Message to postdocs announces new financial aid programs

Dear Postdoctoral Scholars,

The Affordability Task Force was launched in 2018 to gather input from the Stanford community regarding the cost of living in the Bay Area and potential mechanisms to address specific challenges. The Postdoc Affordability Task Force recommended several strategies to provide need-based financial support specifically for postdocs with dependents, as well as those who might be experiencing financial challenges. The task force recommendations were placed on hold due to the pandemic and associated uncertainty faced by the university. However, we are pleased to let you know that the university is now able to launch some important programs beginning on March 1, 2021. This is a brief overview and summary of the next steps.

New programs for postdocs with families

Child Care Assistance Grant Program: The Child Care Assistance Grant provides up to $5,000 per year to assist with child care expenses. In recognition of the various types of child care used by our postdoc families, this grant will allow some flexibility in the types of care eligible for reimbursement.

Family Grant Program: To further assist postdocs with families, the Family Grant allows up to $5,000 per year for living expenses beyond child care expenses; a few examples include housing, food, dependent medical costs, or transportation.

The Child Care Assistance Grant and Family Grant programs can be combined; the total grant award depends on demonstrated financial need.

Both programs will be available on March 1. Because they are starting mid-way through the fiscal year, each grant maximum is $2,500 for this application. The next application will open for the new fiscal year in September 2021.

Back-up Child Care Assistance (BUCA): This program assists postdoc families experiencing caregiving disruptions. Managed through Bright Horizons, the BUCA program offers high-quality, temporary, center-based, and in-home child care from credentialed in-home care agencies and trained caregivers. Each postdoc family will receive up to 10 days annually of back-up child care through this program. The BUCA program begins on March 1.

Continued funding for an existing program

In addition to the new programs, the Emergency Grant in Aid program has received expanded funding. This program reimburses unanticipated expenses. To review eligibility and access the application form, visit: https://postdocs.stanford.edu/emergency-grant-aid.

How to learn more

Further information about how to apply to these programs is available at this website: Financial Assistance Programs for Postdoctoral Scholars. Staff in the Financial Aid Office are administering the new Child Care Assistance and Family Grants in partnership with the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs. Please send questions to:

• Child Care Assistance Grant and Family Grant: PDFamilySupport@lists.stanford.edu
• Back-up Child Care: postdocbenefits@stanford.edu
• Grant-in-Aid: postdocaffairs@stanford.edu

We thank the members of the Postdoc Affordability Task Force for their efforts in establishing detailed recommendations. Additional thanks to the postdoc community for your patience as the Affordability Task Force did outreach to assess postdoc challenges, and the subsequent work done by many university departments to sort out the funding and implementation details. We hope these programs help to convey the university’s commitment to postdoctoral scholars and our desire to support you in managing your affordability-related needs as you pursue your training at Stanford.

Regards,

Stacey F. Bent
Vice Provost for Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs
Jagdeep and Roshni Singh Professor in the School of Engineering

Elizabeth Zacharias
Vice President for Human Resources
Chair, Affordability Task Force