Size of building: 10 thousand square feet

Cost: $2 million bricks and mortar and approximately $250 thousand in fixtures & equipment

Architect: L. Robert Kimball and Associates, Harrisburg, PA

The new facility will feature an environment specifically designed for childcare. The new building will:

Expand the age range of children served to 6 weeks through five years

Make childcare available in the evening with expanded operating hours: 7a.m. to 10 p.m.

Offer subsidized payment rates far below the prevailing rate

Incorporate the latest educational model in childcare

Increase the number of children served from the current 63 to more than a hundred

Expand the age range of children to be served. The new center will be able to accommodate children as young as 6 weeks old up to 5-year-olds

More than triple the size of the current facility. The new building will include:

Provide age-specific classrooms for infants, young toddlers, older toddlers and preschool children

Provide common rooms to allow for group activities involving children from different age groups

Feature two outdoor playgrounds with age-appropriate equipment - one for children under two and a second for older children

Include classrooms and observation rooms for students from HACC's Early Childhood Education program.

Feature age-specific learning resources including a reading center for pre-school children. The learning center will focus on literacy and reading and include a specialized library as well as learning aids such as puppets, storytelling boards, games and computers with developmentally appropriate software for self-paced learning.

Childcare aids in student retention

A student of students using on-campus childcare in the 2001-2002 academic year showed that 63 percent were the first in their families to attend college.

In that same study, 76 percent of the students indicated that they would not be able to attend HACC if on-campus childcare were not available.

Full-time students using on-campus childcare had a significantly improved retention rate.

Groundbreaking Expected: April 2004

Scheduled Completion Date: Spring Semester 2005 (January 2005)