Smith College plans to close its Center for Early Childhood Education at Fort Hill on June 4, 2027, ending a program that serves about 80 children and infants in seven classrooms. The decision puts roughly 30 staff jobs at risk and leaves families seeking alternative care. Some parents have questioned whether the closure is retaliation against a unionized workforce that has been bargaining for its first contract.
A Century-Old Program Scheduled to Close With Little Warning
Fort Hill has operated since 1926, according to the Daily Hampshire Gazette, which first reported the closure. Smith informed staff and families Monday evening; staff told the Gazette they received 20 minutes' notice before the announcement went to parents. The college says a review of its childcare benefits and operations led to the decision and that it was not financial. Vice President for Human Resources Anne-Marie Szmyt said the review led the college to that conclusion.
The change will leave some families without access to Smith's replacement benefit. Caitlin Bunning, whose two children attend Fort Hill, told the Gazette she was shocked by the announcement. She and her wife have no current affiliation with Smith beyond their children's enrollment and therefore will not qualify for the benefit. Bunning suspects the closure could be a union-busting measure; other parents have also questioned Smith's account that finances were not a factor.
Union Ties and Unanswered Questions
Fort Hill educators voted unanimously to join UAW Local 322 roughly two years before the closure announcement. The union and college have been bargaining for a first contract for just over a year and a half. Rachel Connally, a teacher and member of the union's bargaining committee, told the Gazette that Smith has not confirmed a connection between the closure and union activity. The Gazette reported that Smith spokesperson Barbara Solow did not respond to questions about an alleged link.
The Gazette reported that about 50 parents, teachers and children gathered at park benches outside the center Tuesday afternoon as news of the closure spread. Malka Coburn, who has worked at Fort Hill for 13 years, described feeling disappointed and betrayed, while Kevin Huant said the news felt like a gut punch. Brendan O'Connor's son is in his last year at the center, and Marcella Jewell's son is 3.
New Benefit Won't Help Every Family
Smith says it will replace its center-based childcare benefit with a broader benefit for benefit-eligible employees' children up to age 12 at any licensed and accredited provider, including summer programs and afterschool care. Families without a benefit-eligible Smith employee, including Bunning's family, will not qualify. Szmyt said Smith intends to communicate transparently during the transition and work closely with union leadership and staff.
Smith has invited parents to an informational forum on Zoom next Monday, Oct. 26, at 6 p.m., to be hosted by Szmyt and center Director Jen Godlesky. Fort Hill normally runs full- and part-time early education and child care year-round from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., according to Smith College, and the program has doubled as a teaching laboratory where Smith students and faculty conduct observations and fieldwork. Eligible employees currently receive tuition assistance covering 25% of costs for a first child and 30% for additional children enrolled at the center, per the college's employee handbook.
Part of a Wider Squeeze on Campus Daycare
Families leaving Fort Hill will be entering a local childcare market already stretched thin. Nearby waitlists are backed up for months, if not years, according to parents cited by the Gazette. Statewide, the crunch is severe: Massachusetts added $31.2 million in its 2026 supplemental budget to expand childcare access, but that funding will reach only a fraction of the roughly 31,000 children on waitlists, translating to financial help for only about 2,000 more kids, according to WBUR. Infant care at a Massachusetts facility or center now averages $27,000 a year, even as the state's Child Care Financial Assistance program serves nearly 40,000 children and allows families earning up to roughly $141,000 to qualify.
Smith's closure also fits a pattern of university-affiliated centers disappearing elsewhere. UCLA announced it will close both of its university-owned child-care centers at the end of the current academic year, eliminating care for roughly 220 children, after already closing its Fernald Center in September 2025 over enrollment and budget concerns, according to the Los Angeles Times. At the University of Kansas, the Hilltop Child Development Center's closure left more than 155 students and their families scrambling, with parents there given just 39 days' notice, the Lawrence Times and KSHB reported.
Costs, availability and another college case
The cost of finding infant care can be a substantial burden: a City of Boston Office of Early Childhood report, citing the Economic Policy Institute, says infant care takes up 18.1% of a median family income in Massachusetts, more than double the federal benchmark for affordable child care. UMass Amherst’s Center for Early Education and Care says it enrolls children when space is available and places applicants on a waiting list when full; the community at large is among the eligible affiliations. A separate comparison comes from Mount Holyoke College. In 2021, the college said it would suspend on-campus childcare at Gorse Children’s Center on June 30 after deciding not to renew its Bright Horizons contract, following consideration of alternatives, according to Inside Higher Ed. The college also provided replacement support, including an added $100,000 for its Employee Emergency Fund and financial support for eligible faculty and staff. The separate case does not establish Smith’s motive.
