EUGENE, Ore. — Lane Community College (LCC) is proud to announce that it has been awarded a $60,000 grant by the Urban Institute to participate in the Data-to-Action Campaign for Parenting Students College Community of Practice. The grant will be provided annually for two years ($30,000 per year) and includes peer learning opportunities, technical assistance, and coaching.
As a selected institution, LCC will join an esteemed group of peers focused on collecting and utilizing data to identify and support the needs of parenting and single mother students in college. Participation in the community of practice will enable LCC staff to cultivate learning opportunities, address challenges, and explore system-wide solutions. The Data-to-Action Campaign is organized by the Urban Institute and supported by funding from the ECMC Foundation and the Ford Family Foundation.
"We are thrilled to receive this grant and join the Data-to-Action Campaign for Parenting Students. This opportunity will enable Lane Community College to better understand and address the unique challenges faced by parenting students and single mothers on our campus," said Dr. Jane Reeder, LCC Grants Director. "Our commitment to inclusivity and success for all students will be strengthened through data-driven strategies and collaboration with fellow institutions, ultimately ensuring a brighter future for our student-parent community."
With over 5.4 million college students in the United States having children, this demographic represents a significant portion of the student population. However, a lack of data at the student level has made this group largely invisible. The Oregon Legislature passed Senate Bill 564 in 2021, which requires colleges and universities to collect data on students' parenting status. Other states and college systems have been following suit.
The Data-to-Action Campaign for Parenting Students seeks to inform, guide, and steward the implementation of parenting status data collection in order to establish best practices and strategies for overcoming challenges. Insights gained from this process can inform data collection strategies across other colleges, college systems, and states. This project is part of the Student-Parent Action through Research Knowledge (SPARK) Collaborative, which provides technical assistance to stakeholders on student-parent data issues.
The collection of student-parent data is crucial for several reasons. Accurate data can help advocate for expanded child care, family housing, and new instructional policies. Furthermore, the data will allow for tracking student outcomes, such as retention and degree attainment rates. By utilizing this information, colleges can tailor essential services and institutional policies to help student parents and single mother students achieve their educational goals.
Lane Community College educates over 15,000 students annually at six locations across Lane County and online. Students and alumni from all 50 states and 79 countries create more than an $850 million dollar impact on the local economy, helping to support more than 13,000 local jobs. Lane provides affordable, quality, professional technical and college transfer programs; business development and employee training; academic, language and life skills development; and lifelong personal development and enrichment courses.