Richmond Learning Academy Expands Its Reach
For nearly a decade, Shaquoya Richmond has nurtured and educated young children in Portland through the Richmond Learning Academy, a home-based program that serves 16 children. Through a partnership with Preschool For All, Richmond qualified for BuildUp Oregon funding, which helped her turn her dream of opening a child care center into a reality.
Finding the right space that was already zoned for child care was a challenge. Audrey Duffy, a BuildUp Oregon Facility Advisor at MESO who worked closely with Richmond over several years, was excited when Shaquoya found a potential property. “It was a true diamond in the rough,” Duffy says. “The property was a long vacant child care facility that had been vandalized. You really needed your vision goggles on to see the potential, and Shaquoya did.”
With support from BuildUp Oregon and Craft3 lending, Richmond acquired the facility and set out to transform it. Once completed, this additional location for the Richmond Learning Academy will create 77 new child care slots. Moreover, the center’s partnership with Multnomah County’s Preschool for All (PFA) program will help families in the community access quality early childhood education free of charge.
“Preschool for All ended up being a great benefit for our daughter and a blessing for us,” Alma Landon, a PFA parent whose daughter attends Richmond Learning Academy, shares. “Our daughter is able to get an education early on, and for us as parents, it was amazing that we didn’t have to financially stress in this area.”
Richmond Learning Academy’s expansion will also create 8-10 jobs, and help Richmond sustainably scale her business. Craft3 lender Paulo Rossi sees this as a defining aspect of the project. "Helping Shaquoya build something that will impact her life and family, and thousands of children over the course of many years has been incredibly rewarding," he says. "Knowing Shaquoya’s dedication, her vision, and the way she uplifts those around her—I believe this center will really make a difference.”
Richmond’s dedication to early childhood education has been driven by an unwavering commitment to her community. Duffy says, “She works closely with parents and sees them as partners. She has her hand in the community, too, and is involved in everything and anything. Shaquoya is a big reason why I’m so passionate about this field.”
As Richmond Learning Academy’s new center takes shape, its impact will ripple across generations. Reflecting on this journey, Richmond shares, "With the help of BuildUp Oregon, I can now grow my business to boundless limits. I'm thankful to have a bigger platform to make a difference in my community."