New Child Care Center Open for Play (and Now Hiring!)

In the culmination of a 17-year project, NIH’s newest child care center on campus, the Northwest Child Care Center (NWCCC), Bldg. 23, opened to NIH children and families in June 2017.

The new facility, located across from the Clinical Center, includes 14 classrooms, 3 well-equipped play yards, a commercial kitchen, lactation room and multi-purpose room.

The approximately 21,000-square-foot facility has numerous unique aspects including increased child safety and security; exceptional indoor and outdoor early-childhood learning environments; and attainment of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) silver certification. NWCCC is licensed to provide care for children ages 6 weeks to 6 years old.

The Office of Research Services also introduced Rockville Day Care Association (RDCA), Inc., as the organization providing child care services in the new center. RDCA has a decades-long history of providing a quality, play-based curriculum for young children in Montgomery County. NWCCC teachers and administrators are already building a loving, supportive community for NIH families. Learn more about RDCA at https://rockvilledaycare.org/.

Being able to access quality, affordable child care is critical to families with young children. While NWCCC won’t fulfill the entire NIH demand for child care, it’s an important step to make sure more NIH families receive the services they need. The NIH child care board and the Child and Family Programs team work collaboratively to explore avenues to ensure quality child care and other work-life services for the NIH workforce.

Ultimately, the new center will welcome 170 children for full-time care, once all staff positions have been filled. The shortage of qualified early childhood educators is a well-known challenge in the D.C. metropolitan area, as well as across the country. RDCA is working to fill the open positions with educators who have experience with developmentally appropriate and play-based early education.

Share the position descriptions at the link below with early childhood educators in your life and help achieve NWCCC’s full enrollment with future researchers, teachers, public servants, explorers and adventurers. Find a list of open positions at https://rockvilledaycare.org/careers/.