This amazing new program offers a multiplicity of supportive solutions to the pains of going back to school or simply staying the course. It's not large and it's not local, but it's such a good idea we're sure it will be copied in California.

It's no news that very young people are raising children, and it's no news that many of them are doing so without a partner. Not many are shooting for a college degree --- they have enough problems as it is.

Endicott College outside of Boston is a well-respected 75 year old institution that educates about 3,500 students in a wide range of four-year and graduate programs. It started a program four years ago that is proving a resounding success and producing its first graduates.

Young single men and women 18-24 who are raising children can live on campus 12 months a year, with their kids, in apartments where cooking and laundry facilities are shared. In addition, they can take five meals a week in the college dining room (kids eat free). The students qualify for state and local vouchers to pay for childcare services at local facilities. They pay for their education with outright scholarships and a combination of federal, state, and local loans.

The program provides career counseling and assistance in getting internships. It also provides personal counseling and a wide variety of activities with other parents and kids in the program. It's a community, and it's virtually proof against dropping out. Here's hoping it's copied here soon!