First lady Jill Biden visits Poughkeepsie. Live updates

First lady Jill Biden is in New York's Dutchess County Friday for scheduled appearances in Fishkill and Poughkeepsie.

This story will be updated live throughout the day as the first lady arrives and makes remarks.

First lady applauds Poughkeepsie educators for carving out 'better future for us all'

Speaking to the team behind DAY ONE while inside the Reformed Church of Poughkeepsie Friday afternoon, first lady Jill Biden said, "I'm so grateful for all the heart and the hard work you've been putting in to help this community's children and adults thrive."

"What I saw at DAY ONE is incredible and innovative. You're changing the lives of this community's youngest members and of the adults who love to teach them."

The DAY ONE center provides training for teachers, wage supplements and support for home childcare centers. Some of the people trained operate their own daycare businesses, some work in early childhood education in other centers, and others work in teaching schools.

"Together we will unlock those infinite possibilities that exist in every child," Biden said, "and give their parents and their educators the chance to keep reaching for a better future for us all."

First lady Jill Biden speaks at church in Poughkeepsie

Surrounded by educators, first lady Jill Biden delivered remarks inside the Reformed Church of Poughkeepsie Friday afternoon.

Her speech marks the conclusion of several speaking events throughout Dutchess County Friday. Biden spoke to preschool teachers and teacher apprentices at DAY ONE Early Learning Community Center prior to the visit to the church.

Before that, she helped mark the opening of the mechatronics lab at Dutchess Community College's Fishkill campus.

First lady Jill Biden arrives at Poughkeepsie church

First lady Jill Biden has arrived at the Reformed Church of Poughkeepsie as of 1 p.m. According to the White House, the following people are scheduled to speak ahead of the first lady this afternoon:

• Mayor Marc Nelson, City of Poughkeepsie• Superintendent Eric Rosser, Poughkeepsie City School District• Dr. Peter Jordan, President, Dutchess Community College• Congressman Pat Ryan• Geraldine Laybourne, Founder, Day One Early Learning Community• Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona• Chanel Whitaker, Teacher Apprenticeship Program Graduate, Day One Early Learning Community

First lady to deliver remarks at Poughkeepsie church

After touring DAY ONE center in Poughkeepsie, the First Lady is also scheduled to deliver remarks at the Reformed Church of Poughkeepsie.

What to know about DAY ONE Early Learning Community center

“No one understands the power of teaching more than the First Lady," said Geraldine Laybourne, who co-founded DAY ONE with Julie Riess, a developmental psychologist. She believes the center brings together those ideas and priorities championed by the first lady and the president such as teaching, economic development, jobs and community.

"Poughkeepsie is a microcosm of all the issues a city faces and all the tools a city has at its disposal to address these issues," Laybourne said.

The center provides training for teachers, wage supplements and support for home childcare centers. Some of the women trained operate their own daycare businesses, some work in early childhood education in other centers, and others work in teaching schools.

Laybourne met the first lady over the summer when they spoke about the center's approach to elevating child care through DAY ONE's Teacher Apprenticeship Program, an 11-week program for those interested in teaching in early childhood classrooms. The program has so far produced 40 early childhood educators and daycare professionals in two years. The goal is to place 200 DAY ONE teachers in the city of Poughkeepsie and Dutchess County over five years.

DAY ONE also started a demonstration school in Poughkeepsie, which employs many of the TAP graduates who are paid living wages with benefits. The organization's pilot entrepreneur Program supports TAP graduates to run home-based daycare or learning centers.

More: 'Now we have a future' Poughkeepsie youth, family services expand with AmeriCorps funding

Child care programs in the news

Over the weekend, child care programs nationwide were cut off from federal subsidies when the pandemic-era funding's expiration date came to an end and the lack of bipartisan support for a new round of money to keep the child care industry afloat.

A Democratic proposal to continue the grants for five years with $16 billion allocated annually failed without Republican support, according to the Associated Press.

The $24 billion Child Care Stabilization Program, passed through the American Rescue Plan of 2021, allocated funding to more than 220,000 child care programs and covered as many as 9.6 million children, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

"Childcare is expensive and we underpay our teachers," said Geraldine Laybourne, co-founder of DAY ONE, the second stop on the first lady's visit. She expects that the lack of funding will lead to the closing of daycare programs, describing the situation as a crisis. Her program has trained about 40 women to provide a wide range of childcare, some of them operating home-based daycares.

Why Jill Biden's visit includes a stop at DAY ONE in Poughkeepsie

Jill Biden will also be visiting DAY ONE in Poughkeepsie which trains early child education teachers and provides support for home childcare centers.

Dutchess County took part in a workshop in 2020 with its economic development partners and found that the number one obstacle facing businesses in attracting, hiring and retaining workers was quality daycare, according to Assistant Dutchess County Executive Ronald Hicks.

More: 'Now we have a future' Poughkeepsie youth, family services expand with AmeriCorps funding

"These two events are tied together," said Hicks, regarding the first lady's visit to both the Mechatronics Lab and DAY ONE. "They both help our workforce in providing training, but they also provide opportunity, an opportunity for jobs and an opportunity for daycare."

"Dutchess County Government is a proud funding partner in both of these endeavors," said Dutchess County Executive Bill O'Neil prior to the visit. "These initiatives show how local collaboration and good planning make critical projects a reality and we believe they serve as national models for the development of workforce skills that meet the evolving needs of the manufacturing industry leading to good-paying jobs for our residents, and smart investment in our children’s earliest development years.”

First lady to visit DAY ONE center in Poughkeepsie

First lady Jill Biden has concluded her remarks at Dutchess Community College's Fishkill campus.

She is on her way to DAY ONE Early Learning Community center in Poughkeepsie.

First lady visits Dutchess Community College

First lady Jill Biden addressed the crowd gathered at Dutchess Community College in Fishkill just before noon Friday.

"Joe and I understand the middle class because we're from the middle class," she said. "And that's why Joe is working so hard to invest in America."

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona also spoke at the event, touted the message behind the administration's tour to "create opportunity and grow the middle class here in Poughkeepsie, throughout the Hudson River valley and across America."

First lady to discuss manufacturing in Dutchess County

First lady Jill Biden is on her way to Dutchess Community College in Fishkill, where she is expected to deliver remarks to mark the opening of the new advanced manufacturing lab on campus.

The visit coincides with National Manufacturing Day and is part of the Investing in America tour.

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona is also expected to attend and deliver remarks.

First lady Jill Biden arrives in Orange County

First lady Jill Biden's flight landed has landed at New York Stewart International Airport in Orange County.

Her first stop today is scheduled to visit Dutchess Community College's new mechatronics lab in Fishkill.

First lady Jill Biden expected to land in Orange County within the hour

First lady Jill Biden's flight is expected to land at New York Stewart International Airport in Orange County around 10:30 a.m., according to a schedule released by the White House.

She will be greeted by Bill Hochul, first gentleman of New York; Congressman Pat Ryan and his wife, Rebecca Ryan; Brigadier General Gary Charlton II, Commander, 105th Airlift Wing, Stewart Air National Guard Base and his wife, Susan Charlton; Chief Master Sergeant Joseph Cincotta, Command Chief, 105th Airlift Wing, Stewart Air National Guard Base.

The first lady will make her way from there to Dutchess Community College in Fishkill later Friday morning.

What is the Dutchess County Mechatronics Lab

Mechatronics, described as "intersection of mechanical systems, electrical systems, control systems and computers," will train technicians and help fill the labor shortages companies in Dutchess County that work with advanced technologies such as OnSemi and IBM may be experiencing.

Dutchess Community College will be enrolling its first cohort of 30 students into its mechatronics program this fall The lab is part of the college's Center of Excellence for Industry & Innovation.

The Mechatronics Lab will provide the workers with the "foundational skills required, requested, expected by the manufacturers in our region in partnership with the Council of Industry," according to Hicks.

More: This semiconductor firm is expanding its NY footprint. What it means for Dutchess County

The 6,000-square-foot mechatronics lab at the DCC campus in Fishkill, occupying space that was once part of the Dutchess Mall, will provide workforce training and certification in the areas of mechanical, electrical, automation and HVAC.

The community college is also working with Dutchess BOCES on bringing New York State's P-TECH program to the county. P-TECH is a collaboration between a school district, a college and an industry partner. Students are introduced to technical career pathways in middle school and they can take college level courses in those fields starting in 9th grade. Students would then graduate high school with a diploma and an associates degree.

President Biden visited Poughkeepsie in October 2022

President Joe Biden was in Poughkeepsie in 2022 to announce a $20 billion initiative for IBM's Hudson Valley sites over the next decade.

The IBM program includes a $20 billion investment across sites in Poughkeepsie, Yorktown and Albany, in the areas of research and development, semiconductor manufacturing, mainframe technology, artificial intelligence and quantum computing.

The White House claimed “good-paying manufacturing jobs” would be created as part of the program, a direct product of the CHIPS and Science Act, which Biden signed in August 2022.

More: Biden visits New York as IBM announces $20B program; what to know about Poughkeepsie trip

Has the first lady visited Poughkeepsie before

This is Jill Biden's first visit to Dutchess County as the first lady, according to the First Lady's Office.

President Joe Biden visited Poughkeepsie in October 2022.

Why is Jill Biden in Poughkeepsie, NY today?

The first lady is taking part in the opening of the Dutchess County Mechatronics Lab in Fishkill and will also tour the DAY ONE Early Learning Community center as the first stop on the Biden-Harris Administration's Investing in America tour.

The multi-week tour hopes to surface how President Joe Biden's Investing in America Agenda is "benefitting communities across the country," according the First Lady's Office. The Investing in America agenda includes legislations such as American Rescue Plan, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, CHIPS and Science Act, and Inflation Reduction Act. Friday is also National Manufacturing Day.

More: First lady Jill Biden to tour NY mechatronics lab: What to know about Poughkeepsie visit

Dutchess County traffic will be impacted by first lady's visit

The First Lady will be landing at New York Stewart International Airport in Orange County. Her first stop will be the Mechatronics Lab at Dutchess Community College in Fishkill and then her motorcade will head over to DAY ONE Early Learning Community in the city of Poughkeepsie.

The community college campus sits close to the intersection of Route 9 and Interstate 84 , which on a normal business day, can be busy.

Unlike the college campus, which has ample parking, DAY ONE Early Learning Community center is located on Hooker Avenue in a residential neighborhood with mostly street parking and narrow roads.

The city of Poughkeepsie will impose additional parking restrictions in the city on Friday. Signs have been posted in those areas providing motorists with additional information, according to city officials.

Parking in the immediate area of the DAY ONE Early Learning Community Center on Hooker Avenue will be restricted. Further traffic disruption and road closures in the area may also occur.

The First Lady will be heading back to New York Stewart International Airport in Orange County in the afternoon.

Why is the first lady going to DCC?

Jill Biden will be participating in the ceremony to commemorate the opening of the new Mechatronics Lab in Fishkill which is meant to increase the number of skilled workers in advanced manufacturing and technology jobs. The college expects nearly 200 guests to attend the opening including national, state and local officials.

"As the first mechatronics lab in the region, DCC’s new facility is positioned to become the premier training and manufacturing hub of the Mid-Hudson Valley, fostering economic growth and advancing opportunities for upward mobility in our community," according to a spokesperson for the community college.

This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: First lady Jill Biden visits Poughkeepsie. Live updates