SUNY Old Westbury has been awarded $1.5 million in state funding to build a childcare center.
The funding is part of a $15.6 million funding plan to expand childcare services across New York's state university campuses. Governor Kathy Hochul announced the plan last week.
"Expanding high-quality, affordable child care options is an essential piece of creating a more equitable and accessible higher education system for New Yorkers," Governor Hochul said. "My administration remains committed to ensuring all parents have access to quality child care, and this funding is a critical step toward ensuring parents have the support they need to pursue a quality education and build a better future for themselves and their families."
SUNY Old Westbury is currently in early stages of planning the new center on campus, which could ultimately serve up to 100 children. The center would serve the college’s faculty and staff, local families, and SUNY Old Westbury students who have children. SUNY has made expanded child care facilities a high priority, with the eventual goal of having one center available at every campus.
“Increasing access to child care could be game changing for our student parents and to the many families living near our campus,” said SUNY Old Westbury President Timothy E. Sams. “For our students particularly, providing this service can help ensure them the opportunity to pursue their studies and put them on a more stable path to graduation. This funding is a first critical step in the process of building the new facility, and we are thankful to Governor Hochul and SUNY for their support.”
The co-principal investigators leading the project are Jo-Ann Robinson, executive vice president and chief of staff, and Diana Sukhram, dean of the School of Education.
In advance of creating the new facility, SUNY Old Westbury expects to reopen this year its current child care center in the College’s Campus Center following a more than two-year closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.