Caregiver Resources for the Western Community

WWU Associated Students Child Development Center (CDC)

The WWU Associated Students Child Development Center (CDC) participates in the State's Early Achiever's Quality Rating and Improvement program. They provide high quality care and education for children of student parents and working professionals of Western Washington University. Tuition for student families is based on income and is subsidized by the Associated Students. The CDC serves 56 children ages 2-5 each quarter. The program manager and teaching staff provide a safe and healthy environment for young children, supporting the social/emotional, physical, and intellectual growth of each child.

The CDC also supports students interested in careers in early childhood education by providing a place for service learning projects, classroom observations, practicum and internship experiences as well as educational outreach activities. Parents benefit from special events for the entire family and participation in a parent advisory board. The CDC is not only child centered, but family centered, meeting the special needs of student parents and welcoming parent involvement in the center.

Nursing Mothers Program

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Western strongly supports employees and students who are nursing mothers, and understands the need for a private, secure, and clean space to express milk or nurse.

Shared Leave Program

Western is committed to supporting employees when they face difficult work/life issues that require the use of shared leave. Employees may also apply to receive shared leave for pregnancy disability and parental leave.

Employee Assistance Program

The EAP helps Washington State government employee and their adult family members resolve personal or work-related problems at no cost.

Flexible Medical Spending Arrangement (FSA)

The Medical FSA allows you to set aside pretax money from your paycheck to pay for out-of-pocket health care costs. You cannot enroll in both a Medical FSA and a High deductible health plan with a health savings account (HSA). You can contribute a minimum amount of $240, up to a maximum annual amount of $2,700 for 2020.

Dependent Care Assistance Program

The DCAP allows you to set aside pretax money from your paycheck to help pay for qualifying child care or elder care expenses. To determine how much you want to contribute per pay period, estimate your expenses for the plan year and enroll in the DCAP for that amount. The money deducted is divided by the number of pay checks you will receive in the plan year.

DCAP contributions are limited to:

  • $5,000 annually for a single person or married couple filing a joint income tax return.
  • $2,500 annually for each married participant who files a separate income tax return