The Child Care Council of Westchester will celebrate those who take extraordinary steps to protect and provide opportunities for young children and their families, and to support our work to build a better future through universal access to quality early child care. The Dream Big 2019 Annual Celebration will take place on Thursday, October 3rd from 7:00 to 10:00 pm at Whitby Castle in Rye, New York. Sponsorships, journal ads and tickets are available.

The Child Care Council is delighted to announce the winners of the Cathryn A. Riley Innovation for Quality Prize for 2019:

• Briarcliff Nursery School for the “BNS Share, Learn and Grown Library”, a space within the center for teachers and parents to find books and resources to support children’s social-emotional development. They will also create “take home” bags for parents to encourage non-tech family time.
  Accepting: Lisa Beck, Director
• The Country Children’s Center to establish an “Afterschool Makers Club” in a school-based afterschool program to encourage student-driven learning that promotes open-ended experimentation, collaboration, and problem-solving.
  Accepting: Tiffany Baffi-Munson, School Age Program Director
• The Early Childhood Center at the Memorial Methodist United Church to build self-esteem in children who struggle in a group setting using the Pyramid Model and Mindfulness techniques in the “Incorporating Strategies to increase Social-Emotional and Adaptive Skills in Preschool Children Exhibiting Executive Functioning Deficit” project.
  Accepting: Margaret Rowan, Director
• Mindful Tots Nursery to expose children living in an urban setting to nature through creation of an outdoor mud kitchen and vegetable garden. In the “Learning Through Nature” project, the children will not only experience a greater connection to nature, they will also learn about good nutrition and environmental sustainability.
  Accepting: Tamica Balay-Rios, Owner
• Weekday Nursery School in a collaboration with Iona College to create fine motor centers in their preschool classrooms. In this “Fine Motor Center Collaboration” project, the children will strengthen fine motor and visual motor skills needed for kindergarten and graduate students in occupational therapy will gain hands-on experience in an early childhood setting.
  Accepting: Meaghan Fullerton, Curriculum Coordinator

Join us for a night of celebration as we induct the inaugural class into the Early Education Hall of Heroes. We’ll honor 18 professionals who represent Westchester’s most dedicated and talented child care and after school professionals, and recognize the incredible contributions of the entire industry. Bring your friends for a fun evening of dinner, live entertainment, giveaways, networking and more.

The Business Council of Westchester’s Education Foundation recently hosted Where Business and Child Care Meet, a forum for experts from the Child Care Council’s Board, Advisory Board and staff to have a conversation with business leaders about the need for – and benefits of – increasing access to sustainable child care for working parents. We were especially excited and honored to have Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul in attendance to speak about the importance of child care.. Our thanks to Dr. Marsha Gordon, John Ravitz and Maria Bronzi of the Business Council of Westchester. We look forward to many more productive meetings and conversations.

Juanita Pope, the Child Care Council's Office Manager and Special Events Manager, was chosen to be among a select group of professionals in the nonprofit sector who make up the inaugural class of Nonprofit Westchester's new Emerging Leaders Program. She and 20 other rising stars will meet at a different nonprofit each month of the year to focus on a relevant professional development topic, learn about the host organization, and network. The program, designed to help foster talent among the next generation of nonprofit leaders, launched last week and held its first session at Westhab, Inc.

Juanita shared that she is very excited to participate. "I look forward to getting to know my colleagues and learning more about the many aspects of running a successful organization and what it takes to make a true impact for the populations we serve."