Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget proposal is planning on reducing funds to Sacramento State’s nationally accredited child care center, which will have a negative impact on many of the campus’ student parents.

Sac State’s Associated Students Inc. Children’s Center director said the proposed budget cut made by Brown will cut funding to the center in 2012-13.

Denise Wessels, who has been the director of the center since 2005, said it provides service to approximately 175 students here on campus and provides a work site for 90 to 100 students each semester.

“Specifically, it would eliminate our student families from qualifying for subsidized child care while they are attending classes here at Sac State,” Wessels said. “The Office of Government Affairs at ASI helped to organize a lobbying trip to the Capitol to meet with legislators. We invited families from the Children’s Center to join us and hand deliver the invitation to the governor. We want him to come to our program for a visit and see how important our program is to student families.”

In the letter to the governor, Wessels addressed the program’s 2006 highest-quality recognition attainable national accreditation through National Association for Education of Young Children. This national accreditation has been earned by about 7 percent of child care programs nationwide.

The Children’s Center was evaluated by an early childhood specialist from the National Academy of Early Childhood Programs to determine if the program met the national standards of quality early childhood services for young children and their families.

“We know California has budget problem, but we are asking that you take a second look at child care funding,” Wessels wrote in the letter. “Subsidized child care is an essential component to our students’ completion of their degree. In turn, their degree will allow them to attain their goal of supporting their families and successfully entering the workforce and contribute in a positive way to the recovery of California’s economy.”

The proposed budget would shift funds away from child development programs in early educational systems and move the dollars to Social Services County Welfare Department. Included in this shift is complete elimination of higher education as a need category. The funds received from the California Department of Education amount to about one-third of the children’s center budget. This would go into effect July 1.

“We want the governor to see and experience our high quality program that is so vital to our student families’ success,” Wessels said. “We don’t know the impact yet, we have not heard back from his office either accepting our invitation or declining. We do know that by stepping forward to advocate for our student families we help to put a face to the cuts. Numbers or words on a page are different than families and children in your office.”

Wessels said she hopes the governor will be able to understand how vital the program is to student families and that it’s also a major employer of students and a learning site for many courses.

The ASI’s Children’s Center has provided child care for students on campus since 1971. Since that time, student parents have relied on the program to provide care and early childhood education for children aged six months to five years.

Wessels said the students passed a referendum raising the money to build the center here and student fees have supported the program each year.

“In the new system, only working families would be eligible for assistance. We feel this is short sighted. By helping student families achieve their academic goals, they will graduate, begin their career and be able to support their family,” Wessels said. “This would effectively eliminate many of our student parents’ ability to pursue their education. Between the rising cost of their tuition and fees, and the loss of their subsidized campus child care, pursuit of higher education would be beyond their means.”

Alumna Bridget Peri, who is working toward becoming a marriage and family therapist, said the proposal would impact the sense of community and family at the children’s center.

“I highly value educational opportunities and access, this proposal would really limit parents’ ability to complete their education and achieve their career goals. I find it very discouraging that the Governor has even suggested eliminating subsidized childcare on college campuses,” Peri said. “I don’t see how it helps to have parents stuck in dead-end jobs when they could complete their degrees and work in jobs that they are talented, challenged by, enjoy and likely earn more money to best support their families.”

Mari Del Angel can be reached at [email protected].