Adventures in babysitter training in Huntington

Councilman Stuart Besen with Project EXCEL Coodinator Valerie Drakos and the equipment used in training.

By Michael R. Ebert
michael.ebert@newsday.com

Before he completed a four-week workshop at the Centerport Fire Department, 12-year-old Brian Kelly of Centerport had never been exposed to a crying baby before.

“He didn’t know the first thing about how to handle them,” said his mother Denise, who pushed her son to attend the clinic after glimpsing a flyer he brought home from school. “Now, he knows how to change, feed and hold them, and he’s learned it the right way.”

In late June, Brian was one of 42 youngsters to graduate from Huntington’s expanded Babysitting Workshop Program, which teaches youngsters the ins and outs of infant care. Using computerized dolls programmed to act hungry, cranky, wet or just craving attention, students (ages 12-17) also learned first aid, emergency and fire safety procedures.

So far, five local fire departments — East Northport, Eaton’s Neck, Huntington, Centerport and Dix Hills — have jumped aboard to host clinics. But Councilman Stuart Besen hopes all of the town’s firehouses, as well as neighboring townships, will soon take notice.

“As a parent myself, I know how hard it can be to find a qualified babysitter,” said Besen, who fashioned the workshop idea after tossing around the topic with friends. “In every other aspect of life, people are trained, but there’s really no training for babysitters.”

Kelly echoed those sentiments. As the oldest of six siblings when growing up, she noted that kids shouldn’t just “fall into babysitting” when they reach a certain age.

“In my day, I’d just call home when I didn’t know how to handle a situation,” she said. “But it’s exciting to see kids in our neighborhood learning the proper protocol.”

Another recent graduate is Nicole Graber of Northport, who attended the program at the East Northport Fire Department. Graber, 12, heard of the workshop from a friend and told her parents she wanted to enroll since her babysitting years are around the corner.

In July, Graber babysat for the first and second time, both as a mother’s helper. Looking back, she highlights the six-pound, anatomically-correct dolls as being a helpful tool.

“They really showed me how much care and attention babies need,” said Graber. “When they cry, the first thing we check is the diaper. Next, we’ll see if they’re hungry.”

During the graduation ceremony in June, students were presented with a certificate from Youth Bureau Project EXCEL, which runs the program. According to town officials, the workshops are slated to return in the fall and could be expanded to include CPR training.

Besen stressed, however, that the lessons are not meant to be a “referral service.”

“We’re really not looking to match up families and babysitters,” he explained. “But we do have a list of graduates, and we can tell you if someone attended our program.”

For more information on the workshop, call Project EXCEL at 631-271-5499.



Besen with program graduates.