Christine Grimard
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, September 19, 2007

YELLOWKNIFE - Yellowknife Education District No. 1 did not bear any funding cuts despite threats earlier this year that it would receive less money if it did not close down one of its schools.

Last February, the Department of Education, Culture, and Employment (ECE) threatened to cut $200,000 of the board's funding this year if they did not amalgamate their students and close down one of their schools, leasing the space to Yellowknife Catholic Schools (YCS).

The threat came as Education Minister Charles Dent said the school board was wasting money by keeping open half-empty schools, as many Yk1 schools sit at around 60 percent capacity.

During a presentation of Yk1's annual audit Sept. 11, Metro Huculak, superintendent of education, announced that the board did not shoulder a funding cut.

Although Yk1 never did close a school, Dan Daniels, deputy minister of ECE, said that it presented a fair shared space proposal to validate not cutting the school's funding.

"They gave us a proposal we thought was acceptable," said Daniels.

Initial Yk1 proposals sent in May outlined jointly-used space in multiple schools, a proposal that was rejected by YCS. Yk1 then adjusted its proposal to fit all the students at William McDonald school.

"We had to provide the minister with a proposal he could accept, and we did that," said Huculak, who offered seven classrooms at William McDonald school to the YCS board.

Between 100 and 280 St. Joseph students have been displaced as the school undergoes renovations over the next two years.

Yk1 adjusted its shared space plans just as YCS announced it preferred to purchase seven modular classroom units to keep its students at home.

"We were trying to make sure that overall the schools in Yellowknife were making the best use of their space," said Daniels, adding that the threatened funding cut was also to encourage the school boards to work together.

The Department of Education is paying $1.6 million for five of the St. Joseph portables.

Daniels said that money was added to their budget so they didn't have to cut from any other area. YCS is paying for the remaining two portables.

Huculak said that if ECE had followed through on the funding cut, Yk1 would have taken the money from its accumulated surplus so as to not take anything away from the students.