Designed to be of help to individuals and groups seeking to establish a day care center in the metropolitan St. Louis area, this manual calls attention to important and basic information which must be taken into account if planning is to produce tangible results. Following a brief section defining commonly used terms referring to organized preschool program activities, sections 2 through 11 cover topics such as the determination of a new day care center's location and size; obtaining city occupancy permits and state licenses; decisions about corporate structure (i.e., profit or non-profit); budgeting and advertising; federal, state, and city income taxes; preschool curriculum models; guidelines for successful day care operation; board/executive relationships; and equipping the day care center. (MP)