2008 Woodie Awards
Video related to this article is available below.Issue date: 2/8/07 Section: News
Caring for kids, and faculty as well
As Penn daycare expands, officials hope to attract faculty
Heather Schwedel
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On the other side of the wall, workers are hammering and drilling, busy building up the additional space that the center will soon occupy.
As the kids continue to color, construction goes on; the University-sponsored daycare center's expansion is slated to be completed by the end of March.
Deputy Provost Janice Bellace said this project represents the University's effort to help alleviate Penn's childcare crunch and, in turn, help the University recruit top professors who juggle their careers with family.
Daycare options help determine whether a university is perceived as family-friendly, Bellace said, which can affect its ability to recruit and retain faculty and staff.
Currently, the Center - open to all members of the University and surrounding communities - has room for 108 children. When the new space is put into use in September, it will have room for 56 more, PCC executive director Natalie Subeh said.
The expansion will bring 3,000 new square feet to the center, a 25-percent increase in space. The total cost, which entails construction, materials, design, furniture and labor, has not yet been finalized, but is expected to "come in under a million dollars," a Business Services spokeswoman wrote in an e-mail.
"Everybody who has children who works at Penn can benefit," University president Amy Gutmann said.
The project was largely inspired by the results of a University-administered survey, published last semester, that asked faculty and staff whether their childcare needs were being met.
Administrators hope the added slots will reduce the size of the center's wait list. Currently, parents can spend 12 to 15 months on the list before securing a spot for their child, Subeh said.
The staff size will also be increased, and several groups who don't have their own spaces will get classrooms, she added.
Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 6
STEVEN LOUIS
posted 2/08/07 @ 6:51 AM EST
"peace of mind"..thats what the u. employees should keep in mind while the human resources dept uphold the "rights and dignity" of convicted sexual felons like mitman as their guidng principle when hiring people to work on the penn campus. (Continued…)
potential parent
posted 2/08/07 @ 10:45 AM EST
$308 per week is $1,232 per month. How are graduate students supposed to be able to afford that? Why not throw some of that extra billion this way Penn?
former grad student
posted 2/08/07 @ 11:13 AM EST
childcare is an expense that must be considered before becoming a parent or deciding to become a grad student. if you can't afford it while in school, then wait. (Continued…)
grad student and parent
posted 2/09/07 @ 1:06 AM EST
It would be great if the university offered lower tuition costs for grad students' children. Not only would it support our projects as scholars, but it would also be a recognition of the diverse and multiple dimensions of being human. (Continued…)
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