Gateway Community College (GCC) students, who are also parents of young children, face many expenses for the most basic necessities. Completing a college degree is a challenge, due to both the cost of tuition and lack of access to quality childcare. 

The U.S. Department of Education has awarded the GCC Early Learning Center (ELC) a Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) Grant in the amount of $106,875 per year for four years.   This opportunity is making the dream of a completing a college degree more tangible for students at GCC.

For GCC’s ELC, being awarded the grant means expanded childcare options that will cater towards Pell-eligible student-parents. The ELC Grant will help create a new program called, “Childcare Equals Student Success,” (CCES). This program will allow the Center the ability to further reduce childcare tuition to Pell-eligible college students and to also expand the Center’s childcare hours to include evening care for those students.

“We are thrilled to be able to expand the Center’s childcare options for our Gateway families,” ELC Director Sarah Chambers said.  “The College has some wonderful resources for our students, and this grant will further develop those opportunities.  As a parent myself, I know the impact of childcare expenses.  The CCES program will allow Gateway students to focus on their studies and ensure that their children are in an affordable, quality Center.”

Currently, the ELC is open from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm and offers a fixed reduced rate to GCC students, making childcare more affordable. The Center also offers School Readiness Grant slots on a sliding scale fee to New Haven residents, even if they are not GCC students.  Many of the student-parents, who are not New Haven families, will benefit from this new program.

There are 34 NAEYC accredited childcare centers in New Haven, but no centers are open past 6:00 p.m.  When students can’t afford childcare or must rely on family or friends for evening care, they often have to wait until the next semester to complete certain requirements. The new evening hours at the ELC will allow more parents to attend night classes at GCC, which will offer them the chance to move more quickly toward their educational goals.

Cost savings on childcare will provide parents with more money for books, food, transportation and other necessities. The biggest benefit will be realized by the children, who will now be engaged and learning in wonderful Center-based care.