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Show Briefs > CHILD CARE From page 7 'Guns, Germs and Steel' author to speak at Utah State Development Lab, located in the Family Life Building, before they are born. Though getting a spot is competitive, Stott said the lab is more of a preschool and not a viable childcare source, noting the only current on-campus site is Children's House at 862 E. 900 North, which provides full-day care for kids ages 3 and up. With a price range of about $350-$400 per month that varies based on the parent's relationship to USU, student parents pay as much for child care as they do for tuition, which is simply not an option for many families. Paskett's experiences have proven this to be the case with almost any available child care. "I can see how some people just stop working, but it's so expensive that I have to work full-time, which makes child care a huge part of my paycheck," she said. But even if the cost isn't an issue, the availability is. Children's House Director Linda Gilgen said current enrollment is now at capacity, noting long waiting lists for infants and toddlers. "There are more families in college and younger people become parents. There is an overabundance of children. The number of slots doesn't coincide with the need — especially for children under 3." Stott, who works to providereferrals and mat,ch up parents with providers, in Box Elder, CacHe arid Rjch counties, said the shortage is a real problem.'"" " "' "J ""' "We don't have any centers For children under 12 months. Until they turn 2, there is a real need, especially for part-time care since parents going back to work often want to spend time with the baby during the day." Though there are no on-campus or local centers for babies, the Referral Center does provide a list of licensed families that parents can work with. Stott said the average cost for family care is $2-$3 per hour and there are some on-campus locations in the townhouses and Aggie Village. Jacoba Mendelkow, a single mom and senior in English, said she used the Referral Center and has been very lucky so far. "This year's easy since my daughter is kindergarten-age, so she has school from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., then Boys and Girls Club — which I love — until 5:30 p.m. Then daycare will pick her up," she said. For her first two years of child care, Mendelkow said her daughter, Dallas, was able to go to USU Children's House, but after accidentally delaying paperwork too long, she was forced to look for a private provider because of waiting lists. Paskett said she has faced similar struggles in trying to find accessible, quality care for her daughters. "I've had a neighbor lady doing it for a good cost, but now I don't know what I'm going to do because she's pregnant and can't do it anymore," she said. "I'm trying to work it out with other neighbors. I think sometimes with structured daycare centers, the kids don't always get the attention they need and I don't have any family close enough." Taking into consideration experiences like these, Gilgen said the status of childcare on campus has been thoroughly investigated as far as need, but lack of funding has stopped any action to improve the situation. "We are so far behind any other campus whether it is a university or junior college - in the state of Utah," she said, noting there are several sites on the University of Utah campus alone. "At lots of universities, there is a fee allocation, just like parking or things like that. We don't have a campus grant like we used to have to help student parents with tuition." puses. "In some universities, child care is free to students and faculty, but we could also just use a drop-off daycare so I could go to the library sometimes," she said. "Even gyms have drop-off centers. They could provide internships and credit to students in FCHD and make it free to single moms or students." Mannon echoed the importance of improving the situation for parents on campus. "Child care is so crucial. Without it, women's advancement in academemia is limited," she said. Thankfully, the future of childcare at USU may be a little brighter, since a new facility is in the works, Stott said. "As far as I know, they've received quite a few donations and had a meeting with the architect," she said of efforts by Gilgen, Vice President for Student Services Juan Franco, Education Dean Carol Strong and others to build an on-campus center that could be completed by a year from this summer. "We don't have the funding. It is all planned, blueprints drawn, money set aside and environmental studies finished," Gilgen said, though she and Osborne declined to comment on the site's location on campus. When asked whether the university has allocated enough funds to make a new facility possible, she said, "Let's put it this way: it's on the table, but we're waiting to hearfrom,a , primary donor. The facility program with the architect is signed off, but the funding is not MichaelSharp/michaelsharp@cc.usu.edti all there." ACCORDING TO ONE REPORT, 47 percent of women surveyed cited a need As for the details of the potential center, for better child'care services on campus. Gilgen said most aspects, including costs and employees, will be similar to what they are now at Children's House. She also included the fact that USU receives no money from the Legislature for recruit"We are a practicum site with interns from early childhood education, expanded as ment of faculty, and available child care is a far as on-site training and opportunities for recruitment and retention perk. research," she said, noting there will be some "Even if USU can't offer as much money, other modifications as well. "The new facility having a good place for faculty to bring their will care for children as young as six weeks kids can help," Gilgen said. "As a Carnegie-I institution, a research institution and with the old and have probably twice as many employees - around 40." research park, there is a real need for highquality care." Gilgen said the majority of the staff are There was no disagreement that accessible student employees and she'll be making a on-campus child care is greatly needed at presentation at the April 4 ASUSU Executive USU for a variety of reasons. Council meeting to justify fee allocation for the new center, though they currently have all "I'd give anything for more time with my of the information in writing. girls," Paskett said of her 8 a.m.-sometimes 7-p.m. days without seeing them. "It would For Paskett, Mendelkow and many other mean the world to me if I could just run and parents on USU's campus, this could be a be with them, even eat lunch with them, for long-awaited solution to an unnecessary proban hour or so or a few minutes every day." lem, especially when considering the resourcWhen asked if on-campus child care would es are available right on campus. help her be more successful at USU or only "Anytime you can bring students in with impact her family life, Paskett said, "Children the kids, it is a great opportunity for both of have a way of changing your attitude. Just to them," Paskett said. "Education students can be with them and hear them say 1 love you' bring a lot of energy and then the kids can get - it's kind of therapy if I could see them for the attention they need." a few precious moments during the day. It For more information on available child would definitely improve my work." care, contact the Child Care Research and Mendelkow said she's surprised at the lack Referral Center at 797-1552 or visit their Web of available child care on campus, considering site at www.usuchild.usu.edu. its presence in high schools and other cam-lindsaykite@,cc.usu.edu >CATS •GIFT From page 7 released and females are kept overnight and given pain medication before being set free. Milligan said that costs - around $35 for female cats and a little less for males - have been covered by donations from university faculty and members of the community. Aggie Cat Services has conducted two trappings, Milligan said. The first in October trapped around eight cats, but the second, held the third week in March, was less successful because of bad weather, and trapped only one cat. The cats that are fed regularly have formed a colony, Milligan said. The ones who are trapped are documented and pictured, so the service can keep an eye on them. Colonies of feral cats can actually be a good thing for a community, Jolley said. Colonies can help with rodent problems, and once they are spayed or neutered, the cats are simply a self-sustaining community that isn't growing. The possibility of adopting out these cats was considered, but Four Paws, a local service for abandoned pets, was already full and Milligan said they decided the cats would be better off living free in their colony than waiting in cages to be adopted. From page 1 him most about Uintah Basin is the community's commitment to higher education. "I've lived in several places and worked with several universities and this is what impressed me most in my seven years in the basin. The citizens have an absolute, undying commitment to higher education,** Denton said. "They don't just talk about it, but come forward with gifts and scholarship funds. The facilities in Roosevelt and Vernal come from the commitment of the citizens." He also said the community understands the impact education will have on economic development in the region. -dilewis@cc.usu.edu -dm aafield@cc.usu. edu Cats that have been fed and taken care of by Aggie Cat Services look plump and glossy, Jolley said. "They look healthy, not like most wild cats," she said. One of the cats trapped in October was Lyle. It turned out he had already been neutered, indicating he had been abandoned by his owners, or perhaps he just wandered away from home. Milligan said her sister was going to adopt Lyle, but when they took him to the vet, it turned out he had feline AIDS. Although it does not affect humans, feline AIDS is highly contagious among cats and can be transmitted merely through licking an infected cat. Milligan took Lyle home herself, giving him his own room away from her dogs while he became more and more ill. Shortly before Christmas, Lyle was put to sleep. "He was a sweet cat," Jolley said. "We all miss him." Still, Milligan said, it's good to know that the last few months of his life were peaceful and comfortable. Utah State University welcomes renowned author and celebrity scientist Jared Diamond to campus Thursday, March 30. Alternately described as an evolutionary biologist, physiologist and DIAMOND biogeographer, Diamond speaks at 4:30 p.m, in the Kent Concert Hall of USU's Chase Fine Arts Center. His talk is free and open to the public. A professor at the University of California-Los Angeles, Diamond received the Pulitzer Prize for his 1997 blockbuster, "Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies." The book explores the geographic, cultural, environmental and technological factors that led to Western culture's domination of the world. His 2004 bestseller, "Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed," investigates why some of the great civilizations of the past fell to ruin and others prevailed. A member of the National Academy of Sciences, Diamond is the recipient of a number of prestigious science awards, including the MacArthur Foundation Genius grant. In 2000, he received the National Medal of Science for his influential research in evolutionary biology. "Diamond is one of the great scientific minds of our time," said James MacMahon, USU trustee professor and director of USU's Ecology Center. "His visit is a rare opportunity that shouldn't be missed." A VA presents valley high school art show The Alliance for the Varied Arts Gallery presents the "2006 High School'Art Show," opening April 7 ui from 6-9 p-m. High school students from Logan, Mountain Crest and Sky View, alon£ ' with their instructors, will show the best examples of their artwork. Ribbons will be awarded at 7:30 p.m. on the opening night. This event is free to the public and the opening is in conjunction with the Logan Downtown Gallery Walk. The show will run through April 28. This will be the first of four Gallery Walks in 2006 an d several artists will be featured in downtown businesses. Hours for the AVA are Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Wednesdays 12-6 p.m. For more information, please call the AVA at 435-753-2970, or stop by the gallery inside the Thatcher Young Mansion at 35 W. 100 S.Logan. Utah State researcher awarded $3 Ok grant The U.S. Civilian Research & Development Foundation and the National Foundation of Science and Advanced Technologies have awarded $30,000 to Utah State University researcher Bradley Kropp and his Armenian partner Siranush Nanagyulyan of Yerevan State University, under its U.S.-Armenian Bilateral Grants Program. Kropp and Nanagyulyan will collaborate on a project titled "Phylogeographical and systematic investigation of ectomycorrhizal fungi in Armenian forests." Their goal is to further understanding in Armenia of ectomycorrhizal fungi's importance to its reforestation efforts and to conserving its rich biological heritage. Knopp and Nanagyulyan represent one of eleven winning teams funded under the CRDF-NFSAT Bilateral Grants Program IV - a program designed to support American and Armenian science and technology collaboration. In total, $318,000 was granted to institutions such as Pennsylvania State University, the University of Maryland and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The funds provide up to 24 months of support for the winning teams, whose basic and applied research proposals address issues from physics and material science, to biology and physical chemistry. • Compiled from staff and media reports |