Keanna Sanders Turns Her Lifelong Dream Into Sanbridge Early Learning Center, A Childcare Empire For Working Moms
Keanna Sanders has always had a passion for childcare. Inspired by her grandmother, Keanna has begun to build an empire that caters to working mothers, giving them the support that they need. A pillar of the Maryland community, Keanna’s Sanbridge Early Learning Centers offer unorthodox hours, with one center being open 24 hours, while her other locations are open until midnight. The mother of two is dedicated to breaking barriers within childcare and has recently opened complementary slots at her center for toddlers aged three to four. The spots are for income-based families and are available from now through June 30, 2026, with enrollment resuming in September 2026. This opportunity will allow working mothers to have reliable, quality care while they strive towards bettering their careers or pursuing higher education. Keanna spoke with Her Agenda on her passion for childcare, plans to expand, and Sanbridge’s impact on the community.
Her Agenda: What led you to start the Sanbridge Early Learning Center?
Keanna Sanders: I was led to start the Sanbridge Early Center because I was brought up in child care. My grandmother was an in-home provider, and I was always around children. She inspired me to start a childcare facility. I have been working with children since I was in high school, and then also during my college breaks as well. So, just the love of being around children and helping children inspired me to start my childcare facility.
Her Agenda: What continues to drive your passion for childcare?
Keanna Sanders: What drives me is being able to see the children learning daily and being able to help families in the community. My centers do a lot of community engagement festivals and activities. I love being able to offer the services that children need and see their growth in cognitive development and social-emotional development as well. I also love being able to be a pillar of the community. Helping families have the assistance they need with children, and if the children have any type of issues, such as behavior issues or speech impediments, and being able to offer different services that refer children who are struggling with any type of educational delays. That actually inspires me and helps me as well.
Her Agenda: What services does Sanbridge offer to children?
Keanna Sanders: One of my centers is open 24 hours. The other centers are open from 6 a.m. to midnight. We’re able to offer non-traditional childcare services, meaning that families that don’t work a traditional 9 to 5 schedule will be able to have childcare services after doing extended hours. We also offer educational services where the children can learn the curriculum that we teach, which is Frog Street Curriculum, and be able to help our pre-K program and three and four-year-olds get readily available for elementary school throughout Maryland State Department of Education grant.
Her Agenda: You’ve opened up complimentary slots at Sanbridge for this year. What made you make that decision, and how will this help support working mothers?
Keanna Sanders: We opened up complimentary slots because, as I stated, we get the pre-K expansion grant and also the Blueprint grant, which is a grant from the Maryland State Department of Education. and it allows three and four-year-olds to come to my facility tuition-free. The money is paid through the state of Maryland, and it allows for three and four-year-olds to be readily available for tuition for elementary school. We hire public school teachers to actually come into the facility and teach children based on the curriculum that we use, which is Frog Street, or a curriculum that would match the public school systems.
Her Agenda: When did you see a need to create the Sanbridge Early Learning Center in your community?
Keanna Sanders: Well, we had a lot of single parents actually just growing up, the need has always been there, even for me, working in the child care industry for over 20 years, and also being under my grandmother. She was a family provider. She was always watching a lot of children over in the evenings, after five o’clock, which inspired me to open up a non-traditional childcare facility. So many moms work second jobs, or work late, and it’s a lot of single-family households. Being able to have a provider like me to provide those services has always been a blessing. Some people don’t have the resources they need; they might not have a grandmother or a family member to watch their children, so with me being able to offer those services, it has definitely been a help in the community. It has helped single moms economically because they’re able to pick up extra shifts or they’re able to work additional hours and bring more money into their household to be able to take care of their families.
Her Agenda: What are the eligibility guidelines for these families to qualify for the slots?
Keanna Sanders: Well, for the size, I do know the child has to be three years old, before September 1st of 2022, in order to be eligible. You have to meet a certain income requirement. You have to have a copy of your child’s birth certificate, and you have to submit pay stubs stating that you meet the income requirement. Now, if you have a child or a family that’s going through some type of economic challenges and is homeless, you automatically qualify to be able to receive deferred services. If you might be unemployed at the time, you automatically receive the services as well.
Her Agenda: How important would you say expanding child care through June 2026 is?
Keanna Sanders: It’s very important, especially with the things that we are facing today. You have a lot of single moms who need it. We also went through the furlough situation with the government, and people needed the services then. I would say that it’s definitely needed in order for our children to be able to receive the education that they need and be ready to go into elementary school. Starting at that early age is definitely needed in a community because we’re able to give them the resources that they need. It’s similar to the Head Start programs that get children ready to go into elementary school. I do know that this is something that the community has been grateful for and has really thanked my center for. It’s great seeing a difference in the children’s learning curve and where they once were to where they are now. From an educational perspective, it’s needed. Then, from a parenting perspective, for people who have busy work schedules or just need to extend their hours, it has been a help.
Her Agenda: What testimonials have you been given from either a single mother or a student who has come to your center?
Keanna Sanders: Well, we’ve gotten wonderful testimonies. We’ve had children whose parents say that they didn’t know their ABCs or couldn’t pronounce words. Parents had seen a difference and came to the center and thanked us for our services. Children can recognize their colors and are able to have the social skills, which are very important with other children. I always believe that when you put children in an environment that is similar to their own, they excel a lot faster and better because they’re around their peers. They’re able to communicate with other children. They’re able to learn through play and can adjust to the environment. It’s not just three and four-year-olds; we even start with our infants, being able to put our infants on the floor and engage them in tummy time. Learning activities and being able to have those developmental skills is also good at birth because by the time they’re toddlers, they’re able to be mobile. They’re able to play with their peers and their friends and just learn different things in different environments. It’s always good to have them around their little peers.
Her Agenda: How would you say Sanbridge has impacted your community?
Keanna Sanders: I would say we’ve impacted our community because we’ve been able to partner with several other vendors to be able to provide additional resources. Resources such as being able to help families that might be in need of food through social services, and being able to connect them to get public assistance. We’ve been able to help families with different services when it comes to their children. If their children, as I mentioned before, have any type of behavioral or educational delays We’ve been able to link them to infants and toddlers or link them to speech therapists. We’ve also been able to, at the time, help families that were furloughed and be able to put them on payment plans or connect them with any type of assistance. I would say we’ve made a very positive impact on the community. Anything that my families might have needed, they’ve always been able to come to my district director or come to the directors themselves. I’ve been able to make certain phone calls or just connect them with different partnerships, depending on what those needs are.
Her Agenda: How far do you plan to expand Sanbridge and what are some of your goals to accomplish, you hope to accomplish for the future of the company?
Keanna Sanders: I plan to expand Sandbridge worldwide and then also create a franchise that I’m working on that hopefully I’ll have completed in the next few years. I’d love to see Sanbridges everywhere in different states. I like to promote within, so I like to be able to take my directors to executive positions, and then if they are ever willing and wanting to open their own center, I’m an advocate for that. I would love for them to have their own Sanbridge and be able to teach them how to open their center and run their own center. My vision is for Sanbridge to be the leading child care provider in the nation and to be able to offer those franchise opportunities to minorities, especially women who look like me, single moms. I mean, really, to anybody, but I’m definitely an advocate of opportunities for minorities and women entrepreneurs. If I’m able to provide them with any type of leadership roles and ownership, that would be the vision for my company, and being able to expand.
Her Agenda: Other than childcare, do you have any other ventures you’re interested in?
Keanna Sanders: Well, I have a substance abuse facility in Baltimore City. I’ve been running that business since 2021. I also have a nonprofit organization called Baltimore’s Dynamic Women. We help empower women to be entrepreneurs or be able to get an executive position, whatever it is that your heart desires, as far as growth. What we do is extend those types of services. Then we also mentor young teenagers or young women who are inspired to have their own.
