Neighborhood Kids Provides Faith-based Early Education, a Rare Concept Among Popular Preschool Brands

Founded in Wellington, Florida, in 1978, Neighborhood Kids served working class families that lived in the town. As the population grew, a second location was opened in 1986, and both locations have had strong brand loyalty ever since. With little to no external marketing, Neighborhood Kids thrived on families who discovered and gravitated toward the schools on their own. In fact, many of the students today are children of those who were crawling at those same Wellington locations in the 1970s and 80s.

There has been multi-generational involvement with Neighborhood Kids that is largely attributed to the experience families had with the schools. The sense of warmth and caring, and the willingness to do whatever necessary to accommodate parents’ needs, continues to this day. After acquiring the two Wellington schools in 2019, Frank Toral and his wife, Olivia, saw a unique opportunity to further engage the families. By introducing additional parent engagement tools and rebranding, they brought the schools into the 21st century.

“We waited about a year before we introduced the faith element into both schools — we weren’t really sure how that was going to go. We ultimately implemented a faith based curriculum, uniforms, a healthy meal program and chapel, a weekly session for learning Bible verses and singing faith-based songs,” explained Frank Toral, CEO of Neighborhood Kids. “You can go down the list of the top 10 [preschool] franchise brands in America, and none of them have the faith element. That is what distinguishes us and that is what is missing in our culture today. We have created an environment where children feel safe, loved and want to come back. We teach them about the love of God and instill in them a sense of joy, excitement and expectation about their future potential.”

Neighborhood Kids Meshes Early Education With Faith-based Principles

Currently, Neighborhood Kids provides faith-based learning opportunities that other early-education providers do not.

“There are 146 private Christian schools in Palm Beach County. We’re the only one that’s a multi-campus preschool that’s not connected to an elementary school or church, and all of those schools in Palm Beach County have waiting lists,” Toral explained.

Neighborhood Kids has an intentional commitment to transform the culture by providing God-honoring early education in a safe and happy learning environment. Toral explained that many parents look to faith-based early education programs as a way to provide a strong foundation for their children in formative years, and the expansion of Neighborhood Kids will make this more accessible.

The Brand Plans to Expand Nationwide

Neighborhood Kids provides two franchise models to choose from based on the community’s needs. Franchisees can either open a second-generation Neighborhood Kids, which exists as a stand-alone building or within a shopping center, or they can establish a location within an existing church. The brand has seen great growth from locations within churches as they provide a connection between the families and larger church community.

“There are thousands of churches across America that are sitting empty during the week,” Toral explained. “We know that there’s a significant use and utility for that space, and it’s notably lower in cost to future franchisees than refurbishing an existing stand-alone space.”

The brand currently aims to expand within Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties and the Orlando and Tampa markets. “We would like to be in communities throughout Florida that can support a large preschool,” Toral said.

“This year we want to be conservative in the number of new locations,” he said. “Our first few franchise owners are really going to be the standard bearers for all future franchise owners. So, we want to show them that we’re here to support them, to help them succeed, to help them operate at a high level, to train them and to develop them with a strong HR strategy.”

The first few franchises will be an intense focus for Neighborhood Kids leadership, but once the initial locations see success, Toral says they plan to introduce rapid growth in the major Florida markets. If that goes well, the brand will begin to expand across the southern states, from Texas to the Carolinas, then begin to work its way north.

Who Should Franchise With Neighborhood Kids?

The ideal franchisee for Neighborhood Kids is someone who is looking for a new beginning in their life and a sense of purpose and passion beyond profits.

Before pursuing Neighborhood Kids, Toral had a successful law practice in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for over two decades.

“I’m still a licensed attorney in Florida, but my heart changed,” he said. “It changed because I sensed that God was calling us to do something different. We left Fort Lauderdale, where our kids were born and where all of our friends and relationships were, and we moved to Palm Beach County to launch a church. We felt God’s calling into full-time ministry.”

Neighborhood Kids was established on a commitment to help kids understand who they are, that they were created on purpose and for a purpose, and that God has a destiny for them, and franchisees have the opportunity to further this mission.

“We give [franchisees] an opportunity to earn a good income, but to make a huge difference — a generational impact — in their communities and in the lives of hundreds of kids in their communities. So it's a sense of purpose. You know, we're looking for purpose-driven leaders,” Toral explained.

ABOUT NEIGHBORHOOD KIDS: 

Neighborhood Kids got its start as a preschool established in Wellington, Florida, in 1978. Now a private, faith-based early childhood education organization, Neighborhood Kids provides generational impact through safe, fun, supportive, and God-honoring early education environments. For more information, visit www.neighborhoodkids.com.