FUNDS TO HELP SCHOOL-AGE PARENTS

School-age parents who attend Saskatoon's Mount Royal Collegiate or Royal
West Campus were given major support today from the province's Community
Initiatives Fund (CIF).

The provincial funding of $28,873 will support the Saskatoon Child Care
Services' parenting program. It is designed to provide emotional, social
and academic support to school-age parents. Programming includes
individual meetings; tutoring; forming a student advisory group; and parent
groups.

Finance Minister Eric Cline presented the cheque to Saskatoon Child Care
Services today on behalf of Culture, Youth and Recreation Minister Joanne
Crofford. "This is a good program that helps young parents balance school
and parenting for long-term benefits for themselves and their children,"
Cline said. "I am pleased the province is supporting young people through
programs that build self-esteem and pave the way for future success."

The main objective is to support the growth and development of school-age
parents. Programming includes five segments: the Cooking Club, created to
promote nutritious living; the Playgroup, designed to encourage interactive
play and positive parenting; Nurturing With Rhymes, which encourages parent-
child bonding; Time Out For Moms, designed to promote the self esteem of
young mothers; and the fifth, a tutoring program, created to assist in the
education of the student.

The provincial government established the CIF, formerly known as the
Associated Entities Fund, in 1997. Since then, it has provided grants of
more than $11.5 million to 1,900 groups throughout the province.

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For more information, contact:

Sandhya Padmanabh
Culture, Youth and Recreation
Regina
Phone: (306) 787-4967