More than 500 providers and guests gathered on May 10 to celebrate the role that family child care providers play in not only caring for and preparing children for school but also in stabilizing families and, by extension, the city’s economy.

More than 50 UFT family childcare providers received awards for chapter leadership, outstanding professional services, excellent regulatory compliance and other achievements at four ceremonies in different boroughs this spring. 

More than 230 people gathered in Shanker Hall at UFT headquarters on May 13 for the 9th annual Family Child Care Providers Chapter's Provider Appreciation Awards Ceremony. The event honored outstanding members of the chapter and offered the chance for their families and colleagues to celebrate their extraordinary work.

Functional chapters are so named because what unites these student-support professionals is their function rather than a worksite or a school. The chapters were formed to allow these UFT members with common issues and concerns to have a voice.

Theresa Aponte is a family child care provider in East NewYork, Brooklyn, and a “second mother” to children who attend her in-home day care center while their parents work.

The UFT has won a city contract as a network provider to coordinate the work of home-based family child care providers. The new network expands the union’s advocacy on behalf of these workers.