Southwest Sask. parents let those in Regina know how they feel

by Aasa Marshall
The Prairie Post

SaskatchewanRural school supporters from Chinook division made sure their message was heard by the government at the Save Our Schools rally, but they didn’t get the response they’d hoped for.

Supporters from across the division arrived at the Legislature Tuesday morning, and displayed their feelings about the government’s treatment of rural schools on hand-written cardboard signs.

About 35 people, from elementary school students to grandparents, rode a charter bus into Regina for the Save Our Schools rally, while others drove themselves. They joined over 200 people from around the province on the steps of the Legislative buildings, and hear speeches from politicians, students, parents, and the head of the SOS movement.What they didn’t hear was the government saying it would provide more funds for rural schools.

Prior to the rally, as the bus trundled through a snowstorm towards Regina, Richmound school board chair Cyril Anderst said he hoped the government would agree to look at the way it funds rural schools.Anderst has been involved in the fight to save rural schools at the local, regional and provincial levels through his board and the SOS organization. Two of his sons went through the school system in Richmound, and another is in grade seven.

Like many parents, Anderst wants the government to slow down the school review process."I would hope for an initiative from the government that would … see the wisdom of endorsing a delay in the review process, because I think it’s been very rushed and forced," he said. "More than that I would like to see and initiative that would divert more grant funding to rural schools, at least restore the amount that was taken away from them during the forced amalgamation."

Warren McNary, a father of four who ranches near Tompkins, said he never expected to be involved in a political rally. Wearing a black cowboy hat and faded red denim shirt, McNary made announcements to the bus passengers, encouraging them to be vocal, but respectful, during the demonstration.Though he’s "not a political person", seeing the effect of the school closure threat on his community and his children was enough to get him involved.

All four of McNary’s children made the journey to Regina for the rally. He said it was important for the government to see the faces of the people most affected by school closures: the students."They’re the ones that are paying for it out of their lives, out of their family time, their home time," he said. "…They’re the ones that shed the tears when they heard that their school might be closing, they’re the ones that wouldn’t sleep at night and cried and wanted us to come talk to them."

During the rally, however, Minister of Learning Deb Higgins didn’t have the response supporters were hoping to hear.

Higgins told the crowd she understands that closing schools is an emotional issue, but difficult decisions need to be made to ensure students are provided with the best educational opportunities."The local school divisions have a responsibility to look at the best way to provide services in their area with the funding that they have," she said from the podium.Higgins said the government has added $200 million to the foundation operating grant in the past decade while enrolment numbers have gone down.

Olivia Hellman, a 16-year-old from Richmound, expressed a different opinion from the same podium, later in the rally. She read a letter that she had written to the Chinook School Division at the start of the review process, and then sent to both the Minister and the Premier."A school is not a business, it is not created to make money or sell a product," she read. "A school is built to educate young children’s minds, it should not matter how much it costs to do so, but how well the children are being educated."

After attending the rally and a session of question period, Climax parent Michelle Smith said she was not surprised by the government’s response. Standing in the rotunda of the Legislature, Smith shrugged her shoulders as she spoke."It’s the same old excuses that we’ve heard over and over again, and it never actually comes down to answering questions that are being asked," she said. "When are they going to fund education and when is education going to become important?"

Moments later, across the rotunda, Minister Higgins told reporters that educational opportunities for students are her top priority."Do you know something? School are buildings," Higgins said. "There has been areas in the province where schools have been closed, populations have changed, demographics has changed and there’s a need for a larger facility or a different facility, that’s happened. Our population has changed, and that’s what we need to address to make sure services are there for students."

the Prairie Post