Cote First Nation opens baby room for parents who need to go to school

A Cote First Nation school opened a baby room so student parents can bring infants to class while continuing their education. Fruzsina De Cloedt has the story.

Cote First Nation has opened up a room in the local school for young parents who need to work or go to school.

The museum room in the Chief George Cote Education Complex was filled with band members from Cote First Nation for the announcement on Thursday.

“I was approached by some of the instructors, like the teachers here, and they asked me how we could get their students back to school,” said May Cadotte, Cote school’s nurse.

Young people having children early can easily create a barrier that prevents them from getting an education.

Cadotte told CTV News she was a young mother herself, having her son when she was only 16 years old. For her, breaking down and preventing these barriers is a personal cause.

She invited band members, the Prevention and Health Office, as well as the Tribal Council to the table to find a solution.

“Our best plan would be just to have [young parents] bring their baby with them [because] it creates a bonding. We have a lot of knowledge keepers here that still have their language. The Saulteaux language is spoken in the school, and it’s spoken around the babies,” she explained.

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The new baby and parent room also boasts a supply of nursing goods, such as diapers, formula, and moss bags to place the baby in while the parent works on their homework.

Cadotte clarified that there is a daycare on the reserve and that this program runs alongside it, allowing students to use laptops in the room for homework and to receive extra help from the school’s educators.

While the room was officially celebrated on Thursday, it has been open since mid-March.

“They’ve been using the program now for about two and a half months. And we’ve only had a few days where we didn’t have anybody in here at all. So, they are using it, they’re getting their education,” Cadotte said.

CTV News spoke with a young mother who is one of four currently making use of the new space.

“I was excited to bring [my daughter], but I was scared at the same time because you’re young and you have a baby... But I was excited,” said Khelia Shingoose, as her little girl attempted to redirect the microphone in her arms.

Shingoose is hopeful the program will bring her success.

“They want to help us succeed in school. So hopefully [I’ll] graduate,” she said.