18 year-old Lasheika Ziglar became a mom at the age of 16. She lives in an apartment in north Winston-Salem with her two-year-old and six-month-old daughters.

Each day she struggles to be a mother and a high school sophomore.

“Monday through Friday is hard. I will be trying to get myself ready and get them and try to get a little breakfast in and I can be doing my homework and my daughter will want to write, draw and scribble and I’m like right now. Not right now,” said Lasheika.

Lasheika is one of around 40 teen parents in Forsyth County currently benefiting from a program that pays to get her children from home to daycare and back again five days a week. The money is from a $33,000 grant from the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust. It’s administered by The Work Family Resources Center in Winston-Salem.

But Faith Lockwood, Winston-Salem-Forsyth County Schools Social Worker for teen parents and their families, says she concerned about the future of the program.

“Those students would not be in school if they did not have childcare transportation now. They could not find any other resource to get their children to daycare,” said Lockwood.

According to Lockwood, this program has enough funds to help about 100 teen parents through June 2012.

In past years, the North Carolina Department of Social Services paid on average 42-dollars per child to pay for transportation services. But legislative changes in Raleigh now mean DSS can no longer pay for transportation costs.

In Forsyth County, around 800 female teenagers become pregnant each year. Lockwood says from the class of 2011, the number of teen mothers is 171. Of that number, 73 dropped out.

“We know from research that the factor most closely correlated with a child’s success in the school is the parent’s, specifically the mother’s level of educational attainment. It is very important that we get these parents through high school as well as we can and hopefully on to some further education or vocational training so they can support their child and their child’s education,” said Lockwood.

In most North Carolina counties, the average market rate for three star daycare services ranges from around $600 to a little more than $860. According to Lockwood, a day care provider receives stars based on a quality ranking system.

In Forsyth County, that sum is $585.

Because the cost of daycare is higher in other counties–these facilities receive a higher reimbursement from DSS...and Lockwood believes in most cases, this covers transportation costs.

In Forsyth County, the Kate B. Reynolds grant is making up for the shortfall.

Lasheika’s two young children attend a daycare about five miles away called Little One’s Heaven on Tise Avenue. Owner Kenyetta Driver receives $50 per month per child for transportation costs. Over the years, she’s served lots of teen moms. She said without the subsidy, services would be limited for many of her clients.

“Because if it wasn’t for the daycare provider being able to provide transportation, they are too young to have their own vehicles and who can catch the bus, the city bus to daycare and then make it to school in the right amount of time so it is a big deal,” said Driver.

On a rainy and cold late Wednesday afternoon, Driver loads the children onto a van and leaves the daycare. Meanwhile, Lasheika anxiously awaits seeing her children after her long day at North Forsyth High School. She said she considered dropping out when she got news DSS transportation funds for this year were eliminated.

“Thank God. Yes, I got transportation. Somebody is going to be picking up my kids. Everything just felt right after that,” said Lasheika.   

The grant from the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust is only a temporary fix. Lockwood worries about future funding sources for transportation costs.

20 year-old Donte Crews is Lasheika’s boyfriend, and father of her two children. He quit school in the tenth grade.

“It’s really hard and I wanted to stay in school but I just couldn’t. Once I had these kids it was like a whole new life so that is something that I really had to look up to but now things are much better and now with that daycare I can start back to what I’m normally doing and get back to school,” said Crews.

Lasheika says the program is helping her achieve her goals and be a good role model for her daughters.

“Yes, I’m 18 in the tenth grade but I feel like I can keep going forward. It’s never too late just keep going and everything will fall into place and work out. This program is helping me a whole lot cause without it I would be here doing nothing wasting my time when I could be out there accomplishing goals, doing good stuff,” said Lashieka.