Some Ohio State students not only attend classes and study for exams, but they deal with diapers and daycare too.

LaToya Searight, a senior in occupational therapy and the mother of Devon, 6, and 22-month-old Nya, has learned to balance her studies with the demands of parenting and the responsibility of holding a job.

“There’s pluses and minuses,” Searight said. “You not only are a mother, but a young person as well. I’m pulled in so many different areas – student, employee and mother. But the payoff will be bigger in the end.”

That may be the mantra that gets Searight out of bed each morning at 6:30. By 9:00 a.m., Searight has prepared breakfast, readied Devon for kindergarten, dropped Nya off at the OSU Child Care Center and is on her way to classes in Atwell Hall.

“It’s hard to be on time for everything,” Searight said. “Luckily I’m in the same building all year.”

After classes let out for the day, Searight runs errands before picking up her children.

“It’s so much easier to run errands without the kids,” Searight said. “I try to get done with my errands as soon as possible, because I can’t wait to see them.”

Once they arrive at home, Devon’s homework receives first priority.

“I fix them a snack while we do homework, and Nya watches Sponge Bob or Elmo on TV,” Searight said. “Then I start dinner. I can get dinner ready as Devon does his homework at the kitchen table.”

Just in time for dinner, Nya’s father, Richard McNutt, a senior in family resource management, arrives to watch Devon and Nya so Searight can leave for work.

“Richard stays with them while I go to work at Nationwide Insurance,” Searight said. “I take my books and backpack to work with me. I have to factor in study time. Sometimes I’m running out the door with a plate of food in my hand.”

“I’m with the kids every night,” McNutt said. “We count on each other to be there.”

McNutt enjoys spending time with Devon and Nya.

“Being a parent is fun,” McNutt said. “It might be hard but it’s fun. People shouldn’t look down at us. Being a parent isn’t going to stop me from achieving my goals.”

After giving Devon and Nya their baths, McNutt plays video games with Devon and reads books to Nya. Bedtime, he said, is between 8:30 and 9:00 p.m.

“A lot of times I fall asleep putting Nya to bed,” McNutt said. “But after they’re in bed, I can get some reading and homework done.”

McNutt is an athlete and practices with the OSU football team.

“I’m tired after practice,” McNutt said. “I struggle to stay up to do more studying. It’s hard, being a student, an athlete and a dad.”

Searight will graduate on June 13. Her children are looking forward to her graduation day.

“Devon looks at it like, ‘Yeah, Mom, when you’re a therapist, then you can be at home with us at night,'” Searight said. “He’s a patient kid. He understands what his mom is going through so that they will have a better life.”

Not all OSU students are able to maintain academics with parenting.

Laureesa Davis, 26, was a senior in political science when she became pregnant with Olivia two years ago.

“At six months of being pregnant, I quit school,” Davis said. “Being pregnant in school was almost impossible for me.”

Davis was forced to abandon her dream of finishing college for a job in sales.

“After I had the baby, it was difficult for me to manage my time enough to go back to school,” Davis said. “Now I’m pigeon-holed in retail sales.”

Davis wants to return to her studies but must first repay student loans.

“I don’t know when I can go back,” Davis said. “I can’t pay off loans and take care of Olivia and maintain our household at the same time.” Davis expresses concern that Olivia might not finish school either.

“It scares me because I want Olivia to have opportunities that I don’t have,” Davis said. “She’s a bright kid. I want her to finish school.”

At OSU, there are several programs available for students who, like Searight and McNutt, are also parents.

The OSU Child Care Center, 725 Ackerman Road, has many childcare programs and services for 320 children, from the ages of six weeks through kindergarten. The center’s mission, according to a statement on their Web site, is to provide quality childcare that allows parents in the university community, including students and faculty, to fulfill their responsibilities to OSU.

“One-third of our children belong to students,” said Becky Wilkins, program director of the Child Care Center.

Parental involvement is encouraged on all levels. Parents are welcome in the center at any time and have complete access to the building.

“A lot of our student parents develop relationships with the teachers,” Wilkins said. “They are active in what goes on here at the center.”

Teachers at the center give parents a room data sheet, which provides parents with information about daily classroom schedules and weekly lesson plans.

“Most of our population stays here from six weeks on,” Wilkins said. “In summer, we have kindergarten.”

The center offers flexible hours to fit parents’ needs.

“We’re open until midnight during the week,” Wilkins said. “After 5 p.m., we serve whoever needs care, for parents who are taking evening classes.”

Another service offered by OSU for student parents is Buckeye Village. Consisting of a group of one and two-bedroom apartments located close to campus, it is designed to help low-income single and married parents with a place to live in a family setting and to provide students with support services.

During her freshman year at OSU, Searight lived in Buckeye Village.

“It’s nice that OSU offers housing for families,” Searight said. “It’s close to day care, and it’s on the bus line. It’s convenient. If you’re a student and young mother who is unfamiliar with the Columbus area, then Buckeye Village is a good idea. It’s a nice starter apartment.”

As Searight adjusted to her studies and her parental duties, she decided to move further off campus.

“I found that more of my obligations were away from campus,” Searight said. “It was more convenient for me not to live so close to campus.”

The idea behind Buckeye Village is that young families can help each other out and have a sense of community while studying at OSU.

“Often, I see folks help each other out,” said Thyrone Henderson, director of Buckeye Village. “The office can act as a hub for kids who get dropped off. The kids will be picked up by a friend while a parent is in class.”

Buckeye Village offers their tenants a study area, a small computer lab and a recreation center, Henderson said. Renovations, slated for completion in early 2005, have been planned to expand and improve Buckeye Village.

“The new facility will be a purposeful component,” Henderson said. “What we do right now will be enhanced.”

Some of Buckeye Village’s tenant are also international students.

“What I find is that the national communities support each other with their kids,” Henderson said.