Through the Night: A Film About 24/7 Day CareThe Council has always strived to put a spotlight on child care and the central role it plays in parents’ lives. Now it’s good to see that our field has come to the silver screen in a searing documentary, Through the Night. I recently watched this real-life portrait of a 24-hour day care in New Rochelle, New York—and I thought about just how well it gets our message across.
The film stars Deloris and Patrick Hogan, who run Dee’s Tots Childcare seven days a week out of their home. It also features some of the families they serve, including a pediatric nurse who works overnight and a woman who holds three jobs because she can’t find one that provides enough hours, much less the benefits she needs.
Hardworking families have relied on Nunu and Pop Pop, as the kids call the couple, for more than 22 years. Over that long stretch of time, Nunu has dried the tears of both children and their family members, given them hugs and heard their woes. “I’ve seen parents break down because they don’t want to leave their children, but they have to support their families,” Nunu recalls. And there are times she, too, wants to break down as she works round the clock to fill a pressing need with little support from the state.
Though Nunu clearly loves her job and the children she cares for, the constant work has taken its toll. Her back hurts. The nerves in her shoulder are shot, but she’s afraid to get surgery because she needs to pick up babies all day. She’s even had a stroke, fulfilling the parents’ and kids’ worst fears that “something will happen to Nunu.”
Besides her aches and pains, Nunu also feels guilty because she can’t give her own children more of the attention they deserve. But she refuses to feel sorry for herself and won’t take the break that she badly needs. “This work is hard,” she admits, “but I’m afraid if I lie down, I won’t get up. I have something to do, so I have to keep moving.” Move she does, and we follow her through the day and night as she cooks for the children, cleans up constant messes, deals with the hubbub that fills her home, works with the children in her garden, helps them learn their letters and numbers.
Nunu also teaches her tots about kindness and compassion. One day, they’re having a fight, so she calls them all over and says, “Let’s have a conversation. Sharing is caring. Let’s act like we love each other.” And her own sense of love seems without bounds as she cares for the children, who she fondly addresses as “babe.” One time, a little boy is having a meltdown because she won’t let him play with his tablet in the bustling day care. “Could you not cry,” she gently pleads with him, “because you make me cry, too.”
Mixed in with the tears and turmoil that fill Nunu’s life, there are some bright spots that show how much joy she takes in her work. Toward the close of the film, a graduation takes place at the day care, with the children dressed up like kings and queens and Nunu in a flowing yellow dress instead of her usual sweats. The parents are all there too, and she beams as she thanks them for “letting me be part of your lives.”
The film ends with a buoyant vision of golden balloons floating in Nunu’s front yard. Hope floats, too. And we certainly need it since this film is not just a depiction of one selfless woman and the families who she serves. It’s also an indictment of a system that doesn’t give either our working parents or our child care providers the support they need.
We at the Council have been on a long crusade to bring the challenges and contributions of child care to the forefront. So, I hope this film will open eyes with its heart-rending—and heart-warming—portrait of the gaping holes in our social safety net. “This is the way the world is set up at this point,” Nunu stolidly points out. But it shouldn’t be. Perhaps, her story will move those who see it and help build momentum to fix our broken child care system—a problem that should make us lose sleep. I know that watching this poignant film made an impact on me. It lingered in my head and in my heart all through the night.
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Vice President of People and Culture
Janie Payne is the Vice President of People and Culture for the Council for Professional Recognition. Janie is responsible for envisioning, developing, and executing initiatives that strategically manage talent and culture to align people strategies with the overarching business vision of the Council. Janie is responsible for driving organizational excellence through strategic talent practices, orchestrating workforce planning, talent acquisition, performance management as well as a myriad of other Human Resources Programs. She is accountable for driving effectiveness by shaping organizational structure for optimal efficiency. Janie oversees strategies that foster a healthy culture to include embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion into all aspects of the organization.
In Janie’s prior role, she was the Vice President of Administration at Equal Justice Works, where she was responsible for leading human resources, financial operations, facilities management, and information technology. She was also accountable for developing and implementing Equal Justice Works Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion strategy focused on attracting diverse, mission-oriented talent and creating an inclusive and equitable workplace environment. With more than fifteen years of private, federal, and not-for-profit experience, Janie is known for her intuitive skill in administration management, human resources management, designing and leading complex system change, diversity and inclusion, and social justice reform efforts.
Before joining Equal Justice Works, Janie was the Vice President of Human Resources and Chief Diversity Officer for Global Communities, where she was responsible for the design, implementation, and management of integrated HR and diversity strategies. Her work impacted employees in over twenty-two countries. She was responsible for the effective management of different cultural, legal, regulatory, and economic systems for both domestic and international employees. Prior to Global Communities, Janie enjoyed a ten-year career with the federal government. As a member of the Senior Executive Service, she held key strategic human resources positions with multiple cabinet-level agencies and served as an advisor and senior coach to leaders across the federal sector. In these roles, she received recognition from management, industry publications, peers, and staff for driving the creation and execution of programs that created an engaged and productive workforce.
Janie began her career with Verizon Communications (formerly Bell Atlantic), where she held numerous roles of increasing responsibility, where she directed a diversity program that resulted in significant improvement in diversity profile measures. Janie was also a faculty member for the company’s Black Managers Workshop, a training program designed to provide managers of color with the skills needed to overcome barriers to their success that were encountered because of race. She initiated a company-wide effort to establish team-based systems and structures to impact corporate bottom line results which was recognized by the Department of Labor. Janie was one of the first African American women to be featured on the cover of Human Resources Executive magazine.
Janie received her M.A. in Organization Development from American University. She holds numerous professional development certificates in Human Capital Management and Change Management, including a Diversity and Inclusion in Human Resources certificate from Cornell University. She completed the year-long Maryland Equity and Inclusion Leadership Program sponsored by The Schaefer Center for Public Policy and The Maryland Commission on Civil Rights. She is a trained mediator and Certified Professional Coach. She is a graduate of Leadership America, former board chair of the NTL Institute and currently co-steward of the organization’s social justice community of practice, and a member of The Society for Human Resource Management. Additionally, Janie is the Board Chairperson for the Special Education Citizens Advisory Council for Prince Georges County where she is active in developing partnerships that facilitate discussion between parents, families, educators, community leaders, and the PG County school administration to enhance services for students with disabilities which is her passion. She and her husband Randolph reside in Fort Washington Maryland.
Chief Operations Officer
Andrew Davis serves as Chief Operating Officer at the Council. In this role, Andrew oversees the Programs Division, which includes the following operational functions: credentialing, growth and business development, marketing and communications, public policy and advocacy, research, innovation, and customer relations.
Andrew has over 20 years of experience in the early care and education field. Most recently, Andrew served as Senior Vice President of Partnership and Engagement with Acelero Learning and Shine Early Learning, where he led the expansion of state and community-based partnerships to produce more equitable systems of service delivery, improved programmatic quality, and greater outcomes for communities, children and families. Prior to that, he served as Director of Early Learning at Follett School Solutions.
Andrew earned his MBA from the University of Baltimore and Towson University and his bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland – University College.
Chief Financial Officer
Jan Bigelow serves as Chief Financial Officer at the Council and has been with the organization since February of 2022.
Jan has more than 30 years in accounting and finance experience, including public accounting, for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. She has held management-level positions with BDO Seidman, Kiplinger Washington Editors, Pew Center for Global Climate Change, Communities In Schools, B’nai B’rith Youth Organization and American Humane. Since 2003, Jan has worked exclusively in the non-profit sector where she has been a passionate advocate in improving business operations in order to further the mission of her employers.
Jan holds a CPA from the State of Virginia and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lycoming College. She resides in Alexandria VA with her husband and dog.
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