Child Development Center Frequently Asked Questions

The Child Development Center was opened in the fall of 1930 as an early childhood lab school for the University, providing faculty with research opportunities, college students with fieldwork opportunities, and University affiliates with on-campus childcare. To this end, priority enrollment is granted to active University affiliates. The Center also accepts children from the surrounding community as space allows.

Our waiting list is maintained by the child’s date of birth, so it depends on how many other families with children that age are waiting. Getting in is not impossible! Priority enrollment is given to active Rutgers affiliates, but community openings are often available.  Typically, we have openings during the summer months, although there are occasional enrollment opportunities during the school year (September through June).

Our classrooms are led by Psychology Department employees who are licensed teachers and who are specially trained to lead the age group that they are working with.  As University employees, our full-time staff is eligible for tuition remission and many staff are pursuing, or have attained, advanced degrees and certifications.  In addition to our full-time staff, our teachers are supported by a large part-time staff of college students who are personally invested in the opportunity to work with young children.  Many of our part-time staff endeavor to become teachers, counselors, therapists, or pediatricians.

Each classroom is led by a full-time Lead Teacher who is supported by a full-time Assistant Teacher and part-time classroom aides.  Our Center is always in compliance with the NJ required ratios, but our ratios are often 1:5, especially during the academic year when our interns and college students are present.

The lead teachers in each classroom are highly qualified, possessing a teaching license with a preschool endorsement in addition to achieving 20 hours of annual professional development in the field of early childhood education and development. The classroom assistant teachers are degreed professionals that have earned their teaching licenses, or are working toward the Child Development Associate credential or an associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education.  Many staff have attained advanced degrees and credentials.  All full-time staff members are formally training in the implementation of our curriculum, including the curriculum assessment tool to monitor child progress.  Additionally, full-time staff members are formally trained in our developmental screening tools, the results of which are shared with parents semi-annually during Parent-Teacher conferences.  Teachers receive training in ITERS and ECERS environmental rating scales to ensure that their classrooms are thoughtfully and intentionally planned and organized to provide the best learning environments.

All of our full-time staff members are certified at the advanced Health Care Provider level in CPR and all are certified in First Aid and the certifications are maintained throughout employment.  We have a defibrillator on-site and staff members are trained on its use and implementation.

All employees are carefully interviewed and spend supervised time in our programs where we can observe how they interact with the children, before they are formally offered employment. In addition they provide professional and/or character references, undergo a criminal history background check with fingerprinting and a child abuse record check is completed.  All staff members must complete the University’s Protection of Minors training.

Yes, we offer a discount of $25 off of the tuition of each child when the siblings are simultaneously enrolled. The discount applies to siblings only and does not apply to extended family members.  Children must be enrolled at the same time to be eligible to receive the discount. With the exception of the Rutgers Affiliate discount, no other discounts or tuition reductions may be applied when using the family discount.

The Child Development Center has several employees who have been working with the preschool for 5, 10, and even 20 years!  Many of our part-time staff begin working with us during their freshman year and continue through graduate school.  Due to the nature of their work assignments with us, we expect that our part-time and junior staff members will eventually transition into the workforce outside of our Center upon completion of their college degree programs.

Breakfast, lunch and afternoon snack are provided each day to the children and these meals are included in our tuition.  Menus are prepared by a certified nutritionist to ensure that they are aligned with the Adult and Child Food Program guidelines. The food is prepared by a licensed school meals provider.  Full-time staff members are trained and certified NJ Food Handlers. All meals are served family-style with the children and teachers sitting together for conversation as well as to promote healthy eating and dining habits.

Due to the presence of food allergies (some of them life-threatening), we do not allow food to be brought in from outside of the Center.  The only food permitted is the food provided by our caterer or food which has been screened by the Director for allergens and determined to be safe for the children.  If a child’s food allergies are so significant that they cannot be accommodated by our caterer, we will work with the family to make other meal arrangements.

Each class has an age-appropriate daily schedule that supports their development and allows the children the security of knowing what to expect to happen next. However, our program is dynamic and the schedules can readily be adjusted to accommodate the particular needs and opportunities that may occur when implementing a high-quality, developmentally appropriate program for young children.

Our children play outside every day, even in cold and minimally inclement weather. We believe that the outdoors is an extension of the classroom that is equally as important as all of the learning activities that take place indoors.  Outdoor play and nature education are crucial to the overall development of a healthy child.  The children love playing and learning outdoors regardless of the season. During the winter, parents must send in appropriate outerwear for the season, including snow gear for playing in the snow.  Our outdoor area includes a large porch which allows the children to continue playing outdoors even in rainy weather.  During the summer months, special water play days are planned and the children wear their bathing suits to enjoy playing in the water sprinklers and other water-related activities.  Outdoor play is scheduled for at least 3 intervals in our daily schedule, with 2 of those periods planned for 1 hour or more.  Campus walks to enjoy the benefits of our picturesque campus and planned every week.

In accordance with best practices, and to maintain compliance with the licensing requirements set forth by the state of New Jersey, all children go outdoors each day unless the weather or environment is severe.  Therefore, parents may not request that their child is kept indoors for any reason.  If a parent believes that participating in outdoor play jeopardizes their child’s health, they may, at their discretion, choose to keep their child at home until their child is well enough to participate in our Center’s daily activities.

Parents are required to apply sunscreen to their children prior to coming to school in the morning.  If parents provide written consent, staff will apply sunscreen to their child in the afternoon.  Afternoon sunscreen is provided by the Center during the months of June, July, August, and September, or any time that the UV index is 4+.  Parents may opt to send in their own sunscreen, but it may not be an aerosol or spray.  Sunscreen may not be stored in children’s cubbies or anywhere within a child’s reach.

Presently, we do not offer care for mildly ill children.  There are certain illnesses which preclude a child’s participation in our program; a list of such is included in our Parent Handbook which is made available to parents upon enrollment (it is a copyrighted document and is not available outside of our Center). We strive to maintain a safe and healthy environment for everyone in our program.  Children and staff who become ill after arriving in our program are promptly sent home in an effort to minimize contagion.  Individuals who have been ill may return upon being symptom-free for at least 24 hours (at a minimum).

Our full-time staff members are trained in medication administration for children whose prescription medication regimen is such that the dosing must occur during school hours, as indicated by a doctor’s note.  Staff members are trained in how to administer a nebulizer treatment and emergency Epinephrine administration.  We do not dispense over-the-counter medication.  Medications of any kind may not be stored in children’s cubbies; prescription medication is stored in a locked cabinet.

Television viewing is not part of our programming. In fact, the Child Development Center doesn’t have a television! Our older classroom has a computer for the teachers to use as a resource with the children, but this is always an activity that is for a limited duration.

Yes, in accordance with NJ regulations pertaining to childcare programs, all children are provided with an opportunity to rest each day.  Children who do not fall asleep, or children who wake up early, are offered alternate quiet activities.  Since we know that rest contributes to a child’s overall health and well-being, we do our best to ensure that each child has the opportunity to rest each day.

Yes and No.  Our teachers will meet with parents to determine if a child is developmentally ready to begin potty-training and to ensure that it is an ideal time for everyone to initiate this process.  The discussion takes into consideration any major life events that may be up-coming, such as the birth of a sibling, an anticipated move, or other significant event.  We have child sized toilets and sinks that are perfect for encouraging independent toileting and in an effort to maximize sanitation, the toilets, sinks, and soap dispensers are all sensor/motion-activated.

Children enrolling or transitioning into our Kinder Garden classrooms must be toilet-trained.

The Child Development Center provides all diapers, wipes, and/or training pants for children who are not fully toilet-trained.  There is no additional cost for these supplies and they are included in the tuition.

Our children visit many interesting campus destinations and take advantage of age-appropriate resources available to us on-campus.  The University is very much like its own community, offering a myriad of opportunities.  For experiences available off-campus, the Child Development Center may plan and coordinate events for the children, parents, and staff to engage in, which are optional and require the parents to transport their children.  For example, one weekend an excursion to the apple orchard was planned and families met at a designated farm to participate in a farm tour and to pick apples together.

Presently, we only offer full-time enrollment, but some parents may choose to send their child for partial days or partial weeks. While most children attend 5 full days a week, others attend half days or 3-4 days each week.  All parents must pay for full-time enrollment, but have the flexibility to bring their child for a part-day or partial-week. Parents who wish to bring their child for partial-days may do so in the mornings; we do not permit children to be dropped off after 9:45am unless it is a circumstance of a doctor’s or dentist’s appointment that has been communicated to the Director in advance.

Our program is a full-time/full-day preschool.  We do not offer drop-in care.  Children participating in our program, even for partial-day, are expected to arrive prior to 9:45am.

es, we are open 12 months.  We offer 2 contract options for enrollment:  academic year (September-June) and/or summer months (July & August) to provide parents some flexibility in their enrollment.  Parents do not need to enroll for the summer, but may request that we hold their child’s place in our program for the academic year by paying a non-refundable space reservation fee.

Yes, upon signing an enrollment contract for either the 10-month academic year or 2-month summer session, parents must provide a non-refundable tuition deposit equivalent to 1 month’s tuition.  This tuition deposit may be credited to a child’s final month of enrollment at the Center, in accordance with Center policy.  A full calendar month notice must be provided in writing.

In addition to cash, checks, and money orders, we also accept Visa, MasterCard, and Discover credit card payments.  Tuition is due on the first business day of the month.  We do not charge any additional fees or surcharges for paying by credit card.

Presently, we do not offer an infant program.  We offer programming for children ages 1-5 years old.  At times, we may enroll children slightly younger than 12 months, but this is determined on a case-by-case basis and at the discretion of the Director.

Presently, we do not offer evening or weekend care.  Our active staff members are not permitted to babysit for children of families currently enrolled in our program.

Yes.  Each Center is a secured facility.  Access into our space is limited to parents and staff who have a need to be present within the secured space in our building.  Access is provided through RUID or special parent key fobs.  Parents who are active Rutgers affiliates will be provided access into the Child Development Center through their RUID’s.  Parents who do not have RUID’s will be provided with access key fobs.  All key fobs remain property of Rutgers and must be returned when a child is no longer enrolled in our program.  Access will be removed from a parent’s RUID when their child is no longer enrolled.

As a program operated by the Psychology Department, all children and parents are invited to participate in the research studies being offered.  Research opportunities are available to all University faculty and departments who are interested in learning more about the field of early childhood education and development.  All research studies are reviewed and approved by the Rutgers University Institutional Review Board (IRB) to ensure that they are safe and appropriate for children.  After obtaining IRB approval, prospective studies are sent to the Psychology Department’s Research Director for review and approval.  Upon receiving the Research Director’s approval, the study is then sent to the Preschool Director for approval.  Studies which have been reviewed and approved by the Preschool Director and all parties are then distributed to the parents. Parents have the opportunity to read about the study, to ask questions, and to decide whether or not they wish to participate.  Some studies have different levels of participation that parents may choose.  Research participation is completely voluntary and parents and children are not obligated to participate in any research studies as a condition of enrollment.  Further, each child is asked for their permission to participate—even if a parent gives permission for their child to participate, the child ultimately reserves the right to refuse to participate.  However, we find that most children are very eager to participate!  Research studies are usually in the form of games, or include puppets/toys as part of their implementation, and are interesting to children.