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Kate Mullin (she/her) is an activist representing student parents on the U of A campus and making change in the anti-gender based violence movement as a consent educator. She is a psychology and WGS U of A student, writer and mother. It is the connection of bodily autonomy within her advocacy that provides inspiration for her creative work and motivation for promoting a world of solidarity. (@katejohannamullin)
About the Family Corner
There is a new space on campus dedicated to student parents and their families! The Family Corner is a place open to all expressions of parenting to gather, socialize, feed, work and play with the children they care for.
Located on the third floor of the Rutherford Library in room 3114, students can study with their children in a place that gives them room for kids to play. With computers, adjustable workstations, toddler-sized chairs and a specially curated collection of children's books, both the caregiver and child's learning development have been thoughtfully considered. In times of community, the space has games for parents to connect. While parental supervision is needed in the Family Corner, it has been made easier on parents by having elements of baby-proofing incorporated throughout. This includes rounded edges on tables and chairs, cupboards locked, outlets covered and the children's bookshelf secured to the wall.
With a private lactation feeding and pumping area, bottle heater, refrigerator, kettles and sinks, parents with babies will be able to feed and clean bottles in their own area. The two bathrooms on the same floor have changing tables and places to dispose of diapers in order to create a separate place for changing. This allows the Family Corner to be a more hygienic space for eating and working.
My impression of the space
From the opening of the Family Corner to the campus bookstore stocking parent hoodies, we are seeing that student parents are being honoured across campus.
It is evident, with the many different elements of safety and accessibility that were considered, that this space in itself is the baby of the team that organized it. It reduces the barriers so many student parents experience with bringing their children on campus and furthers families by creating space for community and peer support to grow. From caring for each other as parents to children and parents to other parents, it provides the space for us all to be together.
Why the Family Corner is useful and important to the parent community
The Family Corner is an important and valuable addition to the university as it creates visibility for families, babies and pregnancies everywhere on campus.
How often do you see a toddler running through HUB or someone halfway through their pregnancy giving a presentation in your class?
Knowing from personal experience, families, no matter what stage, feel pressure to take only virtual classes, no classes at all or have long periods of separation from their family. Having this space dedicated to student parents where they can rest and work shows that children are welcome throughout campus and that families are supported to continue their education.
While the Family Corner holds many different uses and benefits, it also helps remove the dilemma for parents who pursue education for their family while having to leave them. As well it can provide motivation. By being around those who we care for it gives us purpose. Ultimately, it allows the family relationship to continue to thrive in a safe space that is curated to help foster everyone's knowledge.
With it, it recognizes and creates space for people's right to their own bodily autonomy in family planning and fights against the capitalistic narrative that isolates families and separates parents from their children. The Family Corner embodies the saying "it takes a village" by providing a place for the connection of family to remain intact while learning. The Family Corner provides hope for all students, parents and advocates across movements that we really are moving toward creating more accessible spaces that consider everyone's intersectionality.
The Family Corner is a major step towards an inclusive campus for families, but it is not the end. Teams such as Student Parents On Campus (@ualbertaspoc) and the U of A Students Who Parent Working Group, composed of members from the Food Bank, Students’ Union, Wellness Center, Graduate Students' Association, Health Centre, Dean of Students and Registrar's Office, are working to continue to advocate for student parents.