# Understanding the CCAMPIS Reauthorization Act

This bill updates and expands a federal program that helps college students who are parents afford child care while they're in school. Right now, many student parents struggle to balance education with caring for their kids, and this program aims to make that easier by giving money directly to colleges to help pay for child care services.

Here's what the bill does in practical terms: It gives colleges grants ranging from $75,000 to $2 million per year to provide or arrange child care for their student parents. Colleges can use this money to run their own child care centers on campus, help pay for child care at nearby facilities, or offer before and after-school programs. The key requirement is that colleges must use a sliding fee scale, meaning student parents pay based on what they can afford—those with less money pay less. The bill also says colleges can't add extra requirements to qualify for help, like demanding students work a certain number of hours or maintain specific grades. If you're a student parent who qualifies for federal financial aid (or would qualify if you completed the paperwork), you're eligible.

Beyond just paying for child care, colleges receiving these grants must help student parents access other government benefits they might qualify for, like food assistance, housing help, Medicaid, and tax credits. The bill also requires child care programs to meet quality standards within three years, either by achieving Head Start standards, getting accredited by a national early childhood organization, or reaching the top tier of their state's quality rating system. Colleges have to report annually on how many student parents they're serving, what they're paying, and whether students are staying in school and graduating.

The bill authorizes $500 million per year for this program from 2026 through 2031, which is a significant investment in supporting student parents' success in college.

CCAMPIS Reauthorization Act

Clark, Katherine M.

Child Care Access Means Parents In Schools Reauthorization Act or the CCAMPIS Reauthorization ActThis bill reauthorizes through FY2031 and revises the Child Care Access Means Parents in School Program. The program awards grants to support the participation of eligible low-income parents in postsecondary education through the provision of campus-based child care services.Among other revisions to the program, the bill increases the minimum and maximum grant amounts, allows grant funds to be used for additional purposes (e.g., child care subsidies and support services), and specifies additional grant application requirements.