PROSPECT Act

Sponsor: Cory A. Booker (Democratic-NJ)April 10, 2025

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Introduced

In Committee

Passed One Chamber

Passed Both Chambers

Signed into Law

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Student parents would get free infant and toddler child care at colleges, and the child care workforce would grow.

This bill would set aside $9 billion to help community colleges and minority-serving institutions offer free child care for their student parents with children under age 3. It would also fund programs to train more early childhood educators and improve child care options in local communities. These changes aim to make it easier for student parents to finish their degrees and increase the number of qualified child care providers.

What Would Change

Today, many student parents struggle to find and afford child care, which often prevents them from finishing their education. Colleges also have limited resources to support on-campus child care or train enough early childhood educators. After this bill, community colleges and minority-serving institutions would receive federal grants to offer free child care for their student parents and expand programs that train child care professionals, making it easier for parents to study and for communities to access quality care.

Key Provisions

Sets aside $9 billion for competitive grants to community colleges and minority-serving institutions for child care programs from 2026 to 2030.
Lets colleges offer free infant and toddler child care for up to 500,000 student parents, prioritizing those with low incomes.
Requires child care staff at college-supported centers to be paid wages comparable to elementary educators and at least a living wage.
Lets colleges offer training, mentorship, and startup funds to expand child care options in their communities, especially in areas with few choices.
Lets colleges create or expand programs to train more early childhood educators, including offering microgrants to students for tuition and other expenses.

View on Congress.gov

S 1411 · 119th Congress · April 10, 2025 · AI Summary by gemini-2.5-flash · 8/10

PROSPECT Act

What Would Change

Key Provisions

Lobbying Activity