We Did the Math

By Leila Vieira

We did the math.

Graduate students who are funded at the minimum, graduate student stipend level and who have one infant enrolled full-time at the Ohio State childcare program, are paying 64% of their monthly stipend in childcare fees. That leaves very little for rent, food and other basic needs- much less for educational expenses. For students supporting their households on one income, (such as international students, who are not allowed to work outside of the university) additional financial assistance is vital for educational progress and their well-being. I am fortunate that both my husband and I receive graduate student stipends, so we were able to send our son, Alex, to daycare part-time since he was 4 months old.

For the 2020-2021 academic year, I am the chair of the Housing and Family Affairs Committee in the Council of Graduate Students at Ohio State. My committee has been working on strategies to implement a child care assistance grant for graduate students. Ohio State does not currently collect information on parenting students. However, a student survey conducted by the Office of Student Life in 2018 asked students about their parenting status. The survey found that 16.3% of graduate students--74 out of 454 graduate students who responded--reported being financially responsible for dependent children. Assistant Vice Provost Yolanda Zepeda shared this statistic, noting that this projection may be so high, as parenting students tend to have greater needs, hence, responding to the survey at higher rates than their non-parenting peers.

The Housing and Family Affairs Committee recently prepared a report documenting the need for child care assistance at Ohio State. The university currently receives funding from the U.S. Department of Education Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) Program. Administered by the ACCESS Collaborative Program in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, CCAM- PIS funding is crucial to supporting low-income student parents and encouraging them to continue their education. However, not all students are eligible for this program; it excludes international students, and priority is given to Pell-eligible undergraduate students, leaving graduate students to be considered only if funding is available and the student meets income requirements. When comparing Ohio State to other educational institutions, the university falls short in offering child care assistance to its graduate and professional students.

At other institutions, including most of our Big Ten peer institutions, financial assistance is available to support child care costs. It usually comes from one of these three sources:

1) the Graduate School or a specific department;

2) student activity fees or financial aid; or

3) the graduate student government. Currently, none of these funding sources are utilized to support child care assistance for graduate and professional students at Ohio State.

I have shared the Housing and Family Affairs report with the university’s Parenting & Pregnant Students Support Committee (PPSSC). This committee is charged with developing a university-wide support system for parenting and pregnant students and their families throughout all stages of their university career. We are hopeful that this group will amplify our voice as we advocate for graduate students, who are struggling to provide for their children while progressing academically.

To learn more about the work of the Housing and Family Affairs committee or other work of the Council of Graduate Students, visit https://cgs.osu.edu/.