Somerset Community College (SCC) is pleased to announce the renewal of the Federal CCAMPIS (Child Care Access Means Parents in School) Scholarship for an additional four years in the amount of $1,331,428 from the Department of Education.
First awarded in 2018, SCC has been rewarded with renewing the CCAMPIS Scholarship through 2026. Since the CCAMPIS Scholarship Program began, SCC has served 51 parent students, 47% of whom have since graduated, either transferred to a four-year school or Get involved in the labor market. Of these graduating students, 16% went on to pursue their undergraduate studies at 4-year universities. The other 37% continued every year. The average GPA over the 4-year scholarship cycle to date is 3.12 with the national average GPA at a 4-year university of 3.15
Students – Parents are one of the fastest growing demographics on college campuses across the country. One in five college students raises a family, and this number is slightly higher in community colleges where it is one in four. Childcare is just one of the hurdles students parents face when going to school. Many students and parents arrange childcare together with partners, relatives, or less reliable caregiver which often breaks down during the semester. This causes many students to miss class, be unable to focus on their homework and risk academic failure due to the failure of their childcare support network.
The CCAMPIS Scholarship from the Department of Education supports low-income students in their post-secondary education through on-campus or off-campus child care services. This also includes comprehensive services to help the parent and student succeed in school and be a stronger parent. Studies show that when given the comprehensive support needed while taking college classes, students’ parents will graduate faster, and often with a higher GPA than fellow non-parent students.
“CCAMPIS allows me to attend my classes. Without childcare, I certainly wouldn’t have been able to fulfill my dream of becoming a nurse. The ADN program requires a lot of time, work, and study. CCAMPIS is a student ambassador for SCC and a student in the nursing program,” Josette Pittman said. Bringing this dream a lot closer to reality.
Tonya Brown, CCAMPIS Project Manager said: “The CCAMPIS is a fantastic grant that expands the SCC franchise of being a great help to residents who are parents, plus it provides us with the opportunity to be an assistant to our rural community childcare centers. It’s an overall win!”
Students – parents who are enrolled in at least 6 credit hours, Pell are eligible and have at least a 1.5 GPA may apply on the SCC website. Eligible students-parents will receive CCAMPIS award notifications of the amount of childcare subsidy they will receive during one semester. These benefits are paid to the partner childcare center that the student has chosen to enroll their child(ren).
Through this grant, SCC is currently partnering with 17 child care centers from Pulaski, Laurel, Rockcastle, Jackson, and Wayne counties; However, we continue to strive to expand partnerships to serve parents of students and community childcare centers.
While the CCAMPIS Scholarship is intended to serve parents of students, it also gives us the opportunity to help our rural child care centers as well. The project allows us to help our Partnership Centers maintain quality care through KY ALL STARS and NAEYC accreditation.
For more information about the CCAMPIS Scholarship, please contact Tonya Brown, CCAMPIS Program Coordinator at [email protected]
