Child Star Academy Sees New Growth – In Business and in Community
Denise Goode-Lomax is on a mission to change her city, one child at a time. In 2001, Denise launched Child Star Development Center for Detroit area children, with the mission to provide a solid early childhood education. Since then, the center has grown into Child Star Academy, which serves infants through pre-K, and continues in its mission to expand to a licensed charter school in the state of Michigan.
“Denise is amazing, this business is fantastic,” said David Watkins (NMLS#1205533), First Merchants Vice President Community Business Lending Officer for Michigan.
David recently assisted Denise with a loan that allowed Child Star Academy to expand through the purchase and renovation of a new, larger building with state-of-the-art educational amenities. While Denise spent much of her own money on the project, she needed a business loan to cover part of the costs. With this growth, Child Star Academy will be able to serve more children and to further expand age-tailored programs for infants, toddlers, and pre-K.
In a recent video interview, Denise praised David’s work in helping that happen.
“First Merchants believes in taking a chance – First Merchants believed in me,” she shared. “David was so personal, he saw my passion. He told me, ‘Whatever you need, we will help you.’ And he kept his word.”
As a Community Business Lender, David said his role goes much deeper than just a loan application.
“First Merchants really focuses on helping business owners achieve stability and growth,” he explained. “So, I meet with Denise frequently and we talk about business management, expenses, staff development – all the things you need to ensure that a business is around for decades.”
And early childhood development is a hot topic right now in Detroit, David explained, as the growing city grapples with a population boom. Denise has been at the forefront of those conversations, advocating for funding for all area childcare centers, doing grassroots organizing to pass statues that will make it easier for childcare centers to operate, and more.
For Denise, Child Star Academy is a family business, with her two daughters taking leadership and management roles for the brand. It’s Denise’s hope that they’ll be the ones to eventually turn Child Star into a licensed charter school serving children from birth all the way through their education.
“It’s a really tight, loving community, and Denise and her family care so much about these children,” David shared. “And you can see the difference—these children go through her center, and when they’re grown, it’s not unusual for them to come back and thank her for giving them that foundation they needed to succeed.”
