The Early Years Academy

The Early Years Academy in Morrison, Illinois provides child care services for local families, and owner Jennifer “Jenny” Humphrey pursued a major growth step by acquiring the facility to strengthen long-term business stability.

Challenge: The Early Years Academy provides child care services for families across the Morrison area, and owner Jennifer “Jenny” Humphrey reached an important growth moment—transitioning from leasing to facility ownership to strengthen long-term stability. To make that move possible, she needed a lender-ready financing package that clearly demonstrated business viability, strong financial management, and a clear path for completing an SBA-backed building acquisition.

How the Illinois SBDC Helped: Jenny began working with Justin Bergman, Director of the Illinois SBDC at Sauk Valley Community College in June 2025. Justin supported Jenny through the full financing preparation process. Advising focused on developing and refining a professional business plan, strengthening key narrative sections, and building detailed financial projections based on historical performance. Justin also helped validate assumptions through financial analysis and benchmarking, guided documentation organization, and provided step-by-step support to ensure the business was positioned well for lender review and SBA underwriting requirements.

Result: With the Illinois SBDC’s advising assistance, The Early Years Academy successfully secured SBA financing in January 2026 to acquire its facility. The project supported business continuity, strengthened long-term sustainability, and helped protect local jobs while positioning the company for future growth, operational stability, and expanded community impact. Jenny on reflecting on her experience with the Illinois SBDC, she said “Thank you so much for all that you have done to assist me! Your service has been a life saver! I appreciate you so much!”.

Learn More: Visit The Early Years Academy at 508 French Creek Road in Morrison, Illinois or at their website: earlyyearsacademy.org