Nicholls State University announced a new partnership with StudyNPlay to pilot a campus-based program designed to support the academic and personal success of student-parents. Through a recently signed memorandum of understanding, Nicholls State University became the founding higher education implementation site for the StudyNPlay framework, marking a significant step in expanding student support services tailored to parenting students pursuing postsecondary education, as per this news release from Nicholls.
The pilot program was structured to address the barriers that often require student-parents to choose between continuing their education and securing reliable childcare. Using the StudyNPlay framework, the initiative focused on creating an environment where students could study while their children engaged in supervised, play-based activities nearby. By offering dedicated study spaces, structured support for children, and access to holistic resources, the program aimed to strengthen retention and graduation rates among parenting students while supporting long-term workforce readiness.
University leadership emphasized that the partnership aligned with broader institutional priorities centered on student success and well-being. Vice President for Student Affairs Dr. Michele Caruso noted that parenting students often face unique academic and personal challenges that require targeted support. Through collaboration with StudyNPlay, the university positioned itself to better equip student-parents with the tools needed to succeed academically while balancing family responsibilities.
As the founding campus site for the framework, Nicholls began identifying a dedicated on-campus location to house the program and integrate it into existing student success initiatives led by the Office of Student Affairs. During the pilot phase, StudyNPlay provided the operational framework, technical assistance, and staff training necessary to support implementation. Both organizations committed to collecting and evaluating data to measure the program’s impact on academic performance, student persistence, and workforce preparation outcomes.
The initiative complemented the Office of Student Affairs’ mission to support students’ academic, social, emotional, and cultural development. By embedding the StudyNPlay model within existing campus infrastructure, Nicholls expanded its capacity to serve nontraditional students and reinforced its commitment to inclusive, student-centered solutions that addressed real-life challenges affecting college completion.
StudyNPlay operates as a social enterprise wholly owned by the Generation Upward Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing educational and economic mobility. Structured as a low-profit limited liability company, StudyNPlay focused on community-driven strategies that supported student-parents as they worked toward improved outcomes for themselves and their families. Through partnerships with institutions like Nicholls, the organization advanced scalable models designed to reduce systemic barriers and strengthen pathways to degree completion.
By serving as the launch site for the StudyNPlay framework in a higher education setting, Nicholls State Universitypositioned itself at the forefront of innovative student-parent support initiatives. This partnership represented a meaningful shift toward recognizing and addressing the realities faced by student-parents, a population that often navigates competing academic, professional, and family responsibilities. By intentionally designing campus-based support that integrated childcare-adjacent study spaces, holistic resources, and academic infrastructure, Nicholls demonstrated a commitment to reducing systemic barriers that can delay or derail degree completion. The pilot program also underscored the university’s broader efforts to promote equity, improve retention and graduation outcomes, and strengthen workforce readiness by ensuring that student-parents were not forced to choose between educational advancement and family stability.
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