Eva Ochoa: Pequeños Girasoles
Eva Ochoa is the owner of Pequeños Girasoles. Based in Washington County, Eva’s childcare program offers a bilingual education based from a Reggio Amilio curriculum. Pequenos Girasoles has been open for four years and Eva has found ways to grow her business while navigating the child care field on her own terms as the owner of her own program.
Pequeños Girasoles
Walking into the childcare space, you can see colorful art and toys throughout. The spacious area is a large open room with lots of visibility, giving the students freedom to explore while giving the educators visible access to the entire indoor space. The cozy, warm environment invites you in, supported by cheerful staff that greet you with a smile. As the education methodology for Pequeños Girasoles is based on reggio emilia, Eva works hard to ensure that the program platform fits the needs of her students. As a play-based learning environment, the open indoor space and extensive outdoor area help support exploration for Eva’s students.
Eva Ochoa started working in the childcare field because of her daughters. Wanting to explore this option, Eva began working with children in a childcare center and realized quickly that she did not enjoy the more uniform structure that they offered. Eva then worked for 8 years in an in-home childcare and finally decided in January of 2020 to open her own center. When covid happened a few months after opening, it was a major challenge for her to continue and maintain her student enrollment. Fortunately, in 2021, Eva was able to begin a remodel of her indoor and outdoor spaces because of a grant she was able to acquire. With this upgrade completed in 2024, Eva has been able to set some healthy boundaries between her personal and professional life because the business was now fully separate from her home. To decompress, Eva loves to watch tv, specifically cooking shows, for inspiration and enjoyment. She also has two dogs that keep her busy. Since Evas dogs are in the house, her students enjoy seeing and playing with them as well.
Ages 2.5 months-12 years
7:30-5pm M-F
Potty training
Quick Facts!
Accepts ERDC
Lunch and snacks provided
Consistant staffing
OCCA Membership and WonderSchool Software
Eva has been working with her OCCA coach for a year and a half. Through this experience, Eva has found the support necessary while she works towards her goals, such as becoming a trainer. She knows that her coach, Sunny Yepez from Washington County CCRR, will continue to provide monthly professional development trainings and guidance as she works towards this aspiration. As Eva utilizes the 2-year WonderSchool subscription that the OCCA offers for their members, she has seen the benefit of streamlining and consolidating her administrative tasks on a CCMS platform. So far, Eva has been able to use WonderSchool to schedule tours, send out invoices to families, and use payment tracking. Hoping to continue to expand her knowledge in the software, Eva wants to also include expenses and check in/out soon, too. She knows that building this strong foundation in business planning for her current school will help her budget and prepare for her truly motivational dream of opening a second location one day.
As Eva continues to foster her program while she reaches for her dreams and aspirations, she also deserves a round of applause for the hard work and tireless dedication she has in providing wholesome, gentle care to her students and families. Eva has been able to look at her long-term goals as a business owner and push forward, no matter the obstacles that have come up since opening in 2020. With waitlist availability, learn more about Pequeños Girasoles and see if this is a program that aligns with your family needs or someone you know!
CONTACT US
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Regions We Serve
Southern Oregon
Covers Jackson and Josephine counties.
Contact: Norma Pantoja
Email Norma here
Multnomah County
Central Oregon
Covers Deschutes, Jefferson, and Crook counties
contact: Heidi Martin
Email Heidi here
Mid-Willamette Valley Community Action
Covers Salem
contact: Jenna Sanders
Email Jenna here
NW Regional ESD
Covers Tillamook County
contact: Eva Manderson
Email Eva here
Community Action of WA County
Covers Hillsboro
contact: Sunny Yepez
Email Sunny here
Program Partners
