The Care Center Provides New Pathways for Young Mothers
The Care Center is based in Hampden County.
Economic security is one of the Women’s Fund strategic pillars for advancing gender and racial equity in our region. To us, that means engaging with organizations and individuals to decrease the pay gap for all marginalized groups and reduce poverty in Western Massachusetts.
We are proud of the committee members who participated in this year’s trust-based philanthropy process to award funds for the crucial healing and recovery work throughout the four counties of Western Massachusetts.
How is your organization making a difference for women and girls in Western Massachusetts?
The Care Center helps young mothers and low-income women get to and through college. Like the best college preparatory schools in the country, we incorporate small class sizes, lively academics, athletics, and a commitment to success.
In our high school-level program, young mothers prepare to take the High School Equivalency exam (HiSET) and along the way, fall back in love with learning. Students read Plato, create artwork, write poetry, and row on the Connecticut River. We provide support such as transportation, daycare, counseling, meals, and a nurse practitioner to allow them to concentrate on their studies. It works. 75% of our graduates—all young mothers who have dropped out of school—continue to college each year.
We also partner with Bard College to run the nation’s first college for young mothers and low-income women. Bard Microcollege Holyoke is an accredited college housed at The Care Center enhanced by our full range of supports. Students graduate with a competitive degree from Bard College, one of the most respected institutions of higher education in the country. Graduates have gone on to pursue bachelor’s degrees at Smith, Mount Holyoke, and Hampshire Colleges.
How is your organization working toward meeting the goals of our economic security pillar?
It only takes one generation to break the cycle of financial insecurity. For young mothers, college is key.
According to census data, just 16.8% of Springfield residents 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or higher compared with 45% for Massachusetts overall. A 2018 report by The Institute for Women’s Policy Research showed that a single mother with an associate degree will earn about $329,000 more working full time in her lifetime than she would with only a high school diploma and about $610,000 more with a bachelor’s degree. Single mothers with even some college experience are less likely to live in poverty, and they’re significantly less likely to live in poverty with a college degree.
What is happening in the world, your region, or your city today that is creating the greatest challenges for women and girls?
Young mothers looking to move beyond poverty face a conundrum: a college education is critical to creating a better life for their children. However, traditional educational settings do not typically accommodate busy mothers. Family obligations, financial constraints, and lack of support all too often stand in the way of getting to and through college.
What solutions does your team or organization recommend to address this?
The Care Center’s supportive and creative environment is designed for busy mothers living in poverty. Our programs allow young mothers to concentrate on their studies by incorporating child care, transportation, counseling, and medical care with a prep school educational model.
For students at the high school level, our focus on arts and humanities enables students to see how powerful they are and develop their own unique strengths. Young parents who graduate from The Care Center enter adulthood with valuable social and emotional skills. We help them achieve this, in part, by incorporating an approach called Creative Youth Development into our educational programming.
For students at the college level, our onsite college, Bard Microcollege Holyoke, and part-time college classes offer an ideal setting for mothers juggling multiple responsibilities. Our college courses combine rigorous academics with supports designed for low-income mothers.
Including donations, what can our audience do now to help your organization’s mission?
Your gift to The Care Center helps young mothers get to and through college. Your support helps young mothers grasp how powerful they are and re-imagine the future. To donate, visit www.carecenterholyoke.org
