Child Care

To the Editors of The Crimson:

I read with interest your recent article ("Toddlers Visit K-School," Dec. 1) on the acute need for child care at the Kennedy School. While organizers were pleased with the number of children who joined us last Wednesday, we would like to draw your attention to the children who could not attend Family Day, particularly those who are separated from their parents out of economic necessity.

Among those absent were children left in foreign countries with relatives, children left in other states with spouses, and the children of those who, because of lack of affordable child care, could not apply to, attend, teach or work at the K-School. We believe that while lack of child care obviously means temporary separation for some parents and children, it may also be a barrier to higher education for others, particularly women and minorities.

The Child Care Policy Group is committed to working with Dean of the Kennedy School Graham T. Allison as he searches for a way to fund the K-School child care program. As the Dean's Executive Assistant noted, merging with another school's child care center is one option. Given the fact that all the current child care centers maintain extensive waiting lists, we have some concern that this option would aid our parents at the expense of others.

We urge the school to do what is possible with their limited resources. In all honesty, however, Kennedy School parents and supporters will continue to look curiously at the new building being constructed in our backyard and wonder where the School's commitment to affirmative action and improving the status of women and minorities really ranks among its other obvious priorities. Patty Spengler   Member, Child Care Policy Group   Kennedy School of Government