ADA, Okla. – East Central University has been awarded $1.8 million through the U.S. Department of Education’s Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) program to expand the ECU Tiny Tigers Program and provide additional support for student parents.
The four-year grant will provide $450,000 per year to help ECU better support low-income student parents and help them remain in school and complete their degrees.
“This is fantastic news, as it enables us to better support our student parents and help them stay in school and complete their degrees,” said Leah Lyon, Director of the Office of Sponsored Programs and Research.
The CCAMPIS program provides campus-based child care services and support services to low-income student parents so they can complete their postsecondary education. The program serves student parents who are eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant and provides competitive grants to institutions to subsidize child care costs and establish sliding fee scales.
Through the new grant, the ECU Tiny Tigers Program will partner with area licensed child care providers to help ensure child care for ECU student parents while also providing financial assistance to participating student parents.
The program will also provide paid internships for students pursuing degrees in Early Childhood, Elementary Education, Human Resources and other related fields, with placements at partnering child-care centers.
In addition, through collaboration with internal and external partners, the program will help participating child-care providers improve and enhance the quality and rating of their centers.
Other activities will include academic support, peer networking for student parents and wrap-around services for participants.
ECU has previously operated a Tiny Tigers Program, but previous funding was less than $50,000 per year, limiting the program’s capacity to serve students. The new $1.8 million grant will allow ECU to build upon the program’s past successes on a broader scale.
The CCAMPIS program is administered by the U.S. Department of Education and has been co-managed in recent joint competitions with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
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