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From superintendent to startup founder: Dr. Jennifer Smith's vision for a 24-hour childcare center in Bladen County

By Stephanie Meador, posted Sep 8, 2026 on BizFayetteville.com

Bladen County has a contestant in the statewide Startup Showdown, a business startup competition from the Small Business Center Network and Wells Fargo. Dr. Jennifer Smith is one of 17 contestants, and she is representing not just Bladen County but the whole Sandhills region.

“There are small business centers in 58 of the community colleges throughout the state, and in the Sandhills region, we have eight small business centers…When they announced the statewide competition, each small business center had the ability to put three candidates up for this program, and the rules were that you had to be somebody who wanted to start a business. You could not have started a business yet. You couldn’t be registered with the Secretary of State or anything that would make you a business yet, and you had to agree that you would follow through with the classes,” shared Small Business Center Director Terri Dennison. 

The contestants have already pitched their businesses to a panel of judges. Now the hard part begins – a portion of the total score is dependent on how many people like a video of the pitch on a special YouTube channel. 

Dr. Smith is a retired superintendent who worked in education for 35 years. Her new business goal is to open a childcare center named after her daughter. 

Dr. Jennifer Smith

Halle’s Haven Childcare Center in Bladen County is designed to serve families who work non-traditional hours by offering first, second and third shift care Monday through Friday. The center will “never close” on weekdays, with a particular emphasis on evening and overnight care to support parents working late hours. Weekend care will also be available on an as-needed basis for parents who work Saturdays and Sundays.

“When I first thought about opening the childcare center, I looked at just first shift, and then after meeting with Miss Dennison…I had a vision of second and third shift, after meeting with her, I just knew I could do it. Bladen County is a childcare desert, and we have a lot of parents that work at Smithfield Foods; we have a lot of parents that work at the hospital. They’re working odd hours, and so even without the funding, I knew I wanted to serve the community. And serving second shift and third shift is going to be crucial to meet the needs of Bladen County,” shared Dr. Smith.

In addition to childcare, Halle’s Haven will provide a range of educational support services under its Halle’s Haven Support Service umbrella. These include before- and after-school care, homework help and focused tutoring in reading, writing and math. Dr. Jennifer Smith plans to be on-site every day, supported by a diverse team of educators, including teachers from Europe and Africa and a Spanish-speaking retired teacher from Columbus County Schools. Reflecting the needs of the local community, the program is designed to help children become bilingual while receiving consistent, high-quality care across all shifts. 

Dr. Smith plans to be very hands-on with the business as well. She stated, “I will be there directly every single day, working to make sure that everything is functioning as it should be.” 

Dr. Smith prepared for the pitch competition by working closely with Terri Dennison at the Bladen Community College Small Business Center. Her first step was meeting with Dennison to understand the guidelines, components and regulations for the competition. With support from the Small Business Center, she refined her business plan and materials. 

At the state level, she then participated in a structured training program alongside the other contestants, meeting online on Tuesdays for two weeks in the evenings. These sessions focused on finance, taxes and operations and were designed to walk aspiring entrepreneurs through developing a full business plan and to build their confidence in presenting their ideas. Through this process, Dr. Smith not only sharpened her pitch but also deepened her understanding of how Halle’s Haven could meet community needs.

Before opening the childcare center, the main remaining step is securing a permanent location. Dr. Smith initially considered operating on her own four-acre property in Clarkton, but after consulting with Dennison and other Bladen County leadership, she realized that limiting the center to Clarkton might prevent it from serving the broader Bladen County community. 

As a result, they are now exploring other sites that would better reach the greater population of Bladen County, and she emphasized that finalizing this location is the last major piece of the puzzle. She has already completed the necessary training with the state department related to regulatory requirements, so once a site is secured, she expects to move forward toward her target opening date of Jan. 1, 2027.

Watch the recording of Dr. Smith’s full pitch on YouTube: www.youtube.com/ watch?v=By4boaBP6R0. Like and share the video to help her chances at winning and receiving funding for her business. Voting is open through Sept. 10 and the winner will be announced on Sept. 17. 

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