teen parenting

Education is our #1 priority here at Chief Leschi!

Our school has established the Teen Parenting Program, which is specifically designed to meet the needs of young teen mothers and their children.

Eligibility and requirements

Student-parents in the Teen Parenting Program must be enrolled as a student at Chief Leschi Schools and attending classes in good standing. They are expected to assist in the care of their child throughout the day by checking with the nursery staff two to three times a day. This checkup is done during breaks and lunch time, not during class time so as not to disrupt the education of the student.

Participating children must be at least six weeks of age, in good health, and have all required immunizations. Each student-parent is expected to provide for daily needs such as diapers, formula, bottles, and so on. When a student-parent is in the nursery, she is expected to help out with her child and with other children in the nursery. Chief Leschi Schools provides for daily snacks and appropriate school menu meals. Junk food is not allowed in the nursery except for special occasions such as birthday parties, when goodies are served.

Program components

The Teen Parenting Program implements learning for the young child by having structured activities and story time. But it is not all work and no play, as children have nap time, free play time, meal time, quiet time, and outdoor time. The structured activities are designed to stimulate child development and outdoor time helps children develop their muscles and coordination.

We feel that it is important to have a stable structured schedule to meet the needs of children to provide a sense of security.

Child safety and health

The safety and health of children in this program is the top priority. Here are some examples:

• We follow strict guidelines to make sure that children don’t spread illnesses to each other.
• During fire drills, the children are placed into a single crib with wheels and wheeled out of the building. They are carefully provided for with blankets and other necessary items while out of the building.
• All student-parents are required to provide an approved car seat for transportation.
• Separate play areas are provided for the children in order to protect them, for example, toddlers are separated from infants.

Discipline means "to teach"

Our primary disciplinary tool is redirection, which means that little children have short attention spans and can be easily diverted from unwanted behavior. Student -parents who use inappropriate disciplinary methods are required to take extra classes on appropriate parenting. Our program's greatest accomplishment is seeing one our teen parents make that final walk and accept their diploma!