The well-attended Community Resources Fair was held last week at the central office for the Medicine Hat Public School Division.--NEWS PHOTO SAMANTHA JOHNSON
reporter@medicinehatnews.com
The Medicine Hat Public School Division held its second Community Resources Fair last week. All staff were invited to attend, although it was mandatory for classroom support teachers as part of their professional development.
CSTs focus on classroom support for literacy and numeracy by enhancing learning for students. They act as navigators and play a leadership role by connecting kids and families to resources they may need. Additionally, family members of students were also invited.
Family school liaison worker Mary Tulip explained, “This is our opportunity to bring all community resources together who have programming that we can either bring into schools or we can refer families out to. We are fortunate in Medicine Hat to have so many community organizations, but sometimes it’s hard to connect with them all or know who exists and what they are doing. Bringing all of them together allows people the opportunity to have a one-stop shop to discover who does what and what they need.”
This year, it was decided to change the hours and run the event from 1-5 p.m. to allow parents, school administrators and teachers the chance to attend.
There were 24 community organizations at the fair, some providing multiple programs, which meant about 35 programs were represented. Teams from within MHPSD, such as the alternative learning team, and partners with the division, such as occupational therapy, also had representatives at the fair.
Attendees were able to learn about local organizations that are actively supporting the schools.
“We hope that families will discover where and how to access parenting and family supports that are available in our community,” stated Tulip.
Claire Petersen, director of psychology services for MHPSD, added, “Last year we had a good turnout, and it was really well received by school staff. We wanted to expand it to community so they could come in and see what kinds of things are supporting their children in our buildings as well as what kinds of things they could get connected to outside of our schools for supports.”
CSTs at Crescent Heights High School, Jennilynne Sullivan and Samantha Thorvaldson, both made it to the affair early in the afternoon.
Thorvaldson is a CST for French immersion and a Grade 7-11 teacher.
“The biggest thing I took away is all the resources and different presentations that we could have community members come in and show the kids. I think sometimes when it’s coming from an outside source, kids are more likely to take benefit from it or realize there is a lot of support in Medicine Hat. It’s not just a teacher telling them but an outside community member.”
By making those connections at the fair, Thorvaldson can now contact organizations to arrange for them to come into the school and give presentations. Those might be on topics like sexual assault, drinking, or sexting and body image.
“Many of the resources we saw today are already in our schools,” added Sullivan. “But it was great to see opportunities that are outside the school that families can access, not just for students but for families as well.”
