Symposium for parenting students: From Surviving to Thriving

On Thursday, March 20, the University of Illinois Chicago will host a symposium to bring together parenting students, staff, faculty, researchers and community organizations in Chicago and the state to talk about the unique needs and challenges of parenting students. We’ll present current research on parenting students, uplift student stories, identify best practices to support pregnant and parenting students and find ways to collaborate to put our ideas into action at UIC and campuses statewide.

Parents who are students have been getting more attention from universities and policymakers in the past few years, but it’s also true that much work remains to ensure their basic needs are met while they’re in school, that they graduate successfully and can build dignified lives. At UIC, parenting students are largely invisible to the campus community.  Many struggle to navigate the various demands — parenting, academic, social, daily living — required of them as they work toward their education credentials.

The experiences of parenting students might be different at other Illinois universities, but the realities they face are fairly similar. The symposium will offer two panels and a keynote. The first offers parenting students an opportunity to tell their stories about how they navigate their institutions. UIC students, along with students from other universities in the Chicago area, will participate on that panel. The second panel focuses on research, advocacy strategies, policies and practices to advance the well-being of parenting students. The keynote will be given by Dr. Sekile Nzinga, former UIC faculty and now vice president of diversity at School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Find more information and register for the symposium.