Fonds paa-6537 - Edmonton School Readiness Centre fonds

The Edmonton School Readiness Centre was a pre-school centre in Edmonton, Alberta that was designed to prepare five to six year old children for school. The idea for the centre originated in the early 1960s, when the Edmonton Section of the National Council of Jewish Women (N.C.J.W.) decided to take steps to help alleviate the school dropout problem in the city. The N.C.J.W. enlisted the aid of the Junior League of Edmonton, the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Alberta, and the Edmonton Welfare Council, and together they formed a Policy Committee in March 1965. The initial goals of the Committee were to demonstrate the presence of culturally deprived children in the city, to develop a project to aid them, and to demonstrate the values of the program in order to influence future educational planning. On January 31, 1966, the Edmonton School Readiness Centre opened in the Norwood United Church. The Centre operated on a half-day basis during the week, and consisted of one salaried supervisor, a director working on an advisory basis, and volunteer teachers from the N.C.J.W. and the Junior League of Edmonton. The Policy Committee set the policy for the school, set up student selection, handled the budget, carried on public education and relations, determined the future of the school on a yearly basis, and looked after volunteer training. In 1966, Preventive Social Services took over funding of the project from the Department of Educational Psychology, while the Department of Educational Psychology continued to provide the services of professional consultants. In 1967, the N.C.J.W. and the Junior League of Edmonton gradually withdrew their volunteer services so that volunteers from the community could take a more active part in the functions of the centre. By 1971, the goals of the Edmonton School Readiness Centre were not only to provide an enriched environment for children, but also to create a centre and meeting place for various community interests and activities.