Monday, March 27, 2023
NIC Diesel Technology alumna Melanie Andrews poses with her children during a graduation photo shoot organized by the college’s Center for New Directions in May 2022 at Sunspot at Yap-Keehn-Um Beach near NIC’s campus in Coeur d’Alene. /Elli Oba, North Idaho College
The Center for New Directions at North Idaho College was recently awarded a $4,700 grant from the Idaho Resilience Project, specifically to assist current and future parenting students overcome social and economic barriers and remain on the path to completing their education at NIC.
The Center for New Directions (CND) is designed to assist single parents and displaced homemakers with community resources and exploration of career and educational paths. The CND also delivers retention and completion support programs to students and future students enrolled in Career Technical Education. The Boise-based Idaho Resilience Project is focused on building regional collaboratives to help youth and families overcome trauma, economic uncertainty and systemic issues and to discover access to services.
“We are thrilled to receive this grant,” said Louisa Rogers with NIC’s Center for New Directions. “Parenting students face unique challenges when attending school, and this award will allow the CND to support these students by cultivating community and resilience amongst these families.”
The grant award will support a wide array of activities. Two of the most impactful projects this award will fund are the development of the Circle of Parents and Families Initiative on the NIC campus. This initiative includes weekly support groups for parenting students and monthly family gatherings, including a family photo shoot opportunity on the shore of Lake Coeur d’Alene.
NIC student Teri White, a single mom of six children, has been involved with the CND since she began at NIC in Fall 2022.
“I feel like I am part of something special. … The CND shows us that we, as parents, aren’t alone and we are able to encourage each other and learn realistic strategies for parenting as college students,” White said.
Other funded projects include the purchase of freezers and family-sized frozen meals to enhance the availability of food items to parenting students experiencing food insecurity.
“Being able to offer someone a Costco-size frozen lasagna to take home for dinner for their kids will take a huge stressor off their shoulders,” Rogers said. “… How can we expect a student to be successful in school if they are behind in bills, or struggling to find childcare for their kids, or going through something difficult in their personal life?”
Rogers publishes a weekly email update called CND Weekly Wins that highlights students receiving direct assistance with everyday issues. A recent newsletter highlighted a student getting assistance with a utility bill, two families receiving groceries, and a teen mom considering attending NIC getting clothes for her newborn.
“Having even just a small amount of support can change the trajectory of someone’s future,” Rogers said.
For more information on NIC’s Center for New Directions, visit nic.edu/cnd or contact NIC Center for New Directions Student Success Navigator Louisa Rogers at (208) 769-3447 or Louisa.Rogers@nic.edu.