Special school gives teen mothers a chance

Food and Nutrition, Summer, 1988 by Cynthia Tackett

Many of them are children themselves, some as young as 12, others as "old" as 19. What they have in common is they attend the Polly McCabe School in New Haven, Connecticut, and they are pregnant.

Teenage pregnancy is a national problem of growing concern. Teens deliver one out of six babies born in this country, and the majority choose to keep their babies. In New Haven, one out of five births are to teens under age 19, and in the "Hill" area of the city, one out of four births are to teens.

It is in the Hill district, a 3-mile area of extreme poverty, that the Polly McCabe School and the Hill Health Center (HHC) are working together to help teen mothers build better futures for themselves and their children.

Helping teens stay in school

"The primary purpose of McCabe is to prevent pregnant teens from dropping out of school," says Elizabeth Celotto, McCabe principal. "Teen parenthood limits a young woman's chances of leading a socially and economically independent and productive life."

The cost of teen parenthood is high not only to the teens but also to their children and tO society. The statistics are bleak:

* Only half of the teens who become parents before age 18 graduate from high school.

* Forty percent of teenage girls who drop out of school do so because of pregnancy or marriage.

* Teen mothers are twice as likely to be poor as other mothers, and teen parents earn half the lifetime earnings of women who wait until age 20 to have their first child.

"With a lot of help from other agencies and a very dedicated staff, we're working to increase the potential of these students," says Celotto.

An average of 200 girls attend the school each year and well below 10 percent drop out. Equally impressive is a repeat pregnancy rate of only 8 percent, with this year's rate running a low 6 percent.

"Our secondary goal," says Celotto, "is to help the teens deliver healthy babies." Here, too, the school is meeting its goal. In a poverty area where low birthweight is a serious problem, McCabe students tend to have babies whose average birthweights are

5 1/2 pounds or more.

Supportive atmosphere helps in many ways

At the core of each of these successes is the supportive atmosphere fostered by both the Hill Health Center and McCabe. "The girls are very supportive of each other, and the staff is very supportive of the girls," says Celotto.

"Sometimes we take a lot of criticism from people on the outside who say we are giving them too much. But the problem is there, and I think the best way to deal with it is to be understanding and not judgmental."

The school, established in 1966 and named after a New Haven woman who dedicated her life to serving young women, is operated by the New Haven school system in conjunction with community agencies.

McCabe offers accredited academic courses in grades 6-12. The girls attend the school during pregnancy and are expected to return to their regular schools after giving birth.

At McCabe, the girls take the courses they would have taken in regular school plus a mandatory life skills class, which, in addition to preparing them for delivery, also covers a wide range of topics, including nutrition, parenting, and being a family manager.

"It is the best job I've ever had," says Adair Luciani, life skills teacher. "I'm teaching them something they need to know right now." Frequently, Luciani uses guest speakers from various community agencies to make her students aware of the help that is available to them and to address individual concerns.

Luciani has three main goals for her students. First, to have a good labor and delivery experience. She practices LaMaze exercises with them weekly. "Many of the girls are frightened by the delivery process and are worried they won't be able handle it, but many come back after giving birth and say the exercises helped, which is very satisfying."

Luciani's second goal is to help the girls avoid repeat pregnancies. She emphasizes birth control and assertive behavior, but admits it is a hard message to deliver. "Society encourages sex in everything the girls see and hear," Luciani says. But the school's 6-percent repeat pregnancy rate indicates that the message is getting through.

Luciani's third goal is to increase the girls' confidence in their mothering abilities, which she hopes will ultimately prevent child abuse. "I let them see that there just isn't one right way to do things. I help them see that they have the ability to be good mothers."

Comments from current students reflect how vital McCabe's supportive atmosphere is to them. "It is easier to make friends here because we are all here for the same reason," one girl says. "It is better than regular school," says another. "You're nobody there. Here, the teachers care about you and help you."

A former student says, "The reason I came back to school is because everyone thinks if you have a baby you won't finish school. In my case, I wanted to prove to people that I could do it."