Lengthy wait list for campus child care

By Ky Belk
The Metropolitan

Parents who have the flexibility to make part-time arrangements will stand a better chance of eventually receiving full-time care for their children at the Auraria Child Care Center.

Thatās because once someone accepts a child care slot, they get priority in choosing time slots over those who are on the wait list in subsequent semesters.

ACCC Director Gina Hamelin said parents who want full-time care for their children must be placed on waiting lists. Full-time care is defined as Monday through Friday, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The day care center also accepts children of non-students on a space-available basis. Roughly 20 percent of the children at the center last spring were children of non-students, but Hamelin said she believes that number will be lower this year.

ćIf we have an opening on Tuesdays and Fridays, then we offer it to the parents (on the waiting list),ä Hamelin said.

The Auraria Child Care Center is licensed by the state of Colorado to care for 240 children on a full-time basis. Toddlers take 64 of the available slots. Preschool-age children account for 152 of the total with the centerās kindergarten program taking up the final 24 spaces.

Fees for the Auraria center, which accepts children from 12 months through 8 years, are set on a sliding scale.
Costs for part-time care are calculated based on half-days. The half-day fees are $14.50, $15.50 and $17.50 per day, depending on the parentsā income.

Full-time care for a toddler would cost $433 a month for parents making up to $15,000 a year, $472 a month for parents who earn between $15,000 to $30,000 a year, and $533 a month for parents making more than $30,000 a year.

The last fee hike was in July 1996. The center uses fundraising programs and grants to raise money, rather than raising the fees, said Hamelin, who along with various members of Aurariaās administration determines the costs for child care. They also call other child care centers to compare fee structures, Hamelin said.

Montessori On The Mall, a child care center located on the 16th Street Mall in downtown Denver, also has a waiting list for toddlers, said Alice Palma, Montessoriās director. Palma said she hopes to have some openings in September. Full-time child care for a toddler at Montessori costs $670 a month.