A measure to allow space in public schools to be used for child care services was approved by the Assembly Women and Children Committee Thursday.
The bill (A-5066) would permit child care centers to operate in the schools as part of a five-year Department of Children Family (DCF) pilot program in which these centers would require licensure to operate within the school. The legislation is sponsored by Assembly Democrats Patricia Egan Jones (D-Camden, Gloucester), Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D-Bergen), Pamela Lampitt (D-Burlington, Camden), and Carol Murphy (D-Burlington):
“Whether you are an educator, childcare worker or operator, parent or legislator, I think we all have one goal: to create environments where our children can learn, develop and thrive as early in their lives as possible.
“This pilot program will help determine how such environments can be created within the public school system as a means of utilizing space that might otherwise go underutilized. It is also an opportunity to create a vehicle whereby parents have more options for safe, reliable childcare for one of their most precious assets—their children.”