If anyone happens to drive down East State University Drive, they may spot CSUS’s Children’s Center underneath the shelter of shady redwoods. This is where current student, faculty and staff mothers bring their children for care while they attend classes, or perform their jobs at Sac State. Throughout the California State University system, each campus has a similar center.

The Children’s Center, part of Associated Students, Inc., was established here in 1971 to provide a safe place for students and staff members’ children while they were on campus. Since that time, the center has been open Mondays through Fridays for children six months to third grade. The center can care for 178 children at any given time, so space is limited.

If a student wants to enroll their children into the center, the registration fee begins at $20 per semester for one child and $30 for two or more children. The faculty/staff fees range from $30 for one student to $40 for two or more children. The enrollment fees after this vary according to the child’s age.

If the parent(s) participate at the center there is a small amount deducted from the fees in exchange for volunteering.

Jim Obermaier, a husband of a faculty member and a parent of two, is one parent that involves himself in the center. He spends about five or six weekends a year at the center, mostly in playground reconstruction. His daughter Kendra, five, and son Elliot, two, are participants at the center.

Another parent involved at the center is Nabrittany Fenton, a third year English major/Criminal Justice minor, who has a daughter enrolled in the preschool and head start program at the center. She is expecting another child who will also be enrolled in the program.

Fenton believes this is the best place for any parent on the CSUS campus to bring their child.

“It’s convenient, and you get to visit your child in-between classes.” she said.

Children are allowed to stay at the center during their normal operation hours, which are Mondays through Thursdays from 7 a.m. to 8:15 p.m. and Fridays from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

If clients chose, their children can attend the school age program, which is open every weekday, from 2 p.m. until closing. This program is for children who regularly attend elementary school up to third grade, and is similar to an after-school program where they participate in age-appropriate activities. This, however, does not take the place of regular schooling.

All the teachers that work for the Children’s Center, titled Core Staff Members, have a degree in Early Childhood Development, Human Development, and/or Child Development.

“It is very difficult to get a permanent position here,” said Stacey McCarley, a core staff member. “I was a parent volunteer here, then a student staff member, and finally a core staff member. You really have to love working with children.”

Stacey’s son Joseph is currently enrolled at the center, and is the reason why she began working there. She was a originally a business major at CSUS, and after she finished with that degree she returned to pursue her BA in Child Development so she could become a core staff member at the center.

Children at the center have many different rooms to accommodate them, as well as an extensive playground. However, they aren’t limited to the center. Kendra Obermaier, an enrolled child of five years, enjoys the many field trips they take in and outside of the center.

“I like visiting my brother [in the preschool department]. My favorite is the [University] Union field trips.” Kendra said before being distracted and promptly scampering away from the interview.

The Children’s Center also offers an evening program that requires a separate enrollment, and is limited to a certain age group. Currently, the center’s evening program is only in place for two and half-year-olds to second-graders.

A childcare service is not the only thing the center provides. It also offers job opportunities for students on campus who want to work with children, and it also gives work experience and units to Child Development majors. Danielle Hollowell, a student supervisor, is one person who has been taking advantage of these opportunities since last fall. Her duties include planning activities, watching over the children and supervising other student staff members.

For any parent who is thinking about enrolling their child here at the Children’s Center, Danielle has only positive words for them. “This is a really good place,” she said. “It’s a positive place and we have a really well-trained staff.”

This center is the main service for expectant and current mothers on campus provided by ASI. For more information about The Children’s Center, contact an aide at (916) 278-6216 or at their Web site http://www.csus.edu/asi/children/.

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