The founder of the Open Doors Preschools has been named Entrepreneur of the Year by the Small Business Development Center at Florida Gulf Coast University.

Rachel McIntyre has spent more than two decades developing and operating Open Doors. Seven-hundred and eighty-five children up to five years in age spend their days at five Open Doors locations in Lee County. The business also offers after-school care and summer programs for children.

"It makes me a little teary-eyed right now, just thinking about it," McIntyre said when recalling the moment when her name was announced at the awards ceremony. "I think (I feel) deep gratitude. Gratitude to the committee for selecting me. I mean, we had 100 nominees."

McIntyre said she spotted a need for early learning and voluntary pre-kindergarten programs in Southwest Florida. So she opened a place, with a staff of one: herself.

Now she employs 160 people.

"I feel like we're the unsung heroes of our economy," McIntyre said. "We help employers by providing a safe place for the children of their employees, while they work."

Open Doors has five locations in Lee County, and one in Dover, New Hampshire, near where McIntyre grew up.

The preschools are top-notch. They are Gold Seal accredited, and that is rare in Florida, where only 8% are Gold Seal, according to McIntyre. Open Doors also has won honors in the "Great Place to Work" competitions.

"Being an entrepreneur, I think, just means being all in," she said. "I mean I really live and breathe what we've done. I think about it all the time!" 

The state certifies that all teachers have completed at least 45 hours of training, and teachers must take refreshers every six months. McIntyre said she likes to promote from within, and that appeals to teachers like Maria Morales.

"She gives us opportunities to grow," Morales said. "She gave me an opportunity.  She gives opportunities to all the teachers." 

Tuition is about $13,000 a year, and Open Doors helps many parents get grants from the state and federal governments.

James Jones has enrolled his son, less than two years old, at the Estero location.

"The vision is great here," Jones said.  "My son's learning is going way up. I mean recognizing colors, recognizing letters and numbers, things like that."   

"Everybody feels like family," Jessica Monestime said. She currently has two children at Open Doors. "You're not dropping your kid off to strangers.  Everybody knows my kids.  They spoil the heck out of them.   They love them." 

McIntyre promises to never lose track of the fact that the children and their growth are key to the operation.

"I mean children under the age of five are such a gift," she said. "They are geniuses, they are brilliant.    Every day in the classroom the things they come up with — it's just incredible and inspirational.  And we want to preserve that." 

McIntyre said she plans to expand Open Doors throughout Florida, and beyond:

"We said we want to empower 10,000 women by providing employment and also providing child care so that mothers can go into the work force and be successful," McIntyre said. "We want to have 100 centers by 2035.  We say:  shoot for the moon and maybe you will land among the stars." 

Those are big dreams. But entreprenuer Rachel McIntyre is determined to make them come true.

Mike Walcher is a reporter with WGCU News. He also teaches Journalism at Florida Gulf Coast University. WGCU is your trusted source for news and information in Southwest Florida. We are a nonprofit public service, and your support is more critical than ever. Keep public media strong and donate now. Thank you.