Education

EDMONTON—“While last year's budget could be characterized as a chicken little 'the sky is falling' because of the bitumen bubble, this year's budget is just a 'little chicken,'” said Bill Moore-Kilgannon, Executive Director of Public Interest Alberta. “Rather than addressing the priorities expressed by Albertans in the consultations last fall and following through on many of their election promises, the Redford government is taking only a few baby steps.”

"While federal Conservatives hammer out new ideas in Calgary’s BMO Centre, their opponents are holding a series of protests and counter summits this week. Things kick off October 31, with Wake Up Canada—The Canada We Want summit at The Area in Inglewood. Wake Up Canada is offering workshops on labour, environmental, human rights and aboriginal issues at The Area and Central Library until November 2, as well as two protest rallies outside the BMO Centre where the Conservative Convention is taking place. The non-profit social advocacy group Public Interest Alberta is holding its own counter-summit on November 1 at the Central Library."

Candidates for school boards from Edmonton, Calgary, Red Deer and Medicine Hat filled out an extensive survey from PIA’s Education task force. The survey explores a wide range of issues, including their priorities, the roles of the trustee, education funding, privatization and school infrastructure.

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On October 1st, the provincial government announced a public consultation on the Budget 2014 with open house sessions

"'Unfortunately, there is a sort of political culture that has developed with far too many [elected school boards] that somehow they’re representing the government back to the people,” said Bill Moore-Kilgannon, executive director for Public Interest Alberta. 'But that’s the importance of them being locally elected,' he added. 'At the end of the day, they have to be responsive to the citizens, not to dictates of the provincial government.'"

EDMONTON—Representatives of Public Interest Alberta (PIA) called on Premier Redford to step in and rescind a recent action by Alberta’s Minister of Education Jeff Johnson which amounts to bullying urban school boards into subsidizing charter schools.

The rally, which Weir helped organize with a fellow student in two weeks, attracted nearly 500 Edmonton high school students to the Alberta Legislature to protest government cuts to K-12 education. On Tuesday at 11 a.m., students walked out of their classrooms and got on yellow buses booked by student organizers and paid for using a donation from the Alberta Federation of Labour. Organizers said there were 19 buses in total to ferry students from 10 different Edmonton schools to the peaceful protest.

"More than 400 students walked out of their high school classrooms and gathered at the Alberta legislature Tuesday morning to protest recent provincial cuts to education funding. Organizer Hayden Weir, 18, told the boisterous crowd it’s time for students to take a stand."

"'Students are more than just the people who sit in the classrooms that taxes fund every year,' said Samantha Kennedy, a Grade 11 student, and one of the event's student organizers. 'They are the next artists, engineers and nurses. As soon as we place a dollar amount on someone's potential, we are limiting them in so many ways.' Speakers included representatives from Kids Not Cuts, opposition parties and Public Interest Alberta."

"Kennedy and Weir were working Friday to charter buses that will pick students up at various high schools Tuesday just after 11 a.m. and shuttle them to the legislature. Hundreds of students from about a dozen public and Catholic high schools have indicated they hope to attend.Students plan to rally outside the legislature, eating lunch, listening to live music and guest speakers and celebrating education and extracurricular school programs, some of which have suffered funding cuts, Kennedy said."