The issue of Paid Family Leave has been in the news and on a lot of people’s minds recently, and it is an important topic for many families in Westchester County.  There are more working mothers than before and more children in child care. A newborn’s development is critical to his/her success in life. According to zerotothree.org babies come into the world with some very useful survival reflexes, they are still strikingly helpless, in large part because the cerebral cortex is still quite immature. The cerebral cortex is responsible for all of our conscious thoughts, feelings, memories, and voluntary actions. Although all of the neurons in the cortex are produced before birth, they are poorly connected. The cerebral cortex produces most of its synaptic connections after birth which at its peak creates an astonishing two million new synapses every second. With these new connections come a baby's many mental milestones, such as color vision, a pincer grasp, or a strong attachment to his parents.

"Math is Cool in After School" will provide after school programs with training and materials to enhance the math experiences of the students they serve. Ten to fifteen after school programs will participate in a series of workshops designed to make math concepts understandable and integrate math learning/activities throughout the day. This exciting new project is funded by the TD Bank Foundation. Westchester’s after school programs not only support working parents but also expand and strengthen children’s learning beyond the regular school day. We thank the TD Bank Foundation for its leadership in this area.

A new grant from the Westchester Community Foundation will expand and deepen the Council's advocacy activities.    The award will support a report on Westchester employers’ child care needs and concerns, new infographics on the scope and cost of Westchester child care and training for child care/after school board leaders on advocacy for safe, affordable, quality child care.     The Council is grateful to the Foundation for understanding the critical importance of advocacy to our work at a time when there has never been greater recognition of the importance of the early years but resources remain limited.

We exceeded our #GivingTuesday goal!

Thanks to you, we're going to create at least SIX (!) scholarships for Westchester families to get quality early care and education for their kids. 

Every milestone they meet as children and each accomplishment as adults will have its roots in your generosity.

Thank you!

Click the link below to view the Council's Winter 2015 Newsletter.

Included in this issue:

• #GetSmartChildCare
• Focus on Early Literacy
• #GivingTuesday Update
• Annual Parent Child Care Survey Results
• and more!

Winter 2015 newsletter