UNIVERSITY PARK – A new child care center is being planned for Penn State’s University Park campus, following an analysis of child care needs and a thorough review of possible locations. The new center will be built on the southeast corner of North Allen Street and Park Avenue and will serve approximately 170 children of University faculty, staff and students. The program will be sited in a way that maintains and protects the Hort Woods near that location. The current building on that site, now used for physical plant offices and in a state of disrepair, will be removed.
The center will be operated using a mixed-age group philosophy and will include 10 groups of eight children aged 6 weeks to 35 months; and five groups of 18 children aged 36 months to 72 months. In addition, University officials are researching the feasibility of also including space for children enrolled in elementary school that would need before/after school care, care on no-school days, and/or care in summer camp. It is anticipated that the center will open in summer 2010.
The needs assessment performed in 2005 revealed an overwhelming need for the care of very young children. This fact guided plans for the new facility and led to the unusual mix of ages with almost half the children being served in the 6-week to 35-month age range. Because of the high costs associated with caring for very young children, most child care centers either do not enroll them or limit the number of children in this age range to about one-third of the total enrollment.
Building this new facility will add to the already significant commitments made by the University to child care. Under President Graham Spanier’s leadership, the University has invested millions of dollars toward child care at University Park by renovating space on campus; providing start-up funds for the Daybridge Center at Innovation Park; building the Bennett Family Center; providing the facility, janitorial services, utilities, landscaping, maintenance fees and annual subsidies for both the Child Development Lab (CDL) and the Bennett Family Center; and establishing a mentoring/training program for Family Child Care Home Providers in Centre County.
In preparation for the planned renovations to Henderson South, the entire CDL child care program will transition to the new facility when it opens. All CDL staff and children will have the opportunity to move to the new facility ensuring a smooth transition and continuity of care. The Bennett Family Center will continue to operate as it has in its current location.
The new child care center will be affiliated with the College of Health and Human Development and will be operated by a leading, high-quality child care management provider. The college will work closely with the provider to plan programs and facilitate the use of the center for research and undergraduate and graduate training. The center will provide services that are, in all essential aspects, comparable to the services currently provided by the CDL, but in a new, up-to-date facility. In keeping with the University’s commitment to high-quality child care, the center will meet the National Association for the Education of Young Children standards for accreditation.