EAST LANSING, Mich. — Michigan State University has announced a new partnership with Care.com, a national firm that will help the MSU community connect with a variety of family care services, including babysitting, senior home care and even pet sitting.
Under the partnership, MSU faculty, staff and students will be able to connect with local babysitters, nannies, special-needs care, senior-home care, pet sitters, tutors and housekeepers though a national network of caregivers.
Families in need of quality caregivers can search by ZIP code, service and pay rate to find high-quality care providers in their area. The search service is free, but patrons will pay for the caregivers’ services.
"We are very proud to be adding Care.com as a resource for our Michigan State employees," said Lori Strom, director of the MSU Family Resource Center. "MSU places a high value on the welfare of our employees and their families. As an educational leader, we saw how Care.com could benefit our MSU community and are already delighted with the overwhelming response we've heard."
At Care.com families can search mom-reviewed and prescreened profiles of hundreds of thousands of babysitters, nannies, tutors, housekeepers and senior caregivers, both locally and nationally. Care.com gives families access to detailed background check reports and recorded reference interviews, adding a layer of confidence and security when making decisions regarding personal family care needs.
Care.com also offers its members a variety of features, from articles and blogs to access to community groups where parents can connect with each other online for peer advice and the opportunity to connect off-line through groups and co-ops essential to modern-day parenting.
Investing in family care support has been proven to lower operating costs while reducing employee absenteeism and improving “presenteeism.” The U.S. Department of Labor says that child care resource and referral services can reduce employee absence due to child care by 40 percent.
To learn more, visit www.care.com. Members of the MSU community interested in signing up can visit www.care.com/group/msu.
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Michigan State University has been working to advance the common good in uncommon ways for more than 150 years. One of the top research universities in the world, MSU focuses its vast resources on creating solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges, while providing life-changing opportunities to a diverse and inclusive academic community through more than 200 programs of study in 17 degree-granting colleges.