STATE COLLEGE — After having her fifth child, Sarah Kuchta was overwhelmed.
When she and her husband moved to State College 10 years ago, Kuchta said they fell in love with the community. The only problem was they struggled to find help.
“We don’t have family here,” said Kuchta. “So I started looking for au pairs and other full-time nannies to help, and I could not find anything.”
As a former teacher, Kuchta was unsure whether she wanted to return to the classroom — especially because of a creative itch she was ready to scratch.
She discovered Happy Valley LaunchBox, a business that guides entrepreneurs in the early stages of planning through a 10-week training program to help them launch a successful business.
“I thought, ‘What better time than now to start this?’” she said.
In January, Kuchta founded Nittany Nannies, a service to help make finding reliable child care easier.
Kuchta recruits and interviews local sitters, ensuring that they have the correct clearances, so other local moms don’t have to. Once a sitter is cleared, Kuchta helps match them to a family in need of child care assistance.
“I am a mom in the community,” said Kuchta. “I totally get it, I’m there with you — I need help, too.”
Nittany Nannies currently has about 20 sitters. They include Penn State students, high schoolers, retired teachers and grandmothers.
“Sometimes I use the sitters myself,” Kuchta said.
Families and sitters decide on their own rates, though Kuchta suggests $15 to $25 per hour.
Services include on-demand, on-site, temporary, full-time and part-time nanny care. The most popular service is for on-demand sitters, which are often used for date nights or for stay-at-home moms who need an occasional sitter.
When the fall rolls around, Kuchta is expecting to see an uptick in on-site sitters for Penn State football fans. Sitters will be able to go to tailgates, hotels, Airbnbs and other places to take care of children during the games.
This summer, however, Kuchta expects to have a higher demand for temporary sitters. Right now, Nittany Nannies has several families interested in summer care, but many of the sitters are going home for the summer or have an internship. High school and college students looking for a summer job are encouraged to apply to be a sitter.
As the school year comes to a close, Nittany Nannies is a great resource for parents looking for an extra set of helping hands this summer.
In the future, Kuchta said she hopes to expand the business to other counties in Pennsylvania, and one day even make it a nationwide service to help families all over the country.
Visit nittanynannies.com or follow @NittanyNannies on Instagram and Facebook for more information.
