A Mayor, A Congresswoman And A First Lady Walk Into A Parsippany Daycare: Here's Why

PARSIPPANY, NJ — A mayor, a congresswoman and a first lady walk into a Parsippany daycare. That's because the Parsippany Child Day Care Center will anchor local efforts to reverse childcare "deserts" that experts say have become all too common in New Jersey.

Childcare deserts refer to places without access to affordable, quality childcare, according to United Way of Northern New Jersey. See a map of childcare deserts.

But the Morristown-based nonprofit hopes to reverse the trend, using Parsippany Child Day Care Center as an anchor for its endeavor to remodel the institution of childcare.

United Way recently received $1.1 million in federal funding for its United In Care pilot program — a small part of the $1.5 trillion federal omnibus bill signed March 15 into law. The nonprofit celebrated the funding Thursday at the Parsippany daycare, with guests including Rep. Mikie Sherrill, New Jersey First Lady Tammy Murphy and township Mayor James Barberio.

New Jersey faced a "crisis" in childcare access and affordability before COVID-19, according to United Way. Then the pandemic made it worse.

One factor at play has been the steady erosion of registered family-care providers, according to United Way. New Jersey lost 71 percent of its home-based childcare providers since 2010, and up to half of them have or are expected to close because of COVID-19, the nonprofit says.

"Parsippany will now become a pioneer in Morris County and join these other counties in supporting New Jersey families and their search for affordable and reliable childcare," said Barberio, who reached across party lines and credited Sherrill for helping secure the funding.

United In Care created a model that partners licensed childcare centers with home-based childcare providers. This creates a shared-services alliance that expands capacity in community, combines expertise to increase quality of care, and shares resources, United Way says.

The project is designed to pass the savings to families. According to United Way’s research, 37 percent of the nearly 22,000 families with children in New Jersey's 11th Congressional District struggled to afford the basics before the pandemic.

United In Care now seeks more home-based childcare providers to join the District 11 alliance. Any business owners interested in participating can contact Susan.Cohen@UnitedWayNNJ.org or call her at 973-220-9494. Providers can also call Child & Family Resources at 973-398-1730.

The United In Care endeavor is a grant-funded, four-year pilot project. Organizers have established an alliance in three other child care deserts across the state: Hudson, Warren and Gloucester/Camden Counties.

"Thanks to Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill, First Lady Tammy Murphy, and our partners, we are excited to bring United In Care to the children, families, and providers of District 11," said Kiran Handa Gaudioso, CEO of United Way of Northern New Jersey. "High quality, affordable and flexible child care for all working parents is absolutely critical to our state’s economic recovery."

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