Westisle community questions school review's ability to improve education

The gym at Westisle Composite High School was packed with hundreds of peopleon Tuesdaynight, many wearing T-shirts that read "We The West", as community members rallied together to support rural schools.

Is it your intention to actually lower the standards of our entire education system so that all students are receiving an equally less than stellar education?- Stephanie Kinch

Before the public school meeting for the Westisle family of schools was a rally in the foyer of the school with music, speakers and food from5:30 until 7:00.

The meeting itself lasted five hours, wrapping up just aftermidnight. Parents, students and graduates were among the many speakers who talked about the importance of these schools in their lives.

The Westisle family of schools has two schools up for possible closure, Bloomfield and St. Louis Elementary. The report also recommends adding French immersion to O'Leary and Alberton Elementary, stricter zone enforcement, and says the recommendations will allow for 28.94 instructional full-time equivalent (FTE) to be redistributed to help with overcrowding and class sizes in other schools.

'Underutilizationis not the problem'

Stephanie Kinch has three children at St. Louis, andspokeon behalf of St. Louis Home and School. Shesaid the review needs to be stopped.

Kinchasked if the tax dollars saved by closing schools would stay in the community, or in West Prince at all.

"Will rural P.E.I. once more suffer for the betterment of the urban area?" she said.

"The mottoof our province is the small under the protection of the great, but it is starting to feel like it is the small working for the betterment of the great."

Kinchspoke about the achievements of students atrural schools, asking how better learning for all would be possible by closing those schools.

"Is it your intention to actually lower the standards of our entire education system so that all students are receiving an equally less than stellar education?" she said.

The problems aren't with rural schools, she said, it's with overcrowding and building maintenance needed in urban centres.

"Underutilization is not the problem, it is the result of a problem, and that problem is population growth," Kinchsaid. "School closures are in no way going to solve this problem, they will only add to the problem."

Near the end of the meeting, when asked during the open mic portion of the event, Susan Willis, thechairof the Public Schools Branchboard of directors, said this process is about finding the best way to distribute resources.

"I believe that that is one way to have a positive impact on learning for all children," Willis said.

Concerns about losing teachers/staff

Jason Ramsaygave a presentation on behalf of Bloomfield Home and School. He drew attention to the recommendation to redistribute28.94 FTE to deal with overcrowding and class sizes in other schools.

Ramsay said losing that number of teachers or support staff would improve the student/teacher ratio for central schools, but wouldincrease the ratio of students per teacher in the Westisle family of schools.

"This is not better learning for all, this is better learning for central at the expense of far east and far west. We would be foolish to let a single FTE leave the Westislefamily now knowing what this process is all about," he said.

"The bleeding of rural P.E.I. must stop."

Ramsaysaid the need to bring in FTE from rural areas is a result of poor management of the influx of immigrant families by the P.E.I. government.

Criticism of timeline

As with speakers at other school meetings,many said the timeline of the process is rushed, and doesn't allow enough time to do things effectively.

Pat Murphy, newly appointed minister of rural and regional development, had taped a video message to be played for the crowd. In it, he said the process is moving way too fast, and it has been focused on utilization when it should be focused on student outcomes.

The last public school meeting in this round of the process will be for the Montague family of schools on Feb. 27 at MorellRegional High School.

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