Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This is Education Week. It’s an annual celebration of all aspects of teaching and learning, and it is a time for students, teachers and parents to celebrate excellence and achievements and reflect on what more we can do to address challenges.
The Diamond Jenness Secondary School alternative education program, called the Storefront School in Hay River, opened in October of 2009, and runs in leased space on the ground floor of the highrise, which is right beside the high school. Students receive instruction and programming on an individual basis for a variety of needs and work in a supportive and flexible environment. Students are comfortable with the personalized education and are able to work around other commitments in their lives. For example, there are single parents with responsibilities at home as well as students who are working to support themselves who cannot attend school during regular classroom hours.
In just over one year of operation, the success of this program has been tremendous. There are currently 42 students enrolled in the 2010-11 year. There were 24 students active during just this past week. One hundred and seventy credits have been completed during the first semester of this year and an additional 214 potential credits could be completed by June 2011. Students who otherwise would not have access to a way to complete their high school education are now studying hard and succeeding, and this year we may see up to eight graduates from this program.
The South Slave District Education Council did not receive start-up funding for alternative education programs. All costs for the programs were from regular formula funding. Without adequate funding, alternative education cannot continue to maintain operations at its current level. The recent announcement by the government to change the funding allocation for alternative education jeopardizes the stability of this program.
It is not easy to find employment or advance in the workplace to a level that provides sufficient income to support oneself or raise a family if you do not have at least a basic level of education, grade 12. It has taken several years to establish a program for at-risk students, and this method of education is working. It has proven to be a necessary program in northern communities to ensure that as many of our young people as possible are prepared for their future. I encourage the government to find ways to fund this program and to continue to support Hay River’s storefront school and other schools like it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.
