College of Saint Mary Invites Bristol Palin and Other Young Mothers to Attend Unique Mothers Living and Learning Program
(Omaha, Neb.) September 9, 2008 - Teen pregnancy doesn't have to mean the end of educational opportunities for young women thanks to innovations like the Mothers Living and Learning Program at College of Saint Mary in Omaha, (http://csm.edu/
The private, all women’s university offers mothers and mothers to-be, like vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin’s teen daughter Bristol Palin, the opportunity to attend school, earn a college degree and live with their children on campus.
“The Mothers Living and Learning program is a solution for women who don't want to be separated from their children while attending school,” said Sr. Karen Egri, RSM Assistant Resident Director. “College of Saint Mary also provides a support system for mothers who face the difficult challenge of balancing motherhood and continuing their education.”
According to a National Women's Law Center report published last year, a full third of girls who drop out of high school cite pregnancy as the reason, and nearly all of those girls say they would have stayed if they'd had the support to do so. By the age of 30, says a survey by the Gates Foundation, only three percent of women who became mothers as teenagers have earned a college degree.
About Mothers Living and Learning:
This program is for women who have up to two children (under the age of 10 by the mother's graduation year), are dedicated to continuing their education and are seeking community living opportunities that recognize they are parents as well as college students.
Childcare is available to students and is provided on campus. The new Mothers Living and Learning space has a community area with a computer lab, community bathrooms that include sinks, tubs, showers and bathtubs, 2 large playrooms, 4 community kitchens and two laundry rooms. Twenty-four hour security is available and each student is given a key to their room, a code for the community doors and an access card for the elevator.
Along with all CSM students, MLL residents can take part in the numerous services and opportunities on CSM's campus. This includes learning support and tutoring services as well as career services through the CSM Achievement Center, leadership opportunities though our Student Leadership and Organizations Office, and counseling services. Students and their children may also utilize the Lied Fitness Center as long as children are appropriately supervised.
To schedule interviews with MLL students please contact, Kristin Petrick, at 402.829.8023 kristinp@ervinandsmith.com or Carmen Steele, 402.399.2454 csteele@csm.edu. Photos upon request.
