I founded Journey to STEAM, a STEM enrichment company in Portland, Oregon. Today it runs 75 sites across Oregon and Washington, serves 2,500 kids, and keeps 95% of school partners coming back every year.
Getting there looked nothing like that.
Before I was a founder, I was a teacher. Then a school principal for eight years. I understood, firsthand, what happens when the people running programs don't have the support or systems they need. I saw it in classrooms. I managed it as a principal. And then I experienced it all over again running my own enrichment business.
Seven tools and still no time saved since the tools weren’t connected. Payroll by hand every term. Instructor communication via text messages and emails. Hours tracked in spreadsheets. Manually updating registration numbers each week. These were the systems of the industry, until now…until enrops.
I started talking to enrichment entrepreneurs across the country. STEAM, sports, arts, music, coding, all of it. I found this same frustration everywhere. Across program types. Across time zones. Same story every time. I now interview operators weekly on The Enrichment Entrepreneur podcast and share what's actually working in the field.
enrops began with the mission of building the tool kids' enrichment business need. Built by our community, for our community.
At enrops, our motto is: frustration is fuel.
Every roster re-entered by hand. Every parent update copy-pasted from last term. Every paycheck calculated in a spreadsheet. Every invoice chased from a school partner who's slow to pay. Every hour this business costs you instead of giving you your time back. That's what built enrops. That's what it feeds on.
We are on a mission to support teams like ours: to grow enrichment businesses more profitably and more predictably, to replace chaos with order, and to make this work sustainable for the people who actually run it. So we can do more of what we got into this for. Coach instructors. Connect with families and school partners. Build programs our communities actually need. And finally, to achieve the elusive work-life balance we all entered this industry in hopes of achieving.
I love this community… not just from the business side, but also as a mother. My three kids, ages five, two, and one, live in enrichment activities year-round. When I am not managing waitlists, chasing a late payment from a school partner, or coordinating a last-minute sub, I am connecting with others in this space; offering support, sharing resources, and comparing notes.
I am so grateful to connect with others in this space. Most of the time when I talk to another person in this community, I walk away with a tip or approach I want to try. My approach to this work has always been: a rising tide lifts all boats. We do not lose business or opportunities by connecting with others in our space. We all learn. We all grow. There is enough opportunity and success for all of us to win. Together.
I look back with so much appreciation for enrops because it has made my own kids' enrichment business feel sustainable again. More than sustainable: I am excited about it again! I want us all to feel less overwhelmed and more connected to the reason we got into this business to spread joy in our communities through our engaging programs.
enrops has saved Journey to STEAM time and money, and we are on track to have our most profitable and highest-earning year yet. I credit this to what we have built. If I can experience results this powerful from using it, I am confident my peers will experience the same transformative outcomes.
If you are reading this, I am rooting for you.
You got into this to do something good for kids in your community. Not to spend your Sundays on payroll spreadsheets and emailing flyers. enrops exists so you can have both. Start free and come find out what your business feels like when it finally has what it needs.
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