Student-Parents at Broward College to Receive Free Childcare Through $1.5 Million Department of Education Grant

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (Nov. 11, 2019) –Student-parents at Broward College can now receive additional support to continue their education without having to worry about the spiraling cost of childcare. The student-parents, some of whom currently get support for childcare through Financial Aid, will now benefit from the Childcare Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) program funded through a U.S. Department of Education grant. The grant totaling $1.5 million over four years, provides student-parents with subsidized childcare while also supporting the College's existing Early Childhood Laboratory (ECL) School.  

According to a 2018 report in USA Today, Broward County is the most expensive county in Florida for childcare costs, with an annual cost of $8,423 and 11.3 percent of the average household expenses for one child and a two-parent income. 

Through CCAMPIS, the College will hire more employees for the ECL, which already has a recurring waitlist due to the high demand, allowing the school to serve more college students with young children ages one to five. In addition to strengthening the ECL, the funding allows the College to contract childcare providers around the three campuses and in low-income neighborhoods, giving student-parents the option to receive childcare from other facilities. 

The ECL, located on the Broward College North Campus in Coconut Creek, is also the first and only dual-purpose public laboratory school in Broward County that concurrently provides assistance to student-parents and firsthand training for college students enrolled in Early Childhood Education degree programs. Under the supervision of certified teachers, students observe and practice the methods taught in their degree programs in an applied and immersive learning environment.

"This grant allows us to address one of the major barriers to education affecting some of our students with children," said President Gregory Adam Haile, Esq. "By helping student-parents with quality, affordable, and accessible learning environments for their children, we are ensuring they can focus on learning and stay on track to completing their postsecondary goals."  

The CCAMPIS program is designed to assist Pell-eligible or low-income students. For the 2018-19 academic year, the College reported that 76 percent of students were Pell Grant Eligible.