Post updated at 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 29:
More than 450 faculty, staff and graduate students from the University of Kansas signed a letter to Chancellor Douglas Girod urging the university to rethink closing Hilltop Child Development Center.
Last week, parents and staff were abruptly informed Hilltop would close at the end of October. The letter argues the closure leaves families with few affordable childcare options in the area.
The quick timeline to close, which could be even shorter if the center fails to maintain adequate licensing and staffing during the next month, will force some parents to make difficult choices between parenting and working, according to the letter.
“Those families now face an extraordinarily difficult timeline in which to secure alternative childcare while continuing to work, teach, conduct research, and pursue their education,” the letter said.
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According to the letter, departments are already receiving requests from faculty who have been unable to find alternative childcare.
“We are talking with parenting students, particularly graduate students, who are trying to determine whether they can continue their programs without affordable childcare,” the letter said.
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The letter received 452 signatures over the weekend, according to Katie Batza, one of the letter’s authors and chair of the women, gender and sexuality studies department.
The letter opens with a callback to the February Sisters, who occupied a campus building in the 70s to demand gender equality at KU — a move that led to the creation of Hilltop as a form of affordable campus childcare.
The letter warns Hilltop’s closure could affect the entire university, beyond those who used the center. It calls on KU to pause the closure and bring together families, students and staff to explore solutions.
“We recognize that Hilltop faces financial, structural, and liability challenges in its current form,” the letter said. “Those challenges deserve serious attention. But they should prompt the University to bring together its expertise and resources to find a sustainable solution — not to abandon campus childcare with little notice to the families who depend upon it.”
A second letter, sent to the chancellor and signed by more than a dozen local elected officials, asks KU to maintain the building until 2028 to allow the possibility of re-opening the childcare center in the future.
The letter was authored by state Rep. Suzanne Wikle, a Lawrence Democrat, and signed by eight other area state legislators.
It was also signed by City Commissioners Mike Courtney and Amber Sellers and County Commissioners Patrick Kelly, Shannon Reid, Erica Anderson and Gene Dorsey. Wikle said someone’s absence from the letter does not necessarily reflect that they don’t support its intent, but there was a quick turnaround for people to sign.
The letter argues Douglas County is already in need of nearly 3,000 additional childcare slots.
“A child care center with a 54-year history like Hilltop’s should not be abruptly shuttered without a good faith attempt to re-open in the future,” the letter said.
The letter says KU Endowment is planning to find an alternative childcare provider for the west location, but the university’s plan for the original location is less clear.
The letter asks the university to not demolish or repurpose the building until at least March 31, 2028, to allow time for the community to explore options for the space moving forward.
“Although Hilltop is closing in the near-term, the will exists in our community to regroup and find a solution to continue providing child care at the Hilltop location,” the letter said.
The closure comes after more than a year of turmoil at the center, which previously had yearslong waitlists. Enrollment has dropped significantly, and parents have voiced numerous concerns about the center’s administration. A group of parents gathered to rally and march to Strong Hall last month pushing for changes and answers, despite many fearing retaliation if they spoke out.
Chari Young, Hilltop board president and KU’s chief human resources officer and senior vice chancellor, said during a board meeting last week that Hilltop needs $3-5 million to be viable.
“We weren’t aware of any fundraising opportunities that would make that possible for Hilltop,” Young said. “We would have — we could have worked on a plan to increase tuition, but as we looked at that as a possibility, that could make it unaffordable for parents to bring their children to Hilltop.”
Erinn Barcomb-Peterson, a spokesperson for KU, said via email Tuesday afternoon that “Leadership has received the letters. We appreciate members of the community sharing their views.”
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Cuyler Dunn (he/him), staff reporter, has worked with The Lawrence Times since April 2022. He can be reached at [email protected].
Read his complete bio at this link. Read more of his work for the Times at this link.
More coverage of Hilltop Child Development Center:
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