By Audra Coffman, Justin Gonzales, Vanessa Ledesma, Anna Johnson, Halima Fasasi
A 2000 report described Texas Tech University as “desperately” needing a childcare facility. Fifteen years and an 11,000-student enrollment increase later, no such facility exists.
The document, prepared by the Child Care Exploratory Committee, recommended the construction of a 34,000-square-foot center to accommodate 200 children, with room for expansion to enroll 100 more. Construction was projected to cost $4.5 million, with additiional $2.3 million in “soft” costs.
Tech’s University System’s planned construction totals more than $1.1 billion through 2024, according to Facilities Planning and Construction. Yet, within this over-a-billion-worth slew of projects, no concrete plan for a childcare appears to exist.
This word cloud shows the most frequently mentioned words in the report.
Stacy Johnson, director of the Child Development Research Center (CDRC), said there is a “sincere effort” to make a childcare facility happen in collaboration between Tech and the Health Sciences Center.
“I’m very hopeful, but then again, it’s something that is just expensive to do and to fund it in a way that makes sense,” she said.
The Institute for Women’s Policy Research reported in 2014 that 4.8 million college students or 26 percent of undergraduates in the U.S. have dependent children.
To address the need, a new Tech childcare committee has begun identifying options for funding, building and operating a campus childcare center, Johnson said. As part of this renewed effort, students, faculty and staff were sent surveys about their daycare needs last fall. Previous findings from the 2000 report suggest many parents are looking for part-time childcare options or a “sick room.”
Even though the university has explored on-campus childcare options before, Johnson said she thinks this is the most ground the initiative has ever gained. Watch Johnson explain the current effort in the video below.
Many Tech students, faculty and staff contact the CDRC in the mistaken belief that it is an on-campus childcare facility. They are dismayed to discover this is not the case.
Associate Director Cindy Bruington said the facility is a “lab” intended for use by students pursuing degrees in health sciences and early childhood education.
An educational program based around young children has existed at Tech in one form or another since 1931, Johnson said. Even though she understands that the lack of a campus childcare center negatively affects many students, faculty and staff, this is not the purpose of the CDRC.
“The child development center mission here is an academic mission,” Johnson said. “Although we have real live children, that’s not what we’re here for, to provide childcare. We provide child care so that we can give these opportunities for observation and research for students and faculty conducting research.”
Demand for slots at the CDRC is high, but as of the beginning of the 2015 fall semester, the wait list included parents who had signed up more than a year and a half long.
“The program works for us and we don’t foresee an increase,” Bruington said. “There are currently 150 children at the research center and not room for more.”
A snapshot from the CDRC nursery room.
The CDRC, accredited by the National Academy of Early Childhood Programs, is open on weekdays during the school year from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m, according to information from its website. Summer spots are available but limited. Tuition costs about $700 a month. The center accepts children between the ages of 6 weeks and 5 years. Two healthy snacks are prepared each day, but parents are asked to send a lunch for their child.
The center’s website states its main focus is on encouraging children’s social and emotional development. The teaching atmosphere is child-initiated and built around problem-solving activities. There are 65 student assistants who work part-time to earn credit towards their degree plan, as well as certified teachers.
Rob Peaslee, associate professor and chair of the Department of Journalism and Electronic Media, said he is not surprised by the high demand for slots at the CDRC. He and his wife were thoroughly impressed by the center when they were expecting their first child.
“Quality plus convenience, that’s a powerful recipe,” Peaslee said.
The Peaslees were on the waiting list for about a year and a half before deciding to move on and find another facility. Listen to Peaslee explain the difficulties of finding childcare:
Peaslee said he believes that it might be hard for students to know about all of the options available for childcare, especially if they’re not familiar with Lubbock.
To fill in the need for campus childcare, other daycare and preschool centers have sprung not far from Tech’s campus. First Christian Child Development Center, located at 2323 Broadway, is half a mile away (a 2-minute drive away) from the CDRC. Operating year-round, First Christian is open on weekdays from 7 a.m to 6 p.m. has an academic-based learning curriculum. The cost averages $150 per week, including a healthy lunch and two snacks.
Other childcare facilities near campus include Early Learning Centers of Lubbock at 1639 Main St., Miss Robin’s Day School at 2406 20th St., Stepping Stones at 2433 26th St., Starting Line at 3714 22nd St., A New World Christian Learning at 1912 19th St., Boardwalk at 2534 25th St., and Teddy Bear Academy at 1626 17th St., among others.
Although Tech does not offer campus-based childcare, it has made progress in other areas.
In 2011, the Mother-Friendly Workplace Initiative established five private areas for nursing mothers on Tech’s campus.
This chair in one of the nursing rooms on Tech’s campus is intended to help mothers feel comfortable while pumping or breastfeeding.
According to Texas Tech Human Resources, the purpose of these rooms is to support and encourage efforts in continuing breastfeeding when mothers are on campus and away from their children. Although the rooms were intended for use by faculty and staff, they are also open to students.
Sandra Garza, a section manager in the HR department, who is expecting a child in November, said there has been an increase in the use of the rooms, mostly through word-of-mouth.
The rooms can be reserved for 30 minutes at a time. Tech faculty and staff can request a free breast milk collection kit from University Medical Center or Covenant Health System. Students can buy one at a 10-percent discount with their Texas Tech ID at South Plains Medical Supply.
Each nursing room contains a Medela Symphony multi-user hospital-grade breast pump, chair, sink, microwave and clock radio.
“I do think it is very helpful because moms don’t have to go to their cars and pump in a rush,” Garza said.
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