Child care services expanding at SUNY community colleges

Child care services at 11 State University of New York community colleges are being expanded to include evenings and weekends and create additional spots for infants and toddlers, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office announced Thursday.

The governor said the expansion will better align with the schedules of student parents enrolled in high-demand programs.

This comes after SUNY’s recent expansion of child care services at Monroe Community College and Dutchess Community College and helps students enrolled in the SUNY Reconnect initiative, which provides free tuition, fees, books and supplies for adults ages 25-55 who don’t already have a college degree and want to pursue an associate degree in a high-demand field.

Five SUNY community college campuses will be expanding their child care services, some in partnership with local community child care providers, to include nights and weekends, including:

• SUNY Broome Community College will be creating additional care hours during the evening.
• Dutchess Community College will add two additional weeknights of evening hours, as well as expand slots for infants and toddlers.
• Finger Lakes Community College will extend its evening hours up to 9 p.m. two days a week.
• Monroe Community College will add 16 additional hours during evenings, and the campus will create additional slots for infants and toddlers.
• Onondaga Community College plans to partner with the YMCA to provide evening child care spots for adult learners enrolled through SUNY Reconnect.

Six SUNY community campuses are creating additional spots for infants and toddlers:

• Jamestown Community College
• Nassau Community College
• SUNY Niagara Community College
• Rockland Community College
• Tompkins Cortland Community College
• SUNY Westchester Community College

“We are investing in the futures of our adult learners and student parents to ensure they can pursue and achieve their dreams,” Hochul said in a statement. “Through the expansion of child care across SUNY’s community college campuses, the SUNY Reconnect program and dedicated support initiatives, we are reinforcing our commitment to meeting the needs of adult learners and offering them a path to upward mobility.”