INDIANA UNIVERSITY PURDUE UNIVERSITY INDIANAPOLIS

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CENTER FOR YOUNG CHILDREN RECEIVES FEDERAL FUNDS TO HELP PAY FOR CHILD CARE FOR LOW-INCOME STUDENTS

INDIANAPOLIS - More IUPUI students will have access to quality, on-campus child care services, thanks to a new four-year grant.

The IUPUI Center for Young Children, the largest single-site campus child care center in the state, recently received a $94,519 federal grant to help eligible, low-income students pay child care costs. The award will increase about 3 percent annually, reaching $111,537 in the fourth year.

IUPUI is one of five Indiana colleges and universities who received grants this year under the Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) program, now in its second year. At IUPUI, grant monies will be used to subsidize up to one-third of the total cost of child care services provided to students who are eligible for Pell Grants, said Center for Young Children Director Beth Jeglum.

Indiana has a tiered system of child care - homes, church ministries, and licensed centers - with different requirements, and subsequently higher operating and enrollment costs at each level. The campus child care center is licensed by the state Division of Education and the Young Child, and accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.

"Because of our higher rates, low-income families sometimes can't afford us," Jeglum said. "This will help those families."

The center this month is celebrating the anniversary of its move to the new building, located on the west edge of campus at 321 N. Limestone St.

The campus facility provides full and part-time care for children ages 2 through kindergarten. In the part-time program designed to allow students to tailor their child care services to fit their schedules, the center currently has 33 open slots.

Each half-day session is $20 for 2-year-olds and $17.25 for other ages.

"The big thing is that for students who have been unable to access our convenience and quality because of the cost, they now have that opportunity," Jeglum said.

In addition to the open part-time slots, the center has openings in its full-time program geared toward faculty and staff, as well as students, the director said.

IUPUI Pell Grant recipients who are parents will receive a letter announcing the program and its benefits, and inviting students to enroll their children.

The U.S. Department of Education this year awarded 222 CCAMPIS grants totaling $10.5 million. Institutions were eligible for the grants if they disbursed more than $350,000 a year in federal Pell Grants to students in the previous year.

"Access to quality child care should not be an obstacle to job training or college studies," U.S. Education Secretary Rod Paige said in announcing the grants earlier this month. "These grants can help parents complete school and make their career goals possible and their futures more promising."

IU East, Goshen College, Ivy Tech State College, Kokomo, and Indiana State University also received grants ranging from $10,000 - $22,800.

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