Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani today announced that New York City will recognize May as "Child Care Educator Appreciation Month," honoring the child care workers and educators whose labor supports families across all five boroughs.
By expanding national Provider Appreciation Day into a monthlong recognition, the City is spotlighting the essential role child care educators play in New Yorkers' lives and affirming their place as partners in shaping the future of universal child care.
"There is no child care without our child care educators," said Mayor Mamdani. "For too long, educators have been pushed aside and taken for granted. If we are serious about delivering universal child care in New York City, we must do more than recognize educators' contributions. We must center them as decisionmakers in building sustainable programs. This month is just the start. The City has critical work ahead to ensure child care educators receive the respect and compensation their essential labor deserves."
"Every day, like many parents across the city, I leave my children in the loving and capable hands of early childhood educators," said Emmy Liss, Executive Director of the Mayor's Office of Child Care and Early Childhood Education. "For decades, child care educators have shaped the lives of New Yorkers while receiving far too little formal recognition. The Mamdani Administration is committed to uplifting the critical work of our educators while advancing the economic justice needed to truly sustain this workforce. As we continue building a stronger child care ecosystem, today's announcement is an opportunity to recognize the providers whose dedication keeps our city running."
"The earliest years of a child's life are the most formative, and we have our child care educators to thank for laying the foundation of which all future learning is built on," said Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels. "Before a child ever begins kindergarten, they have already been shaped by the dedication of the educators who held their hands, spoke their names, and believed their potential is limitless. So in May, and every day, we want to show how appreciative we are to all the child care educators across the city and beyond."
This monthlong recognition highlights the leaders and educators working in the City's more than 10,000 licensed child care programs, most of which are small businesses run and staffed by women of color. Child care providers operate in every New York City neighborhood, caring for hundreds of thousands of children every day and making it possible for parents to participate in the workforce.
Today, the city also released a video showcasing the work of child care educators, available to watch here.
Earlier this week, to kick off Child Care Educator Appreciation Month, the Mayor's Office of Child Care and Early Childhood Education and the Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice Julie Su hosted a roundtable with child care program leaders to hear directly from providers and discuss opportunities to strengthen the system.
In the coming weeks, Mayor Mamdani will host a child care educator appreciation dinner at Gracie Mansion, administration officials will visit child care programs across the city, and the city will launch a provider listening tour.
In tandem with providers across New York City, the Mamdani administration has taken historic steps towards universal child care. On Day 8 of his tenure, the Mayor announced a partnership with Governor Kathy Hochul to fully fund 3-K and launch 2-K for the first time in city history. Since then, the Mayor has partnered with providers to expand 3-K access to 56 new zip codes and announce the first four communities to receive 2-K seats. Most recently, at the end of April, the Mayor opened applications for "The Little Apple," New York City's first free child care pilot program for municipal workers.
