March 22, 2020
Buckeye Valley Family YMCA’s state-licensed child care centers at the Licking County Family YMCA in Newark and at Licking Heights North Elementary School in Pataskala have been approved by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services to operate as temporary pandemic child care centers. This is a short-term license to provide child care services to children whose parents are employed providing health, safety and other essential services as defined by the Director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.
“As soon as Governor DeWine began hinting that child care centers may close and hospitals should begin looking to create their own options for their staff, we reached out to our local hopsitals, county government and area service departments to assess their needs for this service and how we could partner with them. We want to provide a service to them, so they can focus on keeping the community at-large safe and healthy,” said Edward Bohren, CEO of Buckeye Valley Family YMCA. “We also worked closely with the Licking County Health Department to ensure that the plans we have in place are following their guidelines. We are operating with the health and safety of the children we are serving and our staff as the top priority.
The Y’s pandemic child care will begin operating on Thursday, March 26th. Hours of operation will be 6:30 am – 6 pm, Monday – Friday with additional shifts added as needed. The Newark location will serve infants, toddlers, preschool and school age, and the Licking Heights North location will serve preschool and school age.
Safety measures in place include: children will be escorted into and out of the facility during pick-up/drop-off by YMCA staff; children and staff temperatures will be monitored throughout the day; group size will be limited to 6 children. “When you have a child, you are a parent first, above all else,” said Bohren. “We want our health and safety workers to continue their critical roles with peace of mind that their children are being well cared for.”
To register your child, you must complete an application that can be downloaded from the YMCA website at bvfymca.org/child-care, or picked up at the Licking County Family YMCA Child Care Center in Newark and the Licking Heights North Elementary School Child Care Center in Pataskala. Space is limited, registrations will be first come, first serve. Proof of employment must be provided upon first check-in. For more information, contact the Newark Child Care Office at 740-345-9628 or the Licking Heights North Child Care Office at 740-927-3268 and select “option 2.”