
DATE: Monday, March 31, 1997                TAG: 9703310048

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH SIMPSON, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH                    LENGTH:  103 lines

KIDS-AT-WORK PROGRAM SOLVES PARENTS' CHILD-CARE PROBLEMS BELL ATLANTIC EMPLOYEES VOTE ON WHICH DAYS THEY NEED CENTER.

While her children might anticipate spring break with glee, single parent Sue Conroy used to dread it.

She'd either have to get a relative to care for her two children, sign them up for an expensive child-care program or dip into her fast-shrinking vacation bank at Bell Atlantic.

This spring break, though, she's found a better solution: She's bringing her son and daughter to work with her.

Conroy works at a Bell Atlantic office in Virginia Beach that has an innovative ``Kids in the WorkPlace'' program.

While Conroy works in the company's engineering department, 9-year-old Lindsey and 7-year-old Chad go up to the sixth floor to play games, piece together puzzles and connect Toobers & Zots with 11 other children.

Each year, employees at the company vote on which 12 to 15 days during the school year cause them the most headaches in terms of child care: School holidays such as Columbus Day, Christmas week, Presidents Day, Good Friday and spring break, which begins today for many Hampton Roads students.

Employees from Children's World Learning Centers then bring carloads of play equipment to the office on Cleveland Street, set up shop in a conference room and supervise activities, snacks and lunch for the children.

``I can't say enough about it,'' Conroy said. ``It's the best program Bell Atlantic has for me as a parent.''

Not only does the program save parents vacation days and stress, it can save them money: The care is free.

The Kids in the WorkPlace program began in Virginia Beach this school year, after a one-year pilot last year. Bell Atlantic sets up similar care sites in 14 other Bell Atlantic offices throughout its district, which covers six states and the District of Columbia. Richmond and Falls Church are two other sites in Virginia that have the program.

``One of the most significant work-family issues for parents is what to do on the days they have to work and their kids are out of school,'' said Joan Rasmussen, director of media relations for Bell Atlantic.

Thirteen children attended the Kids in the WorkPlace program Friday because Virginia Beach students were off for a teacher work day.

In one corner, two children were squealing over an Operation game. Six more children were playing Sorry with caregiver Robert Lankford. Another youngster lounged in a beanbag chair.

Eleven-year-old Ashley Chandler was weaving a potholder while listening to music on her headphones. ``It's a lot of fun,'' she said. ``You have a lot of stuff you can play with. And at lunch, my Mom and I eat together.''

Pat Cason drops in to see her 7-year-old daughter, Amber, who puts down the game she's playing to give her mother a hug.

``Are we going to lunch today?'' Amber asks her mom.

``Sure, we can.''

Cason, a service consultant for Bell Atlantic, said the program not only solves a child-care dilemma for her, but it also exposes her daughter to the working world.

``I think more companies should do this,'' Cason said. ``It's relaxing for the kids, and the parents don't have to worry about what their kids are doing. Amber loves going to work with Mommy.''

A Bell Atlantic fund that helps employees balance work and family pays for the care. The fund, created through collective bargaining, is administered by joint union-management committees. Kids in the WorkPlace costs $15,000 to $16,000 a year to run at each site.

``The advantage for the company is in helping employees balance family and work,'' Rasmussen said. ``This gives them an affordable solution so they can do their work without worry.''

The sites are chosen based on whether parents expressed a need for the care and whether child-care space is available at the location.

About 424 children from 330 families participated in the program this school year at 15 Bell Atlantic sites. A survey found that the employees who sent their children to the program this year said they would send them again. Ninety-nine percent said they would recommend it to a co-worker. ``The one person who wouldn't said she wanted to save the slot for her own kid,'' Rasmussen said.

The child-care option is one of many family benefits that companies are creating across the country, according to Debbie Crelly, district manager of Children's World Learning Centers.

In the Washington, D.C., area, for instance, Children's World sets up shop in accounting firms during the tax season to provide Saturday care for children of accountants who have to work. In Milwaukee, Children's World has a ``Kids on the Go'' program in which children of employees are picked up at the work site at 8 a.m., taken on a day's worth of field trips and then dropped off at the end of the work day.

``We see more and more of these types of programs every year,'' Crelly said. ``Most companies are trying to provide it free for employees.''

For Yorktown resident Brenda Barnes, who brings her 10-year-old daughter, Essence, to the Bell Atlantic program, the care eases the work day.

``It's so convenient,'' said Barnes, who is a sales consultant for Bell Atlantic. ``It helps me because I don't have to keep calling her during the day to see if she's OK. It gives me peace of mind.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

D. KEVIN ELLIOTT/The Virginian-Pilot

Five-year-old Nathan Shuler plays Jenga in the free child-care

program ``Kids in the WorkPlace'' at Bell Atlantic in Virginia

Beach.

Photo

D. KEVIN ELLIOTT/The Virginian-Pilot

Hugging her 7-year-old daughter, Amber, Pat Cason, a service

consultant at Bell Atlantic in Virginia Beach, says the company's

child-care program offers peace of mind and exposes her daughter to

the workplace.