In the winter of 2004, the RCMP National Youth Strategy, Ottawa funded an independent evaluation of the Whole Child Program by the Canadian Research Institute for Law and the Family from Calgary, Alberta. The final report was extraordinarily positive. The final report prepared by Dr. Kim Zapf is available as follows: CRILF Report March 31/2003 pdf or CRILF Report March 31/2003 in MS Word
Open Computer Lab
Scrapbooking
In addition, the Canadian Research Institute for Law & the Family has developed a model based on the Whole Child Program "Social Development in Small Communities: A Resource Manual Based on the Experiences of the Whole Child Program in Whitehorse, Yukon." This document is available here for download and may be of interest to communities throughout Canada in developing similar initiatives to meet the unique needs of their own community.
Contacts: Crystal Pearl-Hodgins Executive Director, 867-456-3871 or fax 867-393-2056 cphodgin@yesnet.yk.ca

Barbara Curtis Community/Family Outreach Worker 867-456-3871 or barbara.curtis@yesnet.yk.ca

Alain at Open Gym
 Why the Whole Child Program?
Madame Lange's Kids Crafts
The African proverb "it takes an entire village to raise a child" has never been truer than for our community. The challenge was how do we restructure schools to best allow for full participation by all and to ensure that every child has every opportunity to meet their full potential. The educational success of our children cannot be assured unless there are concerted efforts made to remove the barriers to learning created by problems that begin outside the classroom walls. Linking students and schools to integrated health and human services is one strategy to do this. In our fragmented society, parents must rely on impersonal agencies for help in coping with daily problems that informal communal or extended family relationships used to provide.
While troubled marriages, shifting job markets, single-parent households, and dual-career parents have created instability in community structures; society is looking to schools as its stabilizing force. Although teachers are incapable of teaching and fulfilling the roles of parent, social worker, and healthcare provider, they are often called upon to try to do so by circumstances.
We recognized that we must support new avenues for parent, family, and community involvement with teachers and students and for school involvement with families, agencies and the community beyond the school day. Schools have an active and pivotal role to play in integrating community and services for children and their families. We understand that if we want to truly make significant differences for our students, we must work very closely with the whole family as an integral part of the community. It is with this in mind that the Whole Child Program was created.
Our Family Resource Centre has an information kiosk for providing background and contact information on our programs. It also provides information on family support organizations such as the Many Rivers Counselling & Support Services, Child Development Centre, Partners for Children, the Learning Disabilities Association, City of Whitehorse programs and Day Care organizations. In addition to the provision of support services for families during the weekdays including the family resource area, an executive director and outreach worker, we have a WCP Night every Wednesday at WES and at ESES on Thursday nights including Open Gym and Computer Lab, childcare, monthly swim nights for the whole family and free transportation for downtown families. We offer special interest workshops for families such as parenting classes, cooking, literacy intiatives, etc.
As of November 2006 we expanded to a WCP satellite program at Elijah Smith Elementary School which offers a WCP Night on Thursday evenings. January 2011 we expanded to include Tuesday evening programming at Selkirk Elementary School. This also includes free transportation for a family swim night once a month at the Canada Games Centre.
While the offices of WCP reside in Whitehorse Elementary School, it is independently funded and governed by a Board representative of participating partners including the RCMP, non-governmental agencies, and community volunteers. WES is one of our many partners. The board meets formally at least once per month.
WCP activities & services are available to any family in Whitehorse free of charge. Visit our newsletter page for up to date info on specific workshops and other activities.
For more info contact: Crystal Pearl-Hodgins (Executive Director) at 867-456-3871 or cphodgin@yesnet.yk.ca or Barbara Curtis (Outreach Worker) at barbara.curtis@yesnet.yk.ca
Updated Thursday, December 29, 2011 C. Pearl-Hodgins