Room to Grow: SUNY Niagara Daycare Expansion

by Madeline McGuire

The daycare center at SUNY Niagara just recently opened a new classroom, and so far, it’s going well. It’s described as a “continuing care room,” essentially a transitional room between two classrooms.

Christine Duquin, the center’s director, shared that the transition has been going smoothly, with both her and the staff pleased with the changes so far. While the younger children may not fully grasp what’s different, the regular attendees seem to sense that something new has been introduced to the center.

As far as socialization goes, Duquin states that the new classroom “helps keep the children in a smaller age group. Each room is designed for a year. This way, the curriculum can focus more on the same age group,” and that “it helps balance the age groups better.” Now, the center has rooms for infants, one-year-olds, two-year-olds, three-year-olds, and four-year-olds (Pre-K).

One of the staff members in the center, Jen, says the woddler room is a wonderful addition because of the excess number of children in some of the classrooms due to the large age range per room. She feels that the range in the infant room, which went from as young as 8 weeks up to about 18 months (young toddler age), was “too broad of an age span in one room.” Now, the infants and toddlers won’t be mixed in the classrooms. She states that “the daycare can now better serve the developmental needs of the children.” It seems that this new room is helpful for both the development of the children, and the sake of the center itself. It’s much easier for them to not have so many children in one room.

If you need care, you can get on the waitlist by filling out a welcome card on their website, and the center’s assistant director, Michelle Leffler, will contact you to put your information on their waitlist. All of their classrooms are currently almost full, but you can still get yourself on the waitlist, just in case a spot opens up. The total number of children that can be in daycare ranges from 58 during the school year to 68 in the summer.

The cost of care depends on the age(s) of your child(ren) and your income. All of the current rates are on their website. If you need more information, you may visit their website or stop into the center, located in D-118, down the hall from the Dolce Valvo Art Center. If you need care, you can call the center’s main line at 716-614-6245, and either Christine or Michelle will answer your questions.

They are not currently hiring, but if you would like to work there, they are always taking applications. To apply for a position, you can visit the school’s HR page and apply online.

The center’s regular hours are Mon-Thur, 7:45am – 5:00pm; Fri, 7:45am – 4:00pm (August-May). Their summer hours are Mon-Thur, 7:45am – 4:00pm (May-August). You can also email Christine at cduquin@niagaracc.suny.edu or Michelle at mlleffler@niagaracc.suny.edu.