Thank you, Mr. Speaker. When parents send their children to school hundreds of miles away, they’re expecting a certain amount of assistance and care from the government and the Department of Education, Culture and Employment. Not that the region has not had good government-assisted boarding homes, parents are literally left out to make do on their own and the kids to fend for themselves, once they have to return home. It’s unacceptable. The lack of support and attention to this matter from the district education office, the Department of ECE, this government, shows that they’re not in touch with the people in the small and remote communities. The only handful of communities that are small enough to have a high school. These communities are left on their own. This government is not for all the people of the Northwest Territories. I have received many parents’ concern for the lack of support and assistance they receive regarding the boarding home care of their children during high school in Inuvik.
This government and the district office must do more to assist families and find appropriate boarding homes and facilities so their children can go to school and learn in a healthy environment. Many students live in boarding homes where there’s drinking, and drugs, and partying. That’s no place for a student to study and learn. It’s unacceptable. Many reasons why students in Nunakput drop out of school, but that’s a major concern when they do, because we don’t support them. If we are asking our kids to stay in school, we need to set them up and meet them half way. We need to provide for them resources, moral support, a good school environment, and a safe, reliable place for them to live. So far we’re not providing many of these services and that’s a shame.
This government should look at the vision statement of the 16th Legislative Assembly and apply it to all of the Northwest Territories.
Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.
