Sept. 11, 2020 By Christian Murray
The Ridgewood YMCA will be offering parents free childcare on days their kids have to do remote learning.
The program, which will be open to students in Queens, is being funded by a $500,000 donation by AT&T and WarnerMedia to the YMCA of Greater New York.
The Ridgewood YMCA is where the program is being offered in Queens.
The YMCA will support and supervise students on remote learning days from 8 a.m.-3 p.m., as well as provide in-person project-based learning and physical games and activities. All students participating in DOE’s hybrid learning model are eligible to be part of the program.
Parents are advised to contact their school principal if they would like to enroll. Priority will be given to children of essential workers and children experiencing homelessness.
The goal is to help parents who do not have the option of working from home and have difficulty affording childcare on the days their children have to learn remotely. The program aims to help parents return to work as the city begins to recover from the economic challenges caused by the pandemic.
“The pandemic has created a tremendous amount of uncertainty around the upcoming school year, presenting the greatest challenges for parents who do not have the option of working from home. Together, AT&T and WarnerMedia are honored to support the YMCA so they can provide urgently-needed school day remote learning supervision and support for hundreds of families across New York City,” said Patricia Jacobs, President, Northern Region, AT&T in a statement.
Dennis Williams, SVP, Corporate Social Responsibility, at WarnerMedia echoed those sentiments.
“It’s our honor to support the YMCA and this worthy program, alongside AT&T,” Williams said.