Children’s Center
Welcome to the Virginia Marx Children's Center at Westchester Community College!
Since 1986, we have been dedicated to providing the highest quality early care and education. We offer both full-time and part-time childcare for children ages 6 weeks to 5.9 years. Our services are available to student parents of Westchester Community College, faculty, staff, and the surrounding community.
Located on the Westchester Community College campus, our center is licensed by the NYS Office for Children and Family Services, accredited by NAEYC, and proudly holds a 5-star rating from QUALITYstarsNY.
Mission Statement
At the Virginia Marx Children’s Center, we provide a safe, nurturing, and stimulating learning environment. Our dedicated staff fosters a positive sense of self in children, encouraging them to respect differences, ask questions confidently, and engage in experimentation and exploration. Supportive staff-to-child relationships form the foundation of our program, with classroom groupings tailored to meet the evolving developmental needs of each child.
We believe in building strong partnerships between parents and teachers, recognizing that parents are their child’s first and most important teachers. Open dialogue, mutual support, and respect are the cornerstones of our relationships with families. We honor the diversity of our families, respecting each one’s unique traditions, expectations, and childrearing philosophies. Our classrooms reflect the rich diversity of the families we serve.
The Virginia Marx Children’s Center is committed to supporting parents by providing valuable information, resources, referrals, and workshops. We are responsive to broader community issues such as public health, child nutrition, teacher training, and inclusive practices.
Information About the Virginia Marx Children’s Center
- We provide a nurturing environment that is safe and healthy
- Teachers respond to children’s individual needs: we are attuned to each child, acknowledging their uniqueness and diversity
- We offer mixed age groups
- We are open from 7 am to 6 pm, Monday to Friday
- The children are encouraged to explore the natural environment, learn about science and math, and create through music and the arts
- We partner with highly respected organizations to deliver quality enrichment programming in nature, music, dance and science.
- Parents are encouraged to take advantage of the unique experience of observing their child interacting in their very own classroom. We offer observation rooms in each wing of the Center for parents to observe ‘firsthand’ how their child is learning and interacting in the environment.
- We are a laboratory school for students in the Early Childhood curriculum and the Dietetic Technology curriculum at Westchester Community College
- Childcare tuition for student parents varies depending on family income, household size and age of child. Students can get an Assessment Form in the Financial Aid Office.
The Children’s Center plays a unique role at the college. We operate as a demonstration site for students in the Early Childhood curriculum and the Dietetic Technology curriculum. Field students take part in internships under the supervision of the lead teacher. We view the field students as an integral part of our program. As teachers, we are constantly learning and reviewing practices and ideas in the education field. Having students as part of our team enhances the work that we do.
The Virginia Marx Children’s Center is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and received the highest rating from QUALITYstarsNY, NY’s Quality Rating and Improvement System with a 5 out of 5 star rating! Click here to view certificate.
Learn more about NAEYC by clicking here.