Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile: Directorate of Student Affairs inaugurates a lactation room at Casa Central
Just closing this 2021, new and important spaces were released in the Central House of the UC. In the first place, the offices of the Directorate of Student Affairs were moved from the second floor to the first , in one of the corners, in front of the Patio de la Virgen.
Second, the doors of a new lactation room were opened , located in the basement of the Faculty of Biological Sciences.
Having these spaces means giving a new impulse in the contribution for the development and well-being of the community, especially for the students. In this sense, the rector Ignacio Sáncez highlighted the importance of the Directorate of Student Affairs for the development of the university process. “It is a joy to see that the DAE is fulfilling the function for which it was created: to be close, guide, accompaniment and support for our students in all their work,” he stressed.
“Undoubtedly, these spaces open up new opportunities to promote the academic trajectory, comprehensive training and quality of life, especially for those who come to study at Casa Central ,” said the director of Student Affairs Carola Méndez, during the opening ceremony.
One of the motivations for renovating the Student Affairs offices on the Casa Central campus was to facilitate access to services that the same address offers for students. For example, the Center for Professional Development (CDP) , the Center for Support for Academic Achievement and Vocational Exploration (CARA) and the Center for Student Mental Health , are some of the units that are already serving in the new facilities. But not only that. In these new spaces, the student community will always find all the information and activities that the three directions of the DAE offer: Student Health and Well-being , UC Sports and Student Development .
Like the rector, Carola Méndez wanted to value the creation of facilities that are consistent with improving the student experience and granting more development possibilities for the students. “Undoubtedly, these spaces open up new opportunities to promote academic careers, comprehensive training and quality of life, especially for those who come to study at Casa Central ,” said the Director of Student Affairs.
Nursing room: a safe space
The new lactation room will mean an improvement for women in the UC community who have young children. Something that is fundamental, since it allows to go in line with what UC seeks: to be an inclusive institution and always concerned with all and all of its students. For this reason, the authorities present highlighted the DAE’s agreement with the Faculty of Biological Sciences thanking the dean of that unit, Juan Correa, who facilitated these facilities in a sector of his unit, specifically, on floor -2.
“We always have to look at physical spaces from a generous perspective. From every moment the dean expressed that the space should be for the entire campus. We put ourselves in a standard that we needed. It is a custom integration. There are no barriers, no distance or separation. These areas are made available to everyone. It is a wonderful way to occupy an area, ” said rector Sánchez about the room.
This space was longed for for many years and today it is a reality, thanks to the collaborative work between Student Health and Well-being, the Infrastructure Directorate, the People Directorate and the dean of Biological Sciences, which provided an excellent space in its faculty. With this, one of the key projects of the Students with Sons and Daughters program is completed, since today all the campuses of our university have an adequate, comfortable and welcoming space for the mothers of the community and their babies , thus favoring the process breastfeeding with all the benefits that it entails, and contributing to the challenge of combining studies, work and motherhood
Along the same lines, Carola Méndez wanted to highlight the importance of having a safe space for mothers within the different university campuses, which is of direct benefit to the little ones. “With this effort, we can proudly say that today all our campuses have a safe space that encourages breastfeeding,” concluded the Director of Student Affairs.
The new lactation room has armchairs, coat racks, a light with adjustable control and a small refrigerator, all of which favors not only the natural process of comfortably breastfeeding children but also expressing milk .
Likewise, it has a modern access control that will facilitate that only those who require it make use of this space, since they will be able to enter with TUC or fingerprint , prior enrollment, a process that must be carried out with Verónica Monárdez, who is in the new offices of the Directorate Student Affairs at Casa Central, first floor, in front of the Patio de la Virgen.
Likewise, in line with the protection measures against Covid-19, the room can only be used by one person at a time and has all the necessary sanitation implements.