As part of its continuing effort to help faculty and staff find a balance between work, study, personal goals and family responsibilities, the University of Pennsylvania has announced several new initiatives that greatly expand its family friendly agenda.

To increase access to child care for Penn employees, students and the local community, Penn has partnered with two West Philadelphia child care providers, the Parent Infant Center and The Caring Center. Both are NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children)-accredited centers with deep roots in the University City community, providing access to high quality child care with a commitment to racial, cultural and economic diversity. This partnership will provide space for 100 additional children to receive high quality day care close to Penn’s campus, with 50 of these spaces reserved for Penn faculty and staff members. In each case, the University has provided facilities and financial support to help expand child care capacity in University City.

In addition to providing more full-day child care, the University is also addressing the need for last-minute care for dependents of any age through its Backup Care Program. This program is available through a partnership with Parents-in-a-Pinch, an award-winning backup care company. When Penn faculty and staff have an unexpected interruption in their regular dependent care routine and need to get to work, they can access expert child and adult caregivers to provide short-notice temporary care services. Penn isn’t just making these services available, it’s also providing a generous subsidy to help make them more affordable.

These programs are part of a multi-phased, multi-year plan by Penn to expand its family-friendly agenda. For more information on Penn’s family-friendly programs, click here.