SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The year-long discussion - over surrendering a school to help the GNWT satisfy requirements of a recently-overturned court order - wasn't wasted time, according to Yellowknife Education District No. (Yk1) 1 board members.

John Stephenson, chair of the Yk1 board, says he doesn't regret the decision to maintain the status quo in his division. - NNSL file photo

The territorial government's partial victory released it from the 2012 NWT Supreme Court order to expand the French board's only school, apart from having to build a gymnasium and space for a special needs' classroom at Ecole Allain St.-Cyr.

The case in 2012 spurred Yk1 to take an in-depth look at its facilities after low enrolment caused the GNWT to request a school transfer from Yk1. Both William McDonald and J.H. Sissons were considered for transfer.

John Stephenson, chair of the Yk1 board, said he doesn't regret the decision to maintain the status quo in his division.

"I really feel for the French board. They've lived with this for years in striving to find adequate space," he said. "All this has resulted in a lot of costs and a lot of work. I have no regrets about the way we participated."

Board Trustee Mira Hall said the board wouldn't have given up J.H. Sissons without discussing it with parents, although that is what they were asked to do by the GNWT's Department of Education, Culture and Employment (ECE).

"ECE never said 'we're taking it', they just said 'we want it, you need to give us an answer by the end of the week'," said Hall. "We said, 'it's really nice you want an answer by the end of the week, but we need to do public consultation so we'll do that. We're going to do our due diligence to our stakeholders, and if that doesn't work for you that's your problem.'"

The board was asked to surrender a school, and William McDonald school - which had the lowest enrolment in the board - was the obvious choice. But the school is quite new, and so, Hall said, it made sense to lose J.H. Sissons, which needs to be completely renovated.

The GNWT has made similar requests three times, said Hall, but parents clung to the idea of losing J.H. Sissons.

"My position is that we did not talk about giving up (J.H. Sissons) for a whole year because of the French board at all. We would discuss in the town hall meetings and all of the conversations ... this isn't the first time that they've asked for (a school). But I think ... it was really easy to understand that somebody was trying to take away something. And it really distracted people from the fact that our schools are underutilized."

Hall said GNWT lacks funds, and is looking for ways to afford everything they're mandated to provide.

"Every time the GNWT is under pressure to spend capital needs ... they go through a process where they're looking at potential space. (It) is actually responsible of them to say 'OK, is there an appropriate space available that we don't have to spend taxpayer money creating a whole new one?'" she said.

Stephenson said he understands what the GNWT tried to do.

"They have a job ... to represent territorial interests, territorial budgets. And I have my job ... to represent the interests of Yk1. We gave it a very thorough review and consideration, and in the end we decided we're going to continue ... with the schools that we have."

Hall said the GNWT approached the Yk1 board with a sense of urgency, but the board was not going to decide without talking to parents.

"It's always a matter of urgency," she said. "My responsibility is to the stakeholders that elected me (rather than the GNWT.) Their emergency is not my emergency."

She said she thinks the year-long conversation helped shine light on the state of the board.

William McDonald school was at 35 per cent capacity, while Range Lake North school was nearly full.

"And so when parents hear that, maybe when their kids are hitting those ages they're going to choose to put their kids in William McDonald because there's lot of room at (that) school," she said. "I'm hoping that people have a better understanding of all the services across the schools."

She said if attendance at William McDonald doesn't increase, it's difficult to justify holding onto it.

"That might be a controversial thing to say," she said. "Parents want things to stay the way that they are, and I completely respect that ... but if the GNWT just said 'this is it, we're taking it', it gives me a better idea of what would need to happen."

ECE did not return comment by press time.