The Preface

 Contributed by: Sydney Smous

Students and faculty are advocating to bring back IU South Bend’s Child Development Center to help support the needs of student parents and faculty with children.

Since the closing of the low cost, subsidized childcare program in 2017, IUSB students and staff with children have found it difficult to stay afloat while pursuing higher education and careers.

Professor of Women's and Gender Studies April Lidinsky says that now the students are "scrambling", and not just IUSB but the entire South Bend community is suffering from a shortage of high-quality childcare.

Lidinsky says that, in her estimation, "it's easy to make the argument that a lack of adequate childcare is preventing our students from succeeding and graduating on campus, and retention of our students is a major focus of our administration".

According to a study done by the American Council on Education in 2023, 18 percent of undergraduate college students in the United States are student parents, or students enrolled in an education or certificate program while having at least one child or dependent. 

Of those student parents, only 18 percent receive a degree with 6 years or less compared to  54 percent of dependent undergraduate students. This is largely due to the added stress and cost of raising children.

The Child Development Center at IUSB, developed by students in the late 70s and early 80s, ran for over 20 years in the administration building. It was financed by a combination of student fees and money from the University, and was staffed by trained professionals who received benefits.

Lidinsky says that the program provided "very high quality childcare for children of students, staff and faculty", and recieved "overwhelming support" from the student body. She lamented that students and staff were "horrified" when it closed down on short notice in 2017.

Lidinsky notes, "There is still thriving childcare at Bloomington, most of the other (IU) campuses had it... IU has a long track record of having high-quality childcare on campus." 

The Child Development Center had been gradually losing funding and support from the SGA (Student Government Association) over the past decade, but was kept alive by Chancellor Una Mae Reck.
Later, however, due to financial concerns, future chancellor Terry Allison would close it down without the IU South Bend community's  support, according to Lidinsky. 

Lidinsky explains that students and student organizations interested in advocating for childcare on campus can bring this issue forward by meeting with the SGA, and putting together a petition to bring the Child Development Center back to campus.

According to Lidinsky, there is a whole committee of students and faculty who have already put together a business plan to return childcare to IUSB, but that was rejected by Chancellor Susan Elrod, largely due to financial and safety concerns caused by the pandemic.

However, with our new Chancellor Brian Pappas, a man with a fresh outlook and children of his own, in office, Lidinsky is more hopeful. 

"I have some hope that this new chancellor will be open to a group of faculty who say, ‘We actually have a fully developed business plan and community partners, could we make this happen?’” Lidinsky proposes.

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