THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010
WWW.KANSAN.COM
BABY JAYS, BUSY PARENTS
VOLUME 123 ISSUE 36
Student-parents get help from child center
More than half of children at Hilltop have a parent enrolled at KU
BY MEG LOWRY
mlowry@kansan.com
To an outsider, Nicole Roderick seems like any normal undergraduate student at the University. She's majoring in chemistry, she's a teaching assistant, she does lab reports and eats at The Underground. But Roderick isn't just a student.
Roderick is also a mom.
"Everyone is proud of their children, but they just aren't really something you talk about at school," said Roderick, a senior from Des Moines, Iowa. "There are more parents than you would think at KU, you just don't hear about it because it's obviously not traditional to be a parent in college."
Roderick is just one of many student-parents currently enrolled at the University.
More than half of the children at the University's child care facility, Hilltop Child Development Center, have student-parents. The waiting list for the school — as long as 300 before renovations were completed last year — leaves some parents waiting for as long as eight months.
Eric Giroux, who graduated from the University of Kansas last spring, raised his son Jackson for three years while in school and enrolled him at Hilltop.
"I am 22 years old and have a 3-year-old son," Giroux said. "But when life deals you some cards, you have to get up, dress up and show up."
Roderick and Giroux both agree that raising a child while in college changes life in ways students without children could never imagine.
"You become friends with all these other kids who are 21 and go out and have fun and party when you have to go home," Roderick said. "When you make friends, it pretty much stops at school, because they are doing social things that you just can't."
Giroux said having a child makes living the stereotypical college lifestyle impossible.
"It's not uncommon for a college student to wake up at 11, eat Chipotle at 2:30, and not eat again until late at night," Giroux said. "Those eating habits won't work with a baby. Providing three varied and healthy meals for a child with picky tastes every day is a challenge."
Having a child creates significant academic difficulties as well.
“When I first started school, my study habits were terrible,” Roderick said. “I would put off homework forever. After children, it's like, 'Oh, got to get it done now if I can.' After they get to bed, you get it done right away. You're definitely not pulling all-nighters.”
Pat Pisani, executive director of Hilltop, was a student-parent when she attended the University 30 years ago.
"I do feel I can relate to the parents here," Pisani said. "Many of them are far away from their families, and a lot of them are also single parents. We try to be as supportive as we possibly can."
Hilltop offers first priority to children of students. Scholarships are offered for children based on family size and income, and student parents can receive up to 30 percent off tuition. Hilltop also allows students to be exempt from payments based
on the KU academic calendar. For example, a student-parent could choose to not use daycare during the four weeks of winter break and not have to pay for that month of childcare.
"It is a tremendous challenge financially," Pisani said. "Some of our parents are trying to work, parent and study while taking out financial aid or student loans on top of that."
Clubs such as Moms at KU also offer a support system for student parents. Roderick has been a member for more than a year.
"When I came to KU, I didn't really have anybody to relate to," Roderick said. "It was nice to just have other moms around that were dealing with the same things as me."
To take on the role of student and parent, Pisani said, is a commendable effort.
"These students are willing to work very,very hard because they want a better life for themselves and for their children," Pisani said.
Roderick agrees, but knows her children Olivia, 5, and Thomas, 2 months, are well worth it.
"When kids come to college, they're not just looking for their degree," Roderick said. "They are looking for their future life after school. But I already have that."
Edited by Tim Dwyer
- More than half the children enrolled at Hilltop have student-parents.
- Before renovations, the wait list was around 300 students long.
- Since renovations have been completed, some parents still wait as long as eight months.
HILLTOP CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Kristen Werp, senior from Huntsville, Ala., helps kids clean up their food at Hilltop Child Development Center, 1605 Irving Hill Rd. The center is designed to help KU students and faculty cope with having a family and a busy university lifestyle. Jet Dobb (left) and Saeed Alshaahrani (right) both have parents that are KU students.
Ben Pirotte/KANSAN
CONCERT
B.o.B stirs up excitement for tonight
BY NICOLAS ROESLER
nroesler@kansan.com
On September 15, a 30-minute long line formed at the Lied Center at 11 a.m. It was full of KU students eager to get the best seats to one of the biggest music acts in the country.
Almost a month later, B.o.B. a rapper from Atlanta also known as Bobby Ray, is performing tonight at 9 p.m. at the Lied Center. The show, put on by Student Union Activities, is sold out. The last few tickets are being held by SUA to be sold at the door starting at 11 a.m., when the box office opens.
B. o.B has skyrocketed to fame in the last year. His 2010 debut album, "B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray," debuted at No. 1 on
B.O.B IN CONCERT
WHEN: Starts at 9 p.m.
WHERE: Lied Center
Sold out, except for a few seats to be released by SUA at the door
the Billboard 200.
Jon Sabillon, one of the Comedy and Music Assistants for SUA, said they were lucky enough to start pursuing B.o.B before he reached the fame he has today. Sabillon, a senior from Lawrence, said he first noticed B.o.B after his first mixtape. Him and fellow Comedy and Music Assistant Andy Kriegh,
Bea Kila, a junior from Salina, works on finalizing details for upcoming SUA events Tuesday afternoon in the SUA office. Kitla is the Films and Media coordinator for SUA.
SEE CONCERT ON PAGE 3A
Chris Neal/KANSAN
scollins@kansan.com
BY SAMANTHA COLLINS
At 20 years old, she is already married with four, or more, kids. She wakes up with the sun and walks six miles to collect water. She works six hours in vegetable fields, making fewer than two dollars a day, while her husband drinks tea and plays board games in the city. If dinner isn't on the table when he gets home, he'll beat her or even rape her. After her husband is satisfied, she can finally rest. It starts all over the next day.
Mary Daily Brown, president and founder of Sow Hope, said this was the typical life of a young
CAMPUS
woman in a third-world country. Tonight at 9:30 in the Kansas Room at the Kansas Union, Brown will tell similar stories about women facing injustices in these countries and explain how Sow Hope helps them.
"Women don't have time to stand up for their rights," Brown said. "They are too busy sustaining their family."
Around 50 countries in the world are considered to be thirdworld countries, according to the United Nations website. Sow Hope is a nonprofit organization that assists impoverished women in the countries.
SEE SPEAKER ON PAGE 3A
Team might use speed to its advantage this season
MEN'S BASKETBALL | 10A
Losses of Cole Aldrich and Sherron Collins will hurt Kansas, but athleticism in the starting lineup and bench could force coach Bill Self to adopt a faster-paced style.
JAYPLAY | Inside
Dress code is business casual
Learn how to make the most of your internship experience.
ADMINISTRATION | 3A
Gray-Little creates first job post
Chancellor Gray-Little reopened a vice chancellor position, vacant since 2006.
INDEX
Classifieds...9A
Crossword...4A
Cryptoquips...4A
Opinion...5A
Sports...10A
Sudoku...4A
WEATHER TODAY 79 49
Mostly sunny
FRIDAY 87 52
Sunny
SATURDAY
85 53
Brittany Clouds
Partly Cloudy
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