The director of the closure-threatened school for teen mothers is hoping for an eleventh hour cash boost to save the vital facility.

But the director of Teen Services successful continuation school warned that if it shut down there could be a return to student mothers simply dropping out of the education system altogether.

Teen Services director Michelle Wade-Johnson spoke to The Royal Gazette after the Ministry of Health announced on Thursday that the closure of the continuation school was imminent.

"The continuation school is only one of many programmes offered by Teen Services," she said. "We also offer services which include counselling teen boys and girls, operating the Haven, and conducting the Teen Pregnancy Prevention programme."

While Mrs. Wade-Johnson said she and her staff were preparing themselves for the worst, she praised the efforts of Health Minister Nelson Bascome.

"He has been quite supportive and has been negotiating with the Board of Directors, so it was decided that we will be given a grace period before any final decisions are made."

Right now, Mrs. Wade-Johnson said, the staff of Teen Services is doing all they can not to interrupt the 17 young mothers who are currently attending the school. She said they were informed of the school's potential closure on Wednesday and while they were upset about their uncertainty, they all have vowed to continue attending Teen Services. "Many of them have developed an appreciation for education," she said.

She added that if the school does close, the girls have the option of reporting to the Ministry of Education so they could be integrated into their former schools if desired.

But as she looked at a possible future without the continuation school, Mrs. Wade-Johnson did not have a bright prognosis for teen mothers.

"I see the high school drop-out rate increasing," she said. So as Mrs. Wade-Johnson and her staff wait for the worst, she hopes their school, which has had a one hundred percent success rate in the past five years, will be rescued. While she was adamant that she was not criticising the Ministry of Education, she said she hoped possible additional funding would come from them.

"It would be a pleasure if they could help." And when asked how could $380,000 be spent in six months, Mrs. Wade-Johnson said: "We always start the year in the red. We just don't have enough money."