Fort Simpson DEA calls for more resources; Antoine takes note
Derek Neary
Northern News Services
Fort Simpson (Jan 19/01) - The growing student/ teacher ratio at Bompas Elementary school is hurting academics, according to Shane Thompson, chair of the Fort Simpson District Education Authority (DEA).
He noted that 38 per cent of Bompas students are on modified education programs and another 13 per cent are on individualized programs.
"Our children, that's our future, and that's a bleak future right now if 51 per cent aren't meeting grade standards," he said during a special community education meeting last week.
The need for the meeting stemmed from two years of correspondence with the Minister of Education that resulted in "inappropriate answers or answers that don't seem to go anywhere," Thompson said.
He contended that student/teacher ratios should be judged school-by-school, not within the entire region. He said the Department of Education indicates the Deh Cho's student/teacher ratio is 16:1, but it's actually 21.6:1 at Bompas Elementary school using the department's criteria. It could be even higher than that using other guidelines, he noted.
The Department of Education's funding formula was another bone of contention. It was agreed that more special needs assistants would be a boon in the classroom, but money is needed to hire them.
Nahendeh MLA Jim Antoine, who was present for the meeting, didn't commit to additional funds, but he said the Government of the Northwest Territories is digging its way out of debt.
"We're not in dire straits... we're a lot better off now than we were a year ago, than we thought we were going to be," he said. "People are asking for additional dollars. I'm not promising anything, but it looks very promising."
Earlier in the evening, Nolan Swartzentruber, director of the Deh Cho Divisional Board of Education, had revealed that the Divisional Education Council (DEC) has spent $257,000 over budget this year. The majority of that, $244,000, was allocated to Fort Simpson, primarily for extra staff, Swartzentruber said.
The DEC drew the cost over-run from its surplus which it has built over the past several years. That reserve now stands at approximately $1 million, he noted.
"And that's going down pretty quick," he said.
Swartzentruber suggested that a trustees association should be re-established in the NWT to lobby the GNWT for more funding.
In the meantime, Robert Byatt, principal of Thomas Simpson secondary school, said literacy and numeracy tutoring programs would be of benefit.
"That's something we can do right now that doesn't require a lot of money."
