It's National Amazing Kids Day today, Thursday, March 20, which got me thinking about a place that was a second home to many amazing kids and people in Vernon for years.
My School.
That was it's name. Not Beairsto, or Fulton, or Vernon Senior Secondary (the three schools I attended). My School. An educational facility for the mentally handicapped.
My School's roots go back to the 1950s, when it was realized the needs of the mentally handicapped in Vernon were not being met. The Vernon and District Slow Learners Association was formed, and raised funds for the purpose of educating mentally handicapped students.
A group of parents and others interested formed the Vernon and District Association for Retarded Children in February of 1955, and the association became the main factor in providing educational and training chances for the handicapped.
The organization faced three major problems upon incorporation: where to hold classes; finding a teacher; and raising money that would be needed, as no government funding was available.
They created a list of 12 main objectives for the school, including helping the child make a successful adjustment between home and school life; helping parents accept their child's limitations and build upon their abilities; help the child work and play as a member of a group; develop good manners; teach good health; train the child to help at home; and develop the child's confidence and self-expression.
The first home for the school was a small house on 34th Avenue operated by The Golden Age Club. It opened on June 20, 1955 with students ranging in age from 14 to 23. The students started calling the facility "My School" and the name stuck.
After moves to several other locations, My School found a permanent home at the east end of West Vernon Elementary School, thanks to strong support from the community and the local school board.
On Oct. 20, 1961, My School officially opened. The cost of the new building, which had two classrooms, an activity room, a kitchen, and covered play area, was $20,000. Two-thirds of the cost was paid by the Ministry of Education.
A new activity room was added in 1970, an additional classroom was built out of the covered play area, and in 1980, significant renovations led to a better library and staff room.
The school district took full responsibility for My School in 1972.
A decade later, in 1982, 35 students were registered and were given training in personal care, daily living, recreational skills, and basic scholastic schools. It was called one of the happiest schools in Vernon.
My School closed in 1988, and it became a building to house special services, a department of the Vernon School District that provides education services that are not part of regular classes.
The former facility was called the Dorothy Alexander Centre, in honour of a woman who worked for more than a quarter-century at My School, and housed the school district's Alternative Learning Program (ALP), which still runs today in the same location.
(Information for this article came from The History of Schools and Other Learning Facilities in School District #22 (Vernon), published by the Vernon Retired Teachers Heritage Committee in 2017 - Roger Knox)
