CCAMPIS Grants: Finding Campus Child Care as a Student Parent

Campus child care rarely gets attention until you need it, and by then it's often too late to arrange. CCAMPIS is the main federal lever behind on-campus child care, and knowing how the program works helps you find out fast whether your school has access to it.

What CCAMPIS actually funds

Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) is a competitive federal grant administered by the Department of Education under the Higher Education Act. Colleges, not students, apply for the money. The department awards it in four-year cycles to schools that plan to establish or expand a campus-based child care program primarily serving students from low-income backgrounds, according to the Department of Education's CCAMPIS page . Colleges also use the grant to fund support services that help student parents stay enrolled, such as parenting classes or referrals to outside child care.

How much money is involved

For the 2026 competition, the Department of Education and Department of Health and Human Services made more than $73.5 million available, expecting to award around 148 grants ranging from $150,000 to $1 million a year. To apply, a college needed to have awarded at least $250,000 in Pell Grants to its students during the prior fiscal year, a threshold that filters the program toward schools serving a substantial low-income population. These figures cover the current grant cycle and shift each year the program runs, so check the live listing on grants.gov for the year you apply in.

Finding out if your school has a grant

• Check the Department of Education's published grantee lists, covering awards by fiscal year going back over a decade.

• Search your college's name along with "CCAMPIS." Many participating schools publish their own page for the child care center or student parent office it funds.

• Ask your financial aid office or dean of students office directly. Staff there usually know whether the school holds an active grant, even when the public-facing page is hard to find.

• Check whether your specific campus, not just your university system, holds the grant. A large system sometimes funds one campus and not others.

Applying for a spot once you find a grant

Having a grant at your school doesn't guarantee you an automatic subsidized spot. Most campus child care centers run their own enrollment and application process, often prioritizing students with the greatest financial need or those closest to graduation, since retention counts as part of what the federal grant tracks. Apply early, ideally before the semester you need care starts, since capacity at campus centers stays limited and waitlists build up quickly at larger schools.

What a CCAMPIS-funded program looks like

Programs differ by campus. Some subsidize a set number of slots at an existing on-campus or nearby child care center, cutting your weekly cost when you qualify. Others fund a broader student parent center that combines subsidized care with tutoring, supplies, and case management to help you stay on track toward graduation. Ask directly what the grant covers at your school, since "we have CCAMPIS" means different levels of support depending on the campus.

Grants expire, so check every year

A CCAMPIS award covers a set period, and a college that held a grant two years ago might not hold one now. If you're choosing a college partly based on its child care support, confirm the grant is active for the year you actually enroll rather than rely on an older article or an outdated department webpage.

If your school doesn't have one

A missing CCAMPIS grant doesn't mean no child care help exists. Your state's child care subsidy program, run through its health and human services agency, often applies to parents in school the same way it applies to working parents. Community-based Head Start and Early Head Start programs also serve low-income families regardless of a parent's enrollment status, and some accept infants and toddlers, which campus centers frequently don't. Ask your college's financial aid office for a referral list even when the school itself holds no grant.