Senator Mayer Receives Statewide Child Care "Excellence in Leadership" Award

ALBANY, NY--Today, Senator Shelley B. Mayer accepted the "Excellence in Leadership" Award from the Early Care & Learning Council statewide advocacy organization. The award recognizes individuals who have shown exemplary leadership in advancing high quality early child care and education. Senator Mayer was nominated for the award by Kathleen Halas, Executive Director of the Child Care Council of Westchester, in the category of Legislator/Government. Senator Mayer is recognized for her leadership in the statewide effort to bring awareness to, and address, the pressing needs of working families, and especially working mothers, for quality child care options.

"Thank you to the Early Care & Learning Council for your hard work on behalf of all working families with child care needs. Accessible, affordable, and quality child care is one of the most pressing issues affecting New York families, and I am pleased to accept the 'Excellence in Leadership' Award," said State Senator Shelley B. Mayer. "I have worked hard during my tenure in the New York State legislature for many years to ensure that childcare, afterschool programs, and early learning initiatives are part of the economic development conversation. We know that every dollar we invest in child care and early childhood education is repaid to the community 7 times through the long term benefits these programs provide. From increasing high school graduation rates to decreasing the chances of future trouble with the law, the benefits are immense. I look forward to continuing my work with my legislative colleagues and child care advocates to secure additional resources and raise awareness about the critical importance of child care, early learning, and afterschool programming."

As the most recent Chair of the Assembly Task Force on Women's Issues, then Assemblymember Mayer led a statewide investigation into New York State's child care crisis through organizing multiple round table discussions through the state. Working parents, child care providers, and advocates were brought in to discuss innovative solutions to the problems they face, as well strategic deployment of resources.

During her time in the legislature, Senator Mayer has had many successes on behalf of the childcare and afterschool programming advocacy community. These successes include a successful implementation of an internet mapping resource which allows parents to conveniently search for state subsidized afterschool programming; $35 million in the 2017-18 New York State Budget for the Empire State After School Program and ensuring the City of Yonkers was eligible for a portion of the funds; and passing legislation to allow childcare providers to post achievements beyond licensing information about their childcare centers on the state Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) website, all to help working parents make informed decisions.