When you think of a typical NC State community member, whether a student, faculty or staff member, you may not think of a parent with a young baby. Yet, as in any large population of people, babies come all the time. Fortunately, our campus has made efforts to welcome and accommodate these parents’ needs, and efforts are underway to do more.

NC State’s Council on the Status of Women, a group of staff, faculty and students who advise the provost on matters relating to NC State women, has launched a survey about the lactation spaces on campus.

A lactation space is a designated secure, private room for parents to feed their babies and/or pump milk. Some also have adjacent changing areas or areas where additional small children can sit or play while the parent completes these activities.

Currently, NC State has several lactation spaces located in various parts of campus. The Council on the Status of Women maintains a list of the spaces on its website. Each space has a contact person who assists with room access and coordinates its use.

The survey is already open and will run through Friday, September 20, 2019 at go.ncsu.edu/lactation-survey. The council welcomes the entire campus community to complete the survey, including anyone interested in — or already using  — the spaces, supervisors on campus and even those who didn’t know we had lactation spaces. The information collected will help inform the council about needs pertaining to the spaces, current usage and the formation of best practices going forward.

Another part of the effort will involve meeting with each space administrator to gather feedback and gain additional insights about the rooms and needs on campus.

What You Can Do

• Encourage interested community members to complete the survey.
• If you know a member of the NC State community who could benefit from knowing about the lactation spaces on campus, let them know about the list and the survey.
• Think about ways you can be a supportive ally to parents of babies and young children on campus, whether as a supervisor, colleague or friend. These babies could be in the next generation of Wolfpack students.
• Questions? Contact Lisa LaBarbera-Mascote, Women’s Center director.