State-Level Policy Action Needed to Support Student Parents, According to New Brief from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – November 30, 2021

Contact: William Lutz | [email protected] | (202) 684-7534

Washington, D.C. — The Institute for Women’s Policy Research today released a new policy brief detailing the challenges faced by student parents during the pandemic and the state-level remedies needed to support them as they pursue their academic degrees.

“Higher education can be key for young parents. It can open up doors to future success and help ensure the financial security of growing families,” said C. Nicole Mason, President and CEO of the Institute for Women’s Policy Research. “The pandemic has taken a toll on student parents, jeopardizing or derailing their academic careers as they struggled to find child care and other support programs. We owe it to them to make sure they are an equal part of the pandemic recovery.”

The IWPR brief suggests several ways state policymakers can take action to support student parents:

Invest stimulus funds to support student parents’ success through child care, training, and cross-sector programs;
Engage in state-level reform to improve child care access for student parents by increasing child care accessibility in education and training programs;
Employ state-level action for student parents at the campus- and system-levels by improving the availability of tailored, campus-based supports for student parents; and
Collect state higher education system data on student parents.

“Many student parents are from populations that were hit especially hard by the pandemic,” said Mason. “Their road back has only just begun, and states have a key role to play in supporting these students so they can finish their degrees, get good jobs, and help boost state economies.”

Learn more in IWPR’s briefing paper, Supporting Student Parent Recovery Through State Policy.



The Institute for Women’s Policy Research strives to win economic equity for all women and eliminate barriers to their full participation in society. As a leading national think tank, IWPR builds evidence to shape policies that grow women’s power and influence, close inequality gaps, and improve the economic well-being of families. Learn more at IWPR.org and follow us on Twitter.

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