Overview

The SPARK Collaborative is now forming in summer 2022, with an official virtual launch event coming later this fall! We’re coming together to impact transformational change, lead by and for pregnant and parenting students and in partnership with allies. We aim to curate information and knowledge sources, share data and findings, and form new research and action partnerships building and adding to a growing body of research, implementation and evaluation projects, that inform best practices and inspire action for change. We aim to impact transformational change by building and implementing a national fieldwide impact strategy, promoting equitable access, opportunities, and outcomes for pregnant and parenting students pursuing two-generational mobility pathways through postsecondary education and training. The SPARK Collaborative is a National Partnership centering and elevating the leadership of pregnant and parenting students and alums as scholars, researchers, experts, policymakers, program developers, leaders, and changemakers, working collaboratively with allies--interdisciplinary scholars, higher education professionals, faculty, advocates, policymakers, philanthropists, and the organizations, institutions, and systems within which they work, coming out from across the United States to support student parent families. The SPARK Collaborative is a new iteration of a long-standing history of field-level interdisciplinary partnerships and coalitions aimed at game changing impact for pregnant and parenting students. Our work will reflect collective knowledge build from this history, driving toward change in the immediate future, These organizations include: The National Center for Student Parent Programs--Funded by the U.S. Dept. of Education (2014-2020) The Higher Education Alliance of Advocates for Students with Children-HEAASC (2010-2014) The National Coalition to Support Higher Ed for Low-Income Student Parents & Brooklyn College Symposium (2009-2010)