Child Care $ Threatened

Despite all the attention on the importance of child care to children, families and our very recovery from the pandemic, it has been dropped from the Federal Reconciliation Bill discussion. Once part of President Biden's Build Back Better package at $400 billion, child care is now off the table entirely.

Unbelievable.

Unacceptable.

Making child care truly affordable for working parents; creating universal PreK; paying the child care workforce a level of compensation that reflects their true value to society - none of that happens if the anticipated Federal child care funding goes away.

If child care is not a priority in the Reconciliation Bill, we will have learned nothing from the pandemic. And all our pledges to remake our child care system will ring hollow.

Let the President and your elected officials at every level of government know that child care must be a PRIORITY in the Reconciliation Bill.

Just Click Here! to send your letter insisting that child care must be in the Federal Reconciliation Bill.

To see what the expected Federal funding could do for NYS, Click Here!

COVID-19 Vaccine for Children 6 Months - 5 Years

COVID-19 Vaccines Informational Session for Families and Providers with

Dr. Dial Hewlett, Medical Director, Division of Disease Control Deputy to Commissioner of Health at the Westchester County Department of Health

Wednesday, June 29th, 2022 from 1pm-2pm

Submit questions in advance to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

*Please share this link with the families in your program*

Click HERE to register for the Zoom Informational Session. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email with the link to join the meeting.

Child care has suffered tremendously during the COVID-19 pandemic. Never have child care leaders been more critical.

Take your place among Westchester's leaders via Leadership Westchester, a rigorous, 9 month program run by Volunteer NY! that sharpens leadership skills, expands relationships, facilitates a new understanding of your own values, capacities and goals, and deepens your ability to influence others.

For the 6th year, the Council is pleased to fully support the participation of a Westchester early care and education leader in this unique opportunity.

A Council committee will pre-screen all applicants for this scholarship and interview selected candidates. Interviews with the committee will be scheduled for late July/early August. Final selection will be made by Leadership Westchester. The first Leadership Westchester class will be in late October.

For the Leadership Westchester application, Click Here!

Deadline for appplications is Wednesday, July 27th at 5pm.

Virtual Info Session to be announced shortly!

About the Cathryn A. Riley Fund - The Leadership Westchester scholarship is made possible by the Cathryn A. Riley Fund of the Child Care Council of Westchester. Cathryn "Cate" Riley was a coordinator at the Council prior to her death. She was involved with the NYS Child Care Coordinating Council, now known as the Early Care and Learning Council, the coordinating vehicle for the statewide CCRR network. She also served on the NYS Department of Education Committee for Teacher Certification, the Board of the Westchester Association for the Education of Young Children and the Advisory Board of Westchester Community College. Cate was herself an intuitive and skilled leader in early care and education.

On Friday, June 17th, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized emergency use of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine and the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine for the prevention of COVID-19 to include use in children down to 6 months of age.

• For the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine, the FDA amended the emergency use authorization (EUA) to include use of the vaccine in individuals 6 months through 17 years of age. The vaccine had been authorized for use in adults 18 years of age and older.
• For the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine, the FDA amended the EUA to include use of the vaccine in individuals 6 months through 4 years of age. The vaccine had been authorized for use in individuals 5 years of age and older

Read the full press release here.

Thank you to all of you who educate and care for our children!

Last year we hosted our Early Education Hall of Heroes event virtually, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, we are so excited to come back together in-person to honor some of the world's greatest educators. The last couple of years have been challenging, especially for the early education field, and you deserve to be celebrated.

You may nominate yourself or be nominated by an employer, parent, board member, or a co-worker. If you are a former Joey Award winner, you may still be nominated. You may receive multiple nominations. A selection committee will choose the honorees, and approximately 10 professionals will be inducted this year.

The Early Education Hall of Heroes event will take place on Friday, September 30, 2022 from 7pm to 9pm. Join us for a night of celebration with awards, dinner, entertainment, giveaways, and more. So put September 30th on your calendar, and submit an online nomination form for your hero. They just might become a 2022 Early Education Hall of Heroes Inductee.

Nomination Form

We look forward to honoring a new slate of exceptional child care and after school professionals, highlighting the importance and impact of high quality programs.

For questions or more information, contact Juanita Pope at 914-761-3456 x106 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Check out our previous honorees below:

View the full 2019 event gallery here.

View the full 2021 event gallery here.