Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The ECE Minister has given us a schedule for rolling out free junior kindergarten service across the NWT. It begins with small communities in ’14-15, followed by regional centres next and, finally, Yellowknife in year three.
Unfortunately, the Minister is funding small community programs this coming year by removing funds for our students here in Yellowknife. The Minister will say schools have a surplus, but in fact our schools raise funds through taxes on Yellowknifers to cover costs not covered by government. While the Yellowknife students are funded on a much lower per capita basis than those in small communities, Yellowknifers have recognized the need for that. But now the Minister is penalizing the initiative by the Yellowknife school boards by not only reducing their funding but also requiring that is what is currently a cost-recovery JK service be replaced with a so-called free service.
Yellowknife schools currently use ECE funding and taxpayer dollars to provide education for 12 classes plus kindergarten. As of ’16-17, the Minister will require them to do the same plus provide junior kindergarten for about 120 small children in each
school system with no additional support. Without any investment from ECE to support this extra responsibility, this can only be done on the backs of our children, a clearly unacceptable basis for any program.
It’s not right to give new responsibilities without new funding. The Minister should provide new funding for junior kindergarten to all communities. This relatively small investment will help ensure the success of this new program and avoid eroding the quality of education we offer our kids.
Once again, the Minister is forcing Yellowknife school boards to struggle without needed funds as he removes them over the next two years. With a weakened system, he will then add the responsibility of 120 wee children for each school board requiring specialized early childhood development programs in junior kindergarten, returning only to the original level of funding. Blood from a stone for our children. Shame!
I will have questions for the Minister. Mahsi.