It can be tough for a parent to get back into college – especially if your children are still young and need your constant attention and care.

But if you need a way to get back into school while still ensuring that your children can be taken care of, something you might consider is the child care center right here at Skyline.

Any member of faculty, staff, or any student enrolled at Skyline is eligible to have their children attend.

There is, of course, a registration process. Before they enroll their children, parents are given a tour of the center. After that, there is an “Enrollment Interview,” as well as forms to fill out. After this is done, there is a Parent/Teacher meeting to determine the final steps.

All of this is in place to ensure that the programs offered are going to be the best possible fit for your children, and to ensure that the option of child care is right for the parents.

Depending on the amount of room available, a waiting list may be maintained, and families will be told as soon as there is an open spot.

Based on their class schedule, parents can leave their children at the center either part-time (less than five hours a day) or full-time (five hours and up).

Located between Loma Chica and Pacific Heights, the development center consists of two main rooms, each geared towards a certain age group.

The “Caterpillar Room” is geared towards younger children, allowing in ages two through three and a half.

Once they’re over the hill to their fourth birthday, they graduate to the “Butterfly Room,” for children from three and a half all the way to six – then they’ve got schooling of their own to think about.

Each room is staffed by three teachers – one head and two support teachers – as well as parent participants and volunteers from the college who are enrolled in the Early Childhood Education classes.

Those responsible for the children lead them in various activities geared towards helping them develop, as well as keeping them entertained while they’re there.

Children can play with blocks, clay, playdough, they can cut, paste, paint, make collages… they can even start to explore science and music, and that’s just a portion of everything that’s available to them.

The goal is to get children to explore their surroundings, learn how things work and the concepts of cause and effect, to satisfy their curiosity and release energy, and ultimately to have fun.

More than just the children, however, the child care center understands the importance of offering such a service to the parents. It sounds cliché, but what they’re ultimately doing is promoting education among adults as well as children.

To a parent who can’t find a job without a college education, but who can’t afford to leave their children alone a few hours a day either, the child care center offers the perfect solution.

It gives you the time you need to get your education, while ensuring that your children are taken care of. And with its location right here on campus, you know that you’ll never be too far away – which, for a parent, is always the most important thing.