Pediatric nurse is a friend to wee ones

Patricia “Pat” Lasky spent 35 years on the UW campus. She studied, taught and nurtured in her roles as student, clinical nursing instructor, assistant professor, researcher, director of the pediatric nurse practitioner program and associate dean for the undergraduate program and outreach of the School of Nursing.

Lasky became a pediatric nurse because she enjoyed the challenge of working with sick children and their parents. She learned to communicate, comfort and reassure, and she became a well-known advocate for children during her career. Now retired, Lasky continues to be involved with children’s issues and provides financial support for the Classified Staff Child Care Grants Fund.

The fund was created in the fall of 2002 through the vice chancellor for student affairs and the Offices of the Dean of Students. It was set up to help recruit and retain classified staff, who often are hired in entry-level positions on the “front line” of offering quality service to students, staff and faculty. Depending on fund availability, grants can be awarded on an emergency or annual basis to classified staff families who use regulated child care. Grants are awarded each fall through the Office of Campus Child Care.

“Child care plays a much more important role than just allowing parents to go to work,” Lasky says. “Professor Art Reynolds’ research in the School of Social Work has shown us how quality of care impacts children down the road, in terms of their academic achievement and social development. All families need access to quality care.”

Lasky has served on various campus child care committees, visited daycare centers as part of her research and now serves on the Mayor’s Early Childhood Care and Education Board in Madison. She sees clearly the broad range of need for child care across campus and in the community.

“I know Chancellor [John] Wiley is a strong advocate for child care and understands this is a critical issue in recruiting and retaining young staffers,” Lasky says. “I’ve had wonderful support from classified staff, which is why I support the Classified Staff Child Care Grants fund.”

Lynn Edlefson is the campus childcare coordinator in the Office of Child Care and Family Resources and is one of many on campus who have worked with Lasky.

“I admire Pat’s steadfast leadership on behalf of children and families and her willingness to contribute funds or ideas,” Edlefson says. “She is a generous and committed partner in ensuring that all families, especially our classified staff, have access to high-quality childcare.”

This series of profiles highlights people whose lives have been transformed by UW–Madison. To learn more about Create the Future: The Wisconsin Campaign, contact the UW Foundation at 263-4545 or visit the UW Foundation’s Web site.