Childcare is at an all time high in this country. In fact, childcare is often now more expensive than tuition at state colleges, according to a report from Child Care Aware of America. The report states that in nearly two-thirds of the country, average childcare costs were greater than yearly tuition and fees at a four year public college.
The expense is a struggle for working parents; and for parents attending college themselves, it’s even more difficult. In Maui, a new unprecedented collaboration is doing something to help ease childcare expenses for students at UH Maui College.
The college, CareerLink and Early Childhood Education faculty have teamed up with Imua Family Services to offer quality childcare for part-time UH Maui College students to help them successfully complete their college courses.
“If you’re a single parent, trying to further your education, or the household is working multiple jobs to make ends meet while trying to get an education, then childcare can become the greatest obstacle to reaching those goals,” said Dean Wong, Imua Family Services Executive Director.
Imua and Maui College Childcare (IMCC) has launched what they are calling the “Demonstration Project,” which was set to begin operation this month. The goal of the demonstration project is to provide quality childcare for students attending UHMC who may need the assistance with childcare in order to maintain class attendance and complete their courses.
“Quality childcare is often the burden that makes it difficult for some Maui students to successfully complete their education,” said Juli Patao, UHMC CareerLink Director. “We hope that this demonstration project will show that providing childcare can have a positive impact on both retention and completion of degrees or certificates.”
IMCC will run Monday thru Thursday to accommodate part-time UH Maui College students enrolled in morning and afternoon Early Childhood Program classes. Interested students must complete an online survey in order to utilize the program.
For more information, you can visit maui.hawaii.edu/careerlink/home or call CareerLink at UH Maui College at 808-984-3318.
Photo: Travis Thurston/Wikimedia Commons
Comments
comments