Spring Break
Scholarships in child care offered to OSU staff
Child Care Friend Raisers offers a chance to lower child care costs for professors and staff
Makenna Bishop
Issue date: 3/5/09 Section: News
Along with Oregon State students, faculty and staff are also offered opportunities to apply for scholarships to ease common financial tensions.
Each year the OSU Child Care Friend Raisers group awards a member of the faculty or staff a scholarship to be used as a childcare subsidy at Beaver Beginnings, located on campus.
The Child Care Friend Raisers group has worked and fund-raised for more than 12 years in order to reach their goal of $100,000 needed to begin and sustain the scholarship program. The endowment has continued to grow over the years from various donations.
This year Beaver Beginnings matched the $1,250 award for a $2,500 total scholarship. The recipient, Eric Dickey, has worked as a program specialist with the Oregon Sea Grant since 2002.
The childcare endowment is offered to full-time staff members who have children attending Beaver Beginnings, which is currently managed by the Children's Creative Learning Centers. There have been 16 recipients since 1998, when the scholarship was started.
Dina Pope has been involved with the Child Care Friend Raisers group since it started. She said the group has tried many different ways to raise money in the community including a toy fair, Christmas drives and a brunch featuring a string quartet music group.
"Some of the fund raisers were a lot of work and never raised money. Typically we broke even," Pope said. "But we never lost momentum."
Pope said the group worked hard knowing the scholarship would be a blessing, making a huge difference for those who are in the greatest need.
Stephanie Duckett, the student-parent advocate on campus, said there are typically three or four applicants for the award. The award often goes to more than one recipient and is usually determined on a basis of need. This year Dickey was the only applicant, securing him the award that will reduce his monthly childcare bill by $200.
"Quality childcare is expensive, and can sometimes cost more than a mortgage for a house," Duckett said. "If we want to retain high quality staff at Oregon State we should do anything to help and keep them."
Each year the OSU Child Care Friend Raisers group awards a member of the faculty or staff a scholarship to be used as a childcare subsidy at Beaver Beginnings, located on campus.
The Child Care Friend Raisers group has worked and fund-raised for more than 12 years in order to reach their goal of $100,000 needed to begin and sustain the scholarship program. The endowment has continued to grow over the years from various donations.
This year Beaver Beginnings matched the $1,250 award for a $2,500 total scholarship. The recipient, Eric Dickey, has worked as a program specialist with the Oregon Sea Grant since 2002.
The childcare endowment is offered to full-time staff members who have children attending Beaver Beginnings, which is currently managed by the Children's Creative Learning Centers. There have been 16 recipients since 1998, when the scholarship was started.
Dina Pope has been involved with the Child Care Friend Raisers group since it started. She said the group has tried many different ways to raise money in the community including a toy fair, Christmas drives and a brunch featuring a string quartet music group.
"Some of the fund raisers were a lot of work and never raised money. Typically we broke even," Pope said. "But we never lost momentum."
Pope said the group worked hard knowing the scholarship would be a blessing, making a huge difference for those who are in the greatest need.
Stephanie Duckett, the student-parent advocate on campus, said there are typically three or four applicants for the award. The award often goes to more than one recipient and is usually determined on a basis of need. This year Dickey was the only applicant, securing him the award that will reduce his monthly childcare bill by $200.
"Quality childcare is expensive, and can sometimes cost more than a mortgage for a house," Duckett said. "If we want to retain high quality staff at Oregon State we should do anything to help and keep them."
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