From Surviving to Thriving: One Student\'s Takeaway from the Parenting Student Symposium

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From Surviving to Thriving: One Student's Takeaway from the Parenting Student Symposium

On March 20, 2025, I attended From Surviving to Thriving, a powerful symposium where parenting students, researchers, and advocates came together to shed light on the experiences and needs of student parents. While student parents are a vital part of the campus community, their challenges are often overlooked. The symposium, with keynote speaker Dr. Sekile Nzinga, created space for meaningful conversations and solutions aimed at making the university more inclusive, accessible, and supportive for students who are also raising children.

As a parenting student myself, it was inspiring to sit in a room full of people dedicated to making the student experience more seamless and equitable. Though parenting students make up only about 2% of UIC’s undergraduate population, that is still hundreds of students who may be struggling. Meeting academic expectations, like attending evening exams, meeting tight assignment deadlines, or simply making it to class, can be overwhelming without sufficient support. The symposium not only validated these challenges but also focused on ways to bridge the gap between what parenting students need and what institutions currently provide.

Panel One: Parenting Students Experiencing Institutions

The first panel, Parenting Students Experiencing Institutions, featured Alison Brooks, MPH, Elexis Kirkwood, Mykela Collins, Ariel Sylvester, Ph.D, and moderator Dalal Katsiaficas, Ph.D. A shared outlook among the panelists was appreciation for UIC’s efforts to support student parents. Alison Brooks noted she "made the right choice" choosing UIC, especially because of resources like on-campus childcare, which is not offered at all institutions. Yet, even with the support given, a disconnect remains between what's available and what’s needed.

One student parent shared her experience using UIC’s Children's Center, explaining how helpful the staff can be. Her child has even come home with extra winter clothing when needed. However, she also highlighted the difficulties of commuting with a toddler, especially in sub-zero weather, which sometimes forces her to pay for costly parking rather than waiting in the cold for a bus. Personally, I found the childcare center’s West Campus location made it unideal for my already long public transportation commute to East Campus. It would have added over an hour to my family’s daily routine, so I needed to choose another option.

Persistent Barriers: Financial and Academic Pressures

A recurring theme throughout the symposium was the financial strain that parenting students face. Unlike many traditional undergraduates, student parents must juggle the cost of education with the responsibility of supporting a dependent. While grants like CCAMPIS are helpful for daycare, they don’t account for gaps, such as when childcare centers are closed. Without flexible options, carving out dedicated study time becomes nearly impossible. In my two semesters at UIC, I’ve already had three classes with evening exams. I don’t have a reliable support system or funds for a babysitter, which makes attending a late exam feel impossible.

While scholarships and grants do exist, sometimes they come with requirements that can be difficult to attain for these students with added responsibilities, such as taking additional steps to gain access to funds. Students agreed that it would be helpful if financial aid policies could be more flexible.

Academic expectations also pose unique challenges. Short turnaround times for assignments don’t always align with a parent’s packed schedule. If a child is sick or needs extra attention at home, there’s little flexibility to adjust deadlines. Student parents often spend their evenings making dinner, helping with homework, driving to activities, and trying to squeeze in meaningful family time. Some students opt for online classes to find balance, but not all courses or learning styles make that possible.

Second Panel: Visions for the Future

The second panel, Visions for the Future, featured Elaina Frieson, Veronica Castillo Le Maitre, MD, LM, Theresa Anderson, Ph.D, Nina Owolabi, Ph.D Candidate, and moderator Jessica Rothstein, Ph.D, MSPH. This discussion centered on the structural and cultural changes needed to truly support parenting students.

Dr. Veronica Castillo Le Maitre, an international student, shared that when she arrived at UIC, she didn’t know where to begin in finding resources for parenting students. Her experience displayed the importance of centralized, easy-to-access information for incoming or expecting student parents. Panelists echoed that institutions must take more proactive steps in outreach.

Nina Owolabi spoke about her research on Black parenting students and addressed the historical undermining of Black parenthood. She explained that some Black students hesitate to disclose their parenting status due to fears of being doubted or stigmatized.

Similarly, fathers are often excluded from these conversations altogether. Yet, they represent a significant portion of the student-parent population. My only student-parent friend at UIC is a father, and his experience reflected this gap in support. While I received flexibility for an evening exam after sharing my situation, my friend felt uncomfortable accepting a similar offer, sensing less empathy from the same professor.

Another group that often remains left out is student parents raising children with disabilities. A parent at the symposium brought attention to her own experience. We need to consider how family events can accommodate children with diverse needs. It was suggested that the Disability Resource Center could be open to offering child-specific guidance. Supporting parenting students must include support for their children as individuals with unique needs.

Creating a More Inclusive Campus

The need for greater institutional support was a unifying theme. Many panelists advocated for a standardized list of accommodations for parenting students, so each person doesn't have to self-advocate from scratch. This would be especially helpful for those who are shy, private, or unsure of their rights. Some colleges at UIC, such as the College of Education and the College of Nursing, are known for being more understanding of student-parents, while STEM-focused programs are often less flexible. A university-wide standard could help parenting students in all programs.

Another area of opportunity is in creating more child-welcoming environments. The new family-friendly study space on West Campus is a great step, and similar efforts are being explored for East Campus. Currently, children aren’t allowed on UIC’s shuttle, but some parents shared that changing this policy could make their daily routines far easier. Similarly, making classrooms more welcoming to children, especially during childcare emergencies, could signify a broader cultural shift. I’ve had two professors share their welcoming of children to the classroom in their syllabi, and it made me feel seen and supported. Expanding that kind of inclusive messaging across more classes would be a simple but meaningful change.

There was also a call for UIC to consider affordable housing near campus, specifically for student parents. While it may seem far-fetched, UIC once had student family housing in the 2000s, and the University of California is currently piloting similar housing solutions through its University Village model. Reducing commute times and offering stable, family-oriented housing would greatly enhance the academic success and well-being of student parents.

Looking Forward

The symposium concluded with a call to action: we need better data on who our parenting students are, how their needs evolve, and what resources would most effectively support them. Even though Illinois passed a 2021 bill requiring public universities to collect this data, gaps remain. Parenting status can change during a student’s academic journey, so continued outreach and support are essential.

This event left me feeling optimistic about the future of parenting students at UIC. If universities like UIC continue to listen to parenting students and follow through with plans to improve, we can move from simply surviving to genuinely thriving, not just as students, but as parents raising the next generation.

Symposium speakers pictured above from left to right: Alison Brooks and her child, Dr. Ariel Sylvester, Dr. Dalal Katsiaficas, Dr. Sekile Nzinga, Dr. Theresa Anderson, Dr. Veronica Castillo Le Maitre and her child, Elexis Kirkwood, Elaina Frieson, Mykela Collins, Jessica Rothstein, and Nina Owolabi