Early Edge is proud to sponsor SB 271 (Gómez Reyes) which would strengthen support for student parents working to complete their higher education at one of California’s public institutions, while raising children. Higher education is key to economic mobility. Students with children face additional barriers to completing their education, particularly access to childcare, basic needs, and financial aid. Supporting student parents to succeed in higher education fosters economic mobility and well-being for both parents and children in a two generational approach.
SB 271 will ensure that when student parents seek financial aid, childcare, or basic needs support on campus, they receive information and support to access the full scope of support and resources available to them. In addition, SB 271 will require basic needs centers to partner with existing local agencies to support students in accessing childcare subsidies and finding care for their children.
More than 400,000 student parents in the state of California are pursuing higher education. Student parents face significant barriers to completing their education, and while there are some resources on college campuses that can aid them in completing their certificates, degrees, or transferring to four-year institutions, they are often not aware of them. Access to affordable child care is often the most pressing need student parents have. This gap in campus support can not only place undue stress on student parents, but also inhibit the development of their children, which can result in delayed enrollment times and lower graduation rates.
Currently, the California Community Colleges, the California State University, and the University of California systems, are required to have Basic Need Centers and Coordinators to provide “basic needs services and resources”. This includes, but is not limited to, housing, food, clothing, feminine hygiene, diapers, technology, child care, and mental health services and resources. While incredible work is being done, many students are unable to get support to access child care subsidies and find care for their children. Further, many student parents seeking support in various offices on campus, are not informed of the full scope of services available to student parents. It is critical that these offices work in tandem to ensure student parents are made aware of the full spectrum of services and support available to them.
SB 271 directly addresses these challenges by:
- Expanding the definition of child care within basic needs services and requiring coordination with the Child Care Local Planning Council and local Resource and Referral agency to ensure students are aware of and receive support applying for subsidized child care and finding care
- Requiring the basic needs center, financial aid office, and if applicable the child development center, to inform student parents seeking support, of the full scope of services available on campus
Author: Senator Eloise Gómez Reyes
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