SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
During legislative assembly last week, Education Minister Alfred Moses said the territorial government plans to break ground on a gymnasium for Ecole Allain St-Cyr by next summer.

However, Yvonne Careen, superintendent of Commission scolaire francophone des Territories du Nord-Ouest, which runs the school, said the district hasn't heard anything official.

"We have heard absolutely nothing on that front," she said. "I don't think we have a comment at this point because it's still fictitious."

The gymnasium, which was awarded to the Commission scolaire francophone in a 2012 NWT Supreme Court ruling, was part of a $15-million expansion along with a science lab, a larger playground and a learning space for special-needs students.

The expansion was originally awarded as part of a larger decision that would have expanded Ecole Allain St-Cyr to a 250-student capacity. This led to a year-long discussion about whether Yellowknife Education District No. 1 should surrender a school so the government could meet the court's demands. However, that 2012 ruling was later overruled in 2015 after an appeal.

Despite all this, the new ruling still calls for the construction of a suitable gymnasium and space that can be used to teach students with special needs.

The court also mandated the department must make long-term arrangements to provide access to the other specialized facilities the commission seeks.

"The department is meeting our obligations for French first language education under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Education Act, and the NWT Court of Appeals decision," Moses said in legislative assembly last week.

"We are hoping, and our intention is, to have the facilities open for students by September 2018."

As of now, the school shares these facilities with William McDonald Middle School.

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