By Jordan Chila
Editor-in Chief
Photo by Tom Hill Jr.
Mount Wachusett Community College (MWCC) is home to many students, forty-two of which utilize the Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) resources according to Ann Reynolds, Coordinator of Student Parent Supports. The campus also has additional supports such as the Child Watch Program to assist student parents while they get an education. While national statistics show that in the US, 7% of household income is used to pay for childcare, Reynolds and the team working at the Family Resource Center at MWCC have added the child watch program and CCAMPIS options and parenting students are taking advantage of them.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, student parents are more likely to miss classes or drop out. However, The Institute for Women’s Policy Research states that student parents that receive support from CCAMPIS graduate at a much higher rate than overall student parents. CCAMPIS is a federally funded program that pays subsidies to help student parents with childcare and Before & After School costs and currently serves about 90 campuses in the US.
CCAMPIS is offered to eligible student parents at all four MWCC campuses and could even help students with up to 60% of their monthly childcare cost. Student parents can also choose to use a childcare facility off-campus. Reynolds, gives insight on this. She explains that The Garrison Center (A child care center located on MWCC Campus) works closely with family liaison at Making Opportunity Count (MOC) to give eligible students in the CCAMPIS program priority in the open slots at The Garrison Center. However, slots can fill up quickly, so Reynolds goes on to reassure students that there are other avenues. She says, “we also work together to identify other off-campus MOC locations for students.” There are requirements that students must meet to be eligible for this program and you can find them here, CCAMPIS Requirements.
MWCC also offers the Child Watch program for free through The Family Resource center. The Child Watch consists of part-time staff and work study students who want to give fellow student parents a hand. This program does not have a set schedule and is available based on the demand from student parents. Usually, student parents can drop their child off for up to 4 hours while they attend class, meet with an advisor, or attend a study and tutoring session. Alyson Koerts Meijer, majoring in Allied Health into Nursing, tells us just how much she has valued this service. “It brings me such peace of mind knowing that my son is in the same building as me and is being well taken care of while I get my education,” states Koerts Meijer. The Child Watch is currently only offered at the Gardner Campus and stays open throughout the summer. The program is teaming up with MWCC’s Summer Adventures out of Lifelong Learning summer program as well. Reynolds comments, “this year we are able to offer a limited number of students to register their school age children to attend a week or two of summer fun!”
Both of these programs have affected MWCC’s student parents significantly. During this academic school year of 2023-2024, these two programs have serviced 100 student parents. Forty-two received CCAMPIS subsidies and sixty-nine used the Child Watch services. Thirty students graduated and the graduation and persistence stats are at 89% according to Reynolds. This shows how impactful these supports are for student parents at MWCC.
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