Governor Kathy Hochul acknowledged the child care crisis across our state by announcing a $500 million investment in the FY 2024 budget to bolster New York’s childcare workforce through the Workforce Retention Grant program. Funding from the program supported up to 150,000 child care workers with bonus payments ranging from $2,300 to $3,000 to staff in caregiving roles.

Wimpfheimer Nursery School and the Infant Toddler Center at Vassar have been awarded the workforce retention grant this year with bonuses targeted at retraining, rewarding, and recruiting early childhood professionals. Early childhood teachers engaged in foundational work must be knowledgeable in child development and skilled in early childhood pedagogy but are paid wages lower than elementary school teachers. The grant acknowledges early childhood education and care's essential and often underfunded work.