A notice came into our office awhile back about the 40th anniversary of the Balfour Special Tutorial program. It was established in 1972 to prove support for young women who became pregnant in high school and wanted to continue their education.
The program is now known as the Shirley Schneider Support Centre (SSSC). Fifteen years later, in 1987, the Mackenzie Infant Care Centre was established to provide on-site child care services for the women once they returned to class after giving birth.
It wasn’t easy then, and still isn’t that easy now, to be pregnant and attend school on a regular basis. SSSC provides that secure, accepting program for the young women in order to manage a healthy pregnancy while attending classes in a setting with other young women. The transition to being a young mom attending classes is also very difficult, hence the establishment of the infant care centre. As well, the young women receive many other support services to assist them in parenting their children.
The above is an excerpt from the notice sent to prairie dog by Shirley Schneider. She went on to note that a celebration is being planned for May 4 to commemorate the two anniversaries. In the afternoon there will be a reception at Balfour Collegiate. That will be followed by a dinner and silent auction at the Royal United Services Institute. The SSSC is interested in contacting as many students who have been part of the program as possible to inform them about the anniversary celebration.
As noted in the poster, the contact number for the SSSC is 586-6647.
