Wisconsin Parents Attending College Won't Have Access to Federal Funding to Help Them Pay for Childcare
Friday, November 13th, 2026 -- 8:01 AM
(Corrinnee Hess, Wisconsin Public Radio) For the first time in nearly 30 years, Wisconsin parents attending college will not have access to federal funding to help them pay for childcare.
According to Corrinnee Hess with Wisconsin Public Radio, since 1999, the federal Child Care Access Means Parents in School program, or CCAMPIS, has covered 75 percent to 95 percent of childcare costs for eligible, low-income student parents receiving Pell Grants.
This year, no Wisconsin institutions received funding. The funding loss comes as the U.S. Department of Education awarded far fewer CCAMPIS grants nationwide than anticipated. Nearly 300 colleges and universities applied for funding in 2026.
The grants are offered in four-year cycles, and historically the money has been doled out yearly. The department anticipated awarding 148 grants, but only 40 institutions nationwide were ultimately selected.
Officials with the Department of Education did not respond to requests for comment from WPR. Madison College President Jennifer Berne says the loss exposes a larger challenge.
Madison College was expecting to receive $2 million this cycle to assist 28 student parents and 34 children. Berne says the consequences of the funding loss are already visible.
Six families opted not to place their children into childcare because of the high cost and three families are delaying starting care as they look for other funding options to afford it.
Two families moved to district 4K programs and, as a result, reduced their college course loads to accommodate the fewer care hours provided through that option, Berne said.
“Our highest priority is making sure that the students who come to Madison College have the wraparound services and the support to be successful, and if they do not, then the whole community really suffers,” Berne said.
“We have student parents who are training to be nurses, police officers, IT professionals, mechanics, all the things that our community needs,” Berne continued. “And if we can’t give them the opportunity to have their children cared for while they study, then we will not have access to their talents.”
Over the last few years, the grant program has been tumultuous. Although the grant cycles are every four years, most recently the Department of Education has held grant competitions annually to bring more colleges into the fold as program funding increased.
But The Biden administration did not hold a grant competition in 2024. The Trump administration proposed eliminating the program in 2025 and also did not award any grants. The last time grants were awarded in 2023 as part of the 2022-26 grant cycle, 12 Wisconsin institutions received funding totaling $5.2 million.
- Alverno College: $90,000
- UW-Milwaukee: $387,397
- Herzing University: $249,600
- Lakeshore Technical College: $39,000
- Madison Area Technical College: $309,077
- Milwaukee Area Technical College: $583,840
- Mount Mary University: $39,000
- UW-Green Bay: $105,360
- The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System: $284,642
- UW-Eau Claire: $459,687
- UW-Whitewater: $167,465
- Western Technical College: $87,451
Madison College student Devvin Thomas Sr., who expects to graduate from the Small Business Entrepreneurship Program in 2028, says the loss of funding has left his family struggling.
“A lot of us students who are parents feel like we can’t go to school because we don’t have these avenues, and having this aid taken away is just proving that point,” Thomas said in a statement. “It shows that the big wigs don’t really care about the parents who are trying to go back to school not only to make a better way for themselves but make a better way for their kids.”
At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the grant has supported between 35 and 50 student-parent families and 50 to 60 children annually, said spokesperson John Lucas. On campus, infant care can cost approximately $18,000 per academic year and up to $25,000 with summer care, Lucas said, adding that summer care is essential for student-parents who use that time to make progress toward degree completion.
“While this federal funding source is no longer available, UW-Madison’s Child Care Tuition Assistance Program remains active, and our commitment to supporting parenting students and their children has not changed,” Lucas said.
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