LaGuardia Community College Hosts ‘Celebrating Student Parent Success’ with CUNY Childcare Council

LONG ISLAND CITY, NY (October 9, 2024) — LaGuardia Community College/CUNY hosted an event on October 8 to honor student parents throughout the City University of New York (CUNY) system for their resiliency, academic achievements, and community engagement. The event, “Celebrating Student Parent Success,” has been an annual tradition since 2015, organized by the CUNY Childcare Council, which supports and advocates for the 17 childcare centers throughout the CUNY system.

CUNY childcare centers provide high-quality, reliable, affordable on-campus childcare (as low as $1-5/week), enabling student parents to study, attend classes, work, complete internships, and graduate, knowing their children are well-cared for and nearby. LaGuardia was one of the first CUNYs to offer on-campus childcare, opening the Early Childhood Learning Center Programs, Inc. (ECLC) in 1978. Today, LaGuardia’s ECLC is one of the largest childcare centers within CUNY.

At yesterday’s event, Dr. Denise B. Maybank, CUNY Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, delivered the keynote address, acknowledging directors, teachers, and staff of CUNY childcare centers for their impact on student parents and their children.

“Each of you makes a difference in the lives of our students and our youngest students every day,” Dr. Maybank said. “Your dedication and hard work ensure that our student parents can pursue their academic goals while knowing their children are in a safe and nurturing environment.”

According to an Institute for Women’s Policy Research report, nearly one-fifth (22%) of all undergraduate students in the U.S. are raising children while enrolled in college. These student parents are motivated to earn a college degree not just for themselves but for their children’s futures and their families’ economic stability and mobility. However, they often face enormous barriers to their academic success, including economic insecurity and issues with food, housing, and other necessities.

Kenneth Adams, president of LaGuardia Community College, highlighted the integral role of CUNY childcare centers in improving outcomes for student parents.

“CUNY childcare centers provide critical support so that parents don’t get derailed along their journeys,” President Adams said. “At LaGuardia, our Early Childcare Center, along with our tutoring, mentoring, and internship programs, and support from LaGuardia CARES, helps student parents overcome financial hurdles so they can continue working towards earning a post-secondary degree.”

Dr. Alexis McLean, vice president of Student Affairs at LaGuardia, praised the unwavering commitment of CUNY childcare centers to student parents.

“The children cared for by these centers—the littlest members of our campus communities—are integral to our spirit and mission,” Dr. McLean said. “These centers foster a sense of community and belonging. This holistic approach is what makes our childcare centers so special and essential to the fabric of our institutions.”

Sonya Evariste, executive director of LaGuardia’s ECLC and co-chair of the CUNY Childcare Council, emphasized the importance of recognizing student parents.

“Our student parents work incredibly hard to balance family responsibilities and coursework, and we want them to know that we see their efforts and are here to support them along their journeys,” she said.

Honoring LaGuardia Nursing Student Rebecca Ramos

Rebecca Ramos, 36, a LaGuardia Nursing major, was LaGuardia’s student parent who was recognized at “Celebrating Student Parent Success.” She shares a three-year-old daughter, Naomi, with her husband. Seven years ago, Rebecca emigrated from Venezuela, where she was a lawyer. During the pandemic, she was inspired by the need for healthcare professionals to become a nurse. However, she worried about how she and her husband would care for their daughter while she went back to school. Learning about the affordable childcare at LaGuardia was a huge relief. Rebecca enrolled her daughter in the ECLC and begin taking English language classes at LaGuardia.

Today Rebecca is in her second semester of the Nursing program and recently started clinicals at Elmhurst Hospital.

“I’m working on a floor where we treat patients with COVID, hypertension, early-stage dementia, and post-surgical patients. I’ve gotten to administer finger stick glucose tests and provide care that allows me to work closely with patients,” Rebecca said. “I enjoy the population because I get to speak Spanish. I see relief on patients’ faces when I speak to them in Spanish. I say, ‘Don’t worry, tell me what happened, we’ll take care of you.’”

Being selected as ECLC’s honoree for “Celebrating Student Parent Success” was a surprise for Rebecca, who attended the event with her husband, Omar, and her mother visiting from Venezuela.

“I feel like the award should go to the ECLC, not me,” she said. “The directors, coordinators, and teachers are awesome. They take such good care of my daughter and all the children. I’m forever grateful to be selected for this honor.”

“I’ll never forget how the ECLC helped me when I got sick,” said Rebecca, who was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis during her first semester in the Nursing program. Having ECLC available to care for her daughter allowed Ramos to keep up with her studies. And then when she got better, ECLC allowed her to get involved in campus activities. Ramos works part-time as an ambassador of LaGuardia’s Casa de las Américas and is an elected member of the Student Government Association. She swims at LaGuardia’s on-campus pool and has received counseling at the Wellness Center.

Today, Rebecca’s mission is to spread the word about ECLC among her fellow students.

“I’ve met too many students who are unfamiliar with our ECLC. So, I decided to be its voice and make sure that students know how awesome it is,” Rebecca said.

She also looks for ways to give back to the ECLC. Last semester, Ramos partnered with ECLC on a clothes and diaper drive to support her fellow student parents. She plans to initiate another drive for Thanksgiving.

“Diapers are expensive—$50 a box. And for people like me in rigorous programs like Nursing, we don’t have time to work full-time jobs,” said Rebecca, who donates clothes Naomi outgrows to the closet at LaGuardia CARES to help her fellow student parents.

Ramos is also grateful for the support she’s received from LaGuardia’s faculty and additional student resources. “LaGuardia has incredible professors and resources,” says Ramos, who visits the food pantry at LaGuardia CARES, and has received scholarships from the LaGuardia Foundation. “When I was first diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, my doctor put me on high doses of ibuprofen, which not only wasn’t relieving my symptoms, but was damaging my immune system. I kept getting fevers; once I took an exam with a fever of nearly 104 degrees. My anatomy professor Minhaj Uddin Chowdhury encouraged me to seek a second opinion. Now I’m on a new treatment that’s made me feel so much better—my mind is clear, and I can carry my daughter again.

Rebecca is on track to graduate from LaGuardia in 2026. Her husband plans to enroll at LaGuardia, once she graduates and enters the healthcare workforce full-time.

CUNY Students Honored at the CUNY Celebrating Student Parents Success Event Include:

• Johanna De Jesus, Human Services major at Borough of Manhattan Community College
• Madeline Miranda, Education major at Bronx Community College
• Afroza Majumder, Health and Nutrition Science/ Chemistry major at Brooklyn College
• Stephanie Suarez, Sociology major at the College of Staten Island
• Hyun-Wook Cho, Economics major at the CUNY Graduate Center
• Maftuna Saidova, Student at the CUNY Law School
• Stacey Delgado, Community Health major at Hostos Community College
• Tasia Edwards, Psychology major at Hunter College
• Kimberly B. Perez-Vimos, Forensic Psychology major at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice
• Shimiah Williams, Liberal Arts major at Kingsborough Community College
• Rebecca Ramos, Nursing major at LaGuardia Community College
• Jasmine Galdamez, Psychology major at Lehman College
• Adana Smith, Biology major at Medgar Evers College
• Johana Sibri, Mechanical Engineering Technology major at the NYC College of Technology
• Griffin Irvine, Library Science major at Queens College
• Luz Velez, Psychology major at York College

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LaGuardia Community College (LAGCC), a Hispanic-Serving Institution, located in Long Island City, Queens offers more than 50 associate degrees and academic certificates, and more than 65 continuing education programs to prepare New Yorkers for transfer to senior colleges and rewarding jobs and careers. An institution of the City University of New York (CUNY), the College reflects the legacy of our namesake, Fiorello H. LaGuardia, the former NYC mayor beloved for his advocacy of the underserved. Since 1971, LaGuardia’s academic programs and support services have advanced the socioeconomic mobility of students from Queens, NYC and beyond.

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