CCSU Unveils Child Care Center For Students' Children

Courtesy of CCSU

NEW BRITAIN, CT – Years of planning culminated Friday with the grand opening of the Central Connecticut State University Drop-in Child Care Center in Carroll Hall.

In a significant expansion of Central's student support services, registered student-parents now have the option to sign up for free, drop-in child care while they attend classes.

“We are thrilled to provide this important, in-demand service to our students,” said CCSU President Zulma R. Toro. “Over the last few years, we have revamped our ‘Blanket of Support’ services to address the needs of our changing student population — and that population includes a high percentage of parents.

“Student success is our primary goal here,” Toro added. “On-campus child care is a simple solution that has been proven to boost engagement and retention among student-parents.”

A key component of the Center’s operation is to provide experiential learning opportunities to CCSU students who are enrolled in the early childhood and elementary education, psychology and other programs.

The center has hired 12 students so far, and student assistants will remain a part of the center’s staff going forward.

The center will serve 3- to 12-year-olds during the academic year.

Its teaching team, led by director Kelly McCarthy, has developed developmentally appropriate educational and enrichment experiences and supports all learners through social and emotional learning, differentiated instruction and culturally responsive teaching.

The curriculum aligns with the Connecticut Early Learning and Development Standards and Connecticut Preschool Curriculum Framework.

“Children have a natural desire to learn,” McCarthy said. “Our highly trained teachers provide intentional learning experiences in an atmosphere that is rich and warm with materials and opportunities for children to communicate, socialize, work, play, and negotiate with others.”

The Center is licensed by the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood (OEC) and is working toward its accreditation by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.

When CCSU students register their child with the center, they can make reservations for child care or enrichment programs as needed — whether it’s for a few weeks or the entire semester.

Advance reservations are encouraged.

Several grants are funding the center’s operation, which enables the university to offer child care services at no cost to student-parents.

If space allows, child care might become available to faculty and staff for a small fee.

The Drop-in Child Care Center received funding from the federal Child Care Access Means Parents in School Program, which supports low-income college students by providing campus-based child care services.

A grant from the Connecticut Health and Educational Facilities Authority provided funding for indoor furnishings and learning materials.

On-campus child care has been a longtime goal for CCSU’s faculty and staff, and support for it has been building since 2008 when the Committee for the Concerns of Women recommended that CCSU embrace and promote family-friendly policies and culture.

As resources became available, planning for the new center got underway in November 2021.

Less than a year later, the center opened its doors on Aug. 29, the first day of the Fall 2022 semester.

It is located at Carroll Hall, which offers parents convenient proximity to a dedicated parking lot at Willard DiLoreto Hall and its accompanying, new parking garage across the street.

“We will continue to develop support services to ensure any student who wants it will have access to higher education,” Toro said.

“Free child care will help ease some of the burdens of student-parents and keep them in class and focused on the future.”

For more information on the drop-in childcare center at CCSU, click on this link.