Did you know? Across Bergen County

• 48,343 children under 5 in Bergen County (2020 data) 
• 37,798 (or nearly 70%) live in families with all parents in the Labor Force.
• A child's earliest years are when the brain is growing the fastest - laying a foundation for all future social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development.

The future begins with babies! The NJ Department of Human Services, Division of Family Development (DFD) funds the Infant Toddler Specialist Network (ITSN). Infant Toddler Specialists work with child care professionals (registered family child care providers and child care center staff) to:

• Strengthen the quality of infant and toddler care - to offer a setting that best promotes the healthy development of New Jersey's youngest children.
• Support age-appropriate activities and approaches to learning and child development
• Offer suggestions and strategies to meet common challenges
• Expand the availability of infant and toddler care in every community

Support through the Infant Toddler Specialist Network is FREE!

• Coaching and mentoring from a designated Infant and Toddler specialist
• Professional Development, on-site or virtual for child care professionals
• Learning space arrangement support
• Strategies for handling challenging behavior
• A stipend of up to $1200 in classroom enhancements for each classroom for child care center enrolled
• A stipend of up to $600 in program enhancements for each Family Child Care home enrolled
• Ongoing access to infant and toddler consultation for all programs

An inspector from OOL refers a program to the ITSN

A licensed child care center or family child care provider decides to voluntarily enroll in the ITSN and completes an ITSN Enrollment Request on NJCCIS.

For more information, please contact Gloria Giraldo, Infant Toddler Specialist, via email or at 201-336-7172