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In 1998, University Neighborhood sponsored a meeting with local center daycare providers, developers of affordable housing, neighborhood leaders and community groups to discuss child care options. Based on community input concerning welfare reform, it became clear that increased daycare in the Northwest Bronx is a critical issue for families trying and or mandated to work. In addition to exploring locations for center -based care, and the creation of more after school programs, the group talked about supporting family daycare through a neighborhood network.
In Community Board 7 there are only three Agency for Child Development (ACD) centers and more than 16,000 children on public assistance. The daycare centers at Concourse House and Tolentine Zeiser can span years. The lack of subsidized daycare slots while there was a high demand for daycare at local centers led UNHP to investigate the status of regulated family daycare in the neighborhood. In an effort to access the status of regulated family daycare providers in the Fordham Bedford neighborhood of the Northwest Bronx, UNHP undertook a phone survey of 88 family daycare providers in 3 Northwest Bronx Zip Codes. UNHP obtained the list from the Department of Health for registered family daycare providers. UNHP was able to reach 64 providers from the list. On April 20, 1998 UNHP sponsored a meeting for daycare providers.
The meeting was attended by over 50 providers who shared concerns about the difficulty of placement on Agency for Child Development approved lists, the need for health insurance, recruiting and retaining clients, participating in a network and the need for training. The providers who attended the meeting were primarily Spanish speaking, registered as daycare providers with the Department of Health, and open for business. That night virtually all of the providers vented the same frustration: despite being licensed, they had no kids to care for. Given that there is a 99% unmet need for daycare in Community Board 7, this was a surprising outcome and highlighted the need to form a group and work together to improve these home-based businesses.
It has been over a year since the providers met for the first time in the chapel of The Concourse House. Since then the providers have been meeting on a monthly basis to develop into a formal family daycare network. Thus far, they have focused on training and making sure their homes are prepared for the challenge of providing care for children. The group has sponsored workshops in asthma, infant CPR, lead poisoning, program development, and health and liability benefits. Some of the more experienced providers have volunteered to inspect their fellow providers homes to ensure that they comply with health and safety standards mandated by the Department of Health.
University Neighborhood Housing Program and Fordham Bedford Children Services were recently selected for the Enterprise Foundation’s Home Based Daycare Program. UNHP and FBCS will work with Providers United in continuing to develop the group into a formal provider’s network. The grant from Enterprise allowed the group to hire Anania Almonte, a Fordham Bedford resident and former project director for Victim Services Family Daycare on Fordham Road. The group was given space by FBCS at the Refuge House, the former Our Lady of Refuge Church convent where FBCS runs numerous community programs. Presently, the group is setting up a family childcare resource room there where the providers will have access to educational materials and equipment. Almonte will oversee each of the provider’s programs. Her role as coordinator is to provide technical assistance to providers, make recommendations in their programs, provide training and evaluation, observe children with providers and help foster the professional development of each provider member. Already, Almonte has visited each home, reviewed with the provider the items that need to become regulated and gone through each space that will be used for the children.
The next item on the Providers United agenda is the recruitment of children. The group has already distributed fliers to local schools, churches, businesses, hospitals and other community organizations. They have met with the Bronx regional director for the BEGIN program and have worked out an agreement for Providers United to be on site at the BEGIN center twice a week to provide childcare referral services to BEGIN participants. BEGIN, which is operated by the Office of Employment Services, is the City’s welfare to work program. The vast majority of parents going through BEGIN approved work or training activities, rely solely upon information received from their BEGIN case worker who manages their work assignment and child care subsidy payments. The goal of working with BEGIN is to provide information about Providers United childcare services to those in the BEGIN program who must comply with mandated work requirements. Providers United will continue to work with BEGIN staff and eventually meet with city officials to discuss reforms such as updated family daycare lists and getting providers paid on time.
Providers United welcomes new providers to their regular meetings and trainings. For more information about these services, or if you need daycare for your child, call Anania Almonte at (718) 733-2557 ext. 21.
