs, and the leadership authority so many experienced women have been taught...

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3:05

646 A Few Closing Words from Kevin ( Part 2)

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/24

Send us Fan Mail One of my favorite moments from my conversation with Kevin from WatchMeGrow came at the very end. After talking about his work, the relationships he has built in early childhood education, and the role WatchMeGrow plays in supporting programs, Kevin took a moment to speak directly to the teachers doing this work every single day. His message was simple, heartfelt, and important: thank you. Thank you for showing up. Thank you for caring for children through the long days, the ...

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33:34

646 Behind the Camera: Meet Kevin from WatchMeGrow

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/24

Send us Fan Mail What really happens behind the camera when it comes to building trust, supporting childcare programs, and helping leaders feel more confident about safety and communication? In this episode of The Child Care Director’s Chair, Erica sits down with Kevin from WatchMeGrow for a conversation that goes beyond cameras and technology. Kevin shares more about who he is, the work he does with early childhood programs, what he has learned from working directly with owners and directors...

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15:15

645 What Really Makes a Childcare Professional?

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/23

Send us Fan Mail Professionalism in early childhood education is about much more than what you wear to work. In this episode of The Child Care Director’s Chair, Erica takes a deeper look at what it really means to be a childcare professional, including how we communicate, how we write, what we post publicly, how we handle confidential information, the boundaries we create, and the consistency people experience from us every day. Your words matter. Your delivery matters. Your judgment matters....

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39:28

644 Supporting Educators Through Authentic Leadership

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/22

Send us Fan Mail What does it really mean to support educators as a leader? In this episode of The Child Care Director’s Chair, Erica sits down with Annette Eberhart for a conversation about authentic leadership, trust, communication, accountability, and what educators truly need from the people leading them. Supporting your team does not mean fixing every problem, avoiding difficult conversations, or trying to keep everyone happy. Sometimes support looks like listening. Sometimes it looks li...

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19:32

643 How Do We Believe Children Should Be Educated?

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/21

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever stopped to ask yourself how you truly believe children should be educated? In this episode of The Child Care Director’s Chair, Erica takes a deeper look at that question through ideas connected to Maria Montessori, Friedrich Froebel, Rudolf Steiner, and Loris Malaguzzi, and brings the conversation back to what matters most: your own teaching philosophy. What do you believe about play, independence, relationships, classroom environments, creativity, and how young...

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45:05

642 The Courage to Keep Growing

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/16

Send us Fan Mail Your next level of leadership may have nothing to do with a new title—it starts the moment you stop treating your experience like it only belongs inside one classroom, one center, or one set of four walls. Angela McCarthy has spent more than 20 years in early childhood education, rising from toddler teacher to center director to enrollment leadership specialist. Her story proves that growth does not happen by accident—it happens when you keep saying yes to opportunities that ...

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14:43

641 You’re Going to Get Your Feelings Hurt: Leading...

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/15

Send us Fan Mail You can be the best boss someone has ever had, support a family for years, extend grace, make exceptions, and genuinely care—and still become the “bad guy” the moment someone does not get what they want. In this honest episode of the Child Care Director’s Chair, Erica talks about one of the hardest parts of leadership: being criticized by employees, families, or community members who were once some of your strongest advocates. She shares how to process the hurt without reacti...

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14:46

640 Stop Leading Everyone the Same Way

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/14

Send us Fan Mail One of the biggest mistakes leaders make is assuming everyone on their team needs the same kind of leadership. They don’t. In this episode, we’re talking about why strong leadership means knowing your people well enough to understand when they need direction, encouragement, accountability, space, support, or simply a little more trust. Your standards can stay consistent while your leadership approach changes based on the person in front of you. We’ll also talk about the emplo...

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18:40

639 Do They Feel Like They Belong? Building Real...

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/10

Send us Fan Mail School-age children need more than supervision, snacks, homework help, and activities. They need connection, belonging, respect, and adults who truly see them. In this episode of the Child Care Director’s Chair Podcast, Erica talks directly to school-age directors and teachers about how relationship-building looks different with older children than it does in preschool. She explores why belonging matters so deeply during the school-age years, how our energy impacts children, ...

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8:10

637 Why Her After-School Program Became the Smartest...

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/09

Send us Fan Mail The quiet advantage in childcare ownership is not scale—it is fit. A director in Atlanta shares how she built a center around real demand, a homey culture, and the kind of trust families feel the moment they walk in. Erica Saccoccio catches up live at the ECE Pep Rally with a six-year childcare professional who bet on herself during COVID, opened a program for 25 children, and then expanded into a second shift when she saw a gap in her community. What starts as a simple Direc...

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9:38

636 Build Your Child Care Business Like a Business,...

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/08

Send us Fan Mail Miranda Moore on the child care policies that protect your business, your staff, and your sanity If you are a child care owner who is ready to grow but knows you need stronger systems first, Miranda Moore delivers the mindset shift that can save you from expensive mistakes. She explains why running a center with your heart alone is not enough, and why standing on your policies is the difference between a smooth operation and constant chaos. Miranda runs a small center in Vald...

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14:14

635 Why Child Care Centers Lose Everything at Lease...

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/07

Send us Fan Mail Leasing can look cheaper on paper, but in child care real estate, the wrong move can cost you your business. Todd Harris, known as the Nursery Navigator, breaks down how directors and owners can protect their centers, negotiate smarter, and build real long-term value instead of pouring money into someone else’s building. Todd is a child care real estate specialist, broker, and owner who has opened multiple centers himself. He explains the real tradeoffs between leasing and ow...

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18:20

634 When Things Change: Leading Through the Hard...

The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast ·

2026/09/04

Send us Fan Mail Change is one of the hardest parts of leadership, especially when you care deeply about your program, your team, and the families you serve. Staff leave. Families move on. Children transition to new classrooms. Plans you thought were solid suddenly shift, and sometimes those changes can leave you feeling hurt, disappointed, frustrated, or even angry. In this episode of the Child Care Director’s Chair Podcast, Erica has a real conversation about what it means to lead when thin...

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718 results

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