Purpose of Public Schooling: Perspectives From Emily Elizabeth and Sandra Montgomery

As a sexual health educator working for a local nongovernmental organization, I facilitate a wide range of workshops in recovery centers across Vancouver, Canada’s lower mainland. While I have been impressed by the strength and tenacity of all of the residents I had the privilege to teach, I have been particularly inspired by the women I met who have recently decided to take their first step into drug and alcohol recovery. Many of these women share stories of addiction, violence, oppression, poverty, and homelessness, yet all of them share a strength and desire to make a commitment to develop and maintain the skills necessary to achieve a lifestyle free from alcohol and/or chemical dependence.