The Child Care Council of Westchester was selected by Nonprofit Westchester as the 2021 recipient of the Organization Changemaker Award, in recognition of going "above and beyond in professional service with innovative approaches in partnership and collaboration to ensure that our Westchester communities remain thriving." Thank you, Nonprofit Westchester!

"I'm thrilled to see the Child Care Council's hardworking staff being recognized and celebrated with this immense honor," said Executive Director Kathy Halas. "Throughout the pandemic, every request from a parent or child care provider has been met with creative problem-solving, innovative solutions, and a selfless determination to just step up and get it done. As a result of our staff's actions, parents were able to find and pay for child care, and go back to work serving our community. Children were kept safe and healthy, and their development and mental health needs were addressed. I am amazed, grateful, and lucky to work with such an incredible team of people."

Please join us to celebrate virtually!

Want to learn about what we accomplished in 2020? Check out our most recent Annual Report.

Upon launching a new Advisory Council of child care business owners this fall, we quickly learned that one of the biggest issues facing providers is not having enough staff to operate at full capacity. This makes it difficult to run a business, and for thousands of working parents who depend on child care, impossible to go back to work! While deep issues regarding wages within the industry need to be addressed in the State and County budgets, we are reaching out to the public through legislators, colleges, libraries, community organizations, virtual career fairs, employment websites and media outlets, and encouraging qualified applicants to consider a career in child care. We then connect aspiring child care professionals with employers on our website, and offer free training through our partnership with Westchester County.

More than 250 child care professionals, parents and business, community and nonprofit leaders gathered virtually on October 28th for the Westchester Child Care Advocacy Hour, Watch it on YouTube.

After an introduction by Child Care Council of Westchester Board President Christie Noelle Krase, Council Executive Director Kathy Halas made “the ask” for child care funding in the 2022 Westchester County Budget, which includes:
• New Title XX child care subsidy slots
• Restoring the Westchester Child Care Scholarship Program
• Raising Westchester’s subsidy reimbursement rates
• Hiring staff for subsidy outreach and application assistance

Council Executive Director Kathy Halas was delighted to be part of a panel on child care at the NYS Legislative Women’s Caucus Retreat on October 13^th, thanks to an invitation by Assemblymember Amy Paulin.   Halas called for a fundamentally different approach to child care in NYS, one that recognizes that substantial public investment is required to provide truly equitable access to all who need it and fairly compensate the critically important workforce.   The session was opened by Governor Kathy Hochul, who also cited child care as a top issue.

To view the power point presentation, click here

The Council is pleased to release a new report, Access to Child Care:  The Key to Economic Recovery in Westchester County, which lays out the extreme challenges so many Westchester working families face in securing and paying for safe, quality child care.    Over 114,000 children under 13 live in households where both parents work, and few parents can afford Westchester child care prices.  At the same time, the child care workforce is among the most poorly paid of any profession.   Acknowledging the new appreciation of child care as integral to restarting our economy, the report includes recommendations for a stronger child care system in our county.

Click here to view report