Balancing a career with motherhood
Re: Better, Cheaper Childcare Not So Family-Friendly; Educated French Paid To Have More Babies, both Sept. 20. As a female professional and a single mother with a pre-adolescent child, I find myself conflicted with the suggested messages proposed by these two articles.
I admit I was continually confronted both in the workplace and in the academic milieu (I both worked and continued my post-secondary and graduate studies while caring for my young child) as to my “abilities” to care for my child and to adequately tend to my employment and academic responsibilities. The availability of inexpensive child care was only part of the solution. The change in societal mentality is the other; particularly when considering that many women may often wish to pursue careers and to allocate time for her child(ren) during all phases of development, from birth to adulthood.
The central problem, and one that I feel is not being addressed in these studies and policy changes, is the mentality that a woman should either choose a career or she should stay home and raise her children. The former option places pressure on women to conform to some pre-defined work ethic — the latter appears to want to confine her to a “domesticated lifestyle.”
A more feasible option for many women may be to allow for both the opportunity to flourish and pursue her chosen profession, and to allow for the flexibility in time management to spend with her child(ren), rather than removing one option (or compromising it) in its entirety to allow for the other. Admittedly, such an avenue is not without its challenges, but in the end, and in my experience, it is much more rewarding for both woman and child.
I have been fortunate enough to successfully balance the desire to have and raise a child with the drive to pursue a career. I only wish that those individuals who claim to offer solutions that are in my or any other woman’s best interest took the time to find out what the best interests of women are. Sacha Young, Montreal. I was born in 1940 and grew up in a time when a person was self reliant. Unfortunately, I became a single mother, but the thought of going on welfare never occured to me. I went to work as a teacher in a remote area when my child was 10 months old. I had to rely on daycare and I can vouch firsthand that a mother will deeply regret the times she misses participating in her child’s growth, seeing that first step and all the countless other firsts.
I wasn’t there to kiss away my child’s hurts. Now that baby is 41 and those days of childhood are lost forever; we have lost out on something very valuable.
Canada has to develop more respect for women who are “ stay at home moms” because they truly are irreplaceable. Leone Wright, Surrey, B.C. Re: Treating All Women Like Moms, Sept. 19. It continues to be a challenge for female academics to advance in the Canadian post-secondary system. Brescia University College is mentioned in this article and I want to clarify key points about our employment practices.
Brescia University College is Canada’s only women’s university college. We go to great lengths to maintain a womanfriendly environment for our students and for employees. Females constitute 66% of our full-time professors and administrative staff, and these women ( with or without children) are important role models for our students.
The college’s policies for faculty promotion and tenure were shaped through extensive consultation with faculty, with special consideration given to the needs of women academics at every stage of their careers. We work closely with female faculty, advising them on the appropriate steps to advance their careers. Outstanding performance in any area is valued, but does not compensate for shortcomings in another.
At Brescia, women administrators and faculty have full responsibility for the operation of the college. We do not relegate “caring work” to the women. Women have responsibility and authority. We fully expect our men to be “ caring” also. Dr. Theresa Topic, principal, Brescia University College, London, Ont.