The University of Wisconsin Office of Child Care and Family Resources has decided to expand its child care services for UW students, faculty and staff in an effort to increase affordability and accessibility.

Jen Dittrich-Templin, the parent resource specialist at the OCCFR, said The Little Chicks Academy opened in early June at 5003 University Ave. Services are provided by OCCFR to accommodate families with changing schedules and distinctive part-time needs, she said. The academy has also added supplemental infant toddler care, she added.

The new building is located directly across the parking lot from the traditional child care building, Dittrich-Templin said. The old building was only able to serve a capacity of 12 children above the ages of two-and-a-half, while the new building has three classrooms, an infant room, a toddler room and a preschool room that are all used for children needing backup care.

“It helps immensely to have two buildings just a few footsteps away for families and staff,” she said.

According to the OCCFR website, the Little Chicks Academy aims to make child care more affordable for students and faculty, offering reduced rate backup care which includes covering child care needs when a regular provider is unavailable. Short-term contracted care is also offered while families search for full-time caregivers.

OCCFR also provides tuition assistance for UW students through the Child Care Tuition Assistance Program, Dittrich-Templin said.

“We try to be as helpful as we can by providing financial assistance and scholarships to those that are deemed eligible,” Dittrich-Templin said.

By providing tuition, the program aims to encourage student-parents to choose high-quality child care, enable student-parents to complete their degrees in a timely manner and also focus attention on family and academic responsibilities, according to their website.

Lynn Edlefson, the director of the OCCFR said funds for tuition assistance are available on a first-come-first-served basis, and signing up to be on the waiting list for any of their campus child care centers is done online.

“However, UW students, staff and faculty do receive first priority to our campus child care centers as they are under contract with the OCCFR,” Edlefson said.

She said funding for staff and faculty families is mainly provided through gifts and assistance from the UW Foundation Women’s Philanthropy Council, which has supported the program since 2006.

The expansion of the Little Chicks Academy is the third campus child care infant expansion the OCCFR has completed within the past couple of years; however, Dittrich-Templin said they are still searching for more opportunities as the need for infant care is in high demand.