In addition to managing all the stresses of her 12-unit courseload, veterinary science junior Larissa Kramer has to worry about paying for her 18-month-old son's child care.

"It is really hard to manage both school and caring for a child," she said.

Kramer said her son is in daycare about eight hours a day, which costs her about $97 a week.

She has received assistance from the Department of Economic Security to help pay for child care, but now she will receive money from the University of Arizona's Student Child Care Subsidy Program. It will reimburse her for 60 percent of what she pays in child care costs.

Mimi Gray, coordinator of the program and of UA's Office of Childcare Initiatives, said it is a financial assistance program for students who are parents and have to pay for child care.

Gray said that as enrollment has increased over the years, the number of student-parents has also increased.

In 1992, a survey done by a committee studying student parents' need for child care showed that 7 to 10 percent of UA students were parents of children under the age of 14.

The survey also found that for 66 percent of UA parents, the cost of child care was their biggest problem.

The pilot program, which began in January of this year, had an initial budget of $5,000 to use for reimbursing students for their child care costs.

The $5,000 was given by the Department of Student Programs Operating Budget, Gray said.

Two weeks ago Associated Students approved an additional $2,000 for the program's budget to give students money for child care costs.

Gray said nine students are now receiving money through the program: seven undergraduate and two graduate.

With the additional $2,000, Gray said she hopes to take on another two students from a waiting list to get into the program.

Carolynn Sizer, anthropology junior, said the assistance she will receive from the program will help her with child care finances.

Sizer has a 2-year-old daughter who attends day care three days a week for about six hours a day. The day care costs $14.75 a day.

"The extra assistance would really help us a lot because right now we are scraping to get by," she said.

Gray said the cost of child care in Tucson is expensive, ranging from $89 to $112 a week for an infant 12 months and younger. Child care for school-aged children can run about $50 to $60 a week, depending on the hours in day care.

The program gives students assistance based on their needs over the entire semester, Gray said. The reimbursements range from $252 to $931.20 for the semester.

To be eligible for the program, students must have federal financial aid applications on file, be enrolled as full-time students, and use either licensed child care centers or certified family child care providers.