Reserve schools short-changed

Official concerned new provincial funding for off-reserve students will leave First Nation’s schools empty

By Ryan Laverty
Staff reporter

While the Foothills School Division is still a little unsure about how the Alberta government’s commitment to improving aboriginal students will impact its classrooms, the principal at Chief Jacob Bearspaw School on the Eden Valley Reserve has a suspicion it could mean a loss of students and a resulting loss of funding for his school.
On Oct. 6, Alberta Learning announced an additional $1,020 per off-reserve aboriginal student attending provincial schools to add support services such as liaison workers, increased preparation for post-secondary education, support for at-risk children and improved in-school cultural supports.
Dougald McIntyre, a long-time aboriginal educator in both Ontario and Arizona and new principal of the Eden Valley-based school, said that could mean good things for provincially educated students, but he’s not exactly thrilled about the impact on his school.
“There’s a big gray area about the difference between who is an on-reserve and off-reserve student,” said McIntyre. “What address are they giving? Are they really living off-reserve or are they just saying they are? This seems like this could just be more enticements to get aboriginal students to go over to them.”
Al Rollins, manager of education for Indian and Northern Affairs Canada in Alberta, admitted the increases by Alberta Learning has led the federal government to look at readjusting its funding levels for band-operated schools.
“It does present a challenge when the Alberta government starts to reinvest in education,” said Rollins. “It is difficult for the federal government to be rapidly responsive to those sorts of changes because it is looking at things on a national level so there is a lag in response time.”
The federal government provides about $5,600 per aboriginal student as a basic funding level for its on-reserve schools, with allowable increases for such things as school operations and maintenance and remoteness. That money is extended to provincial school divisions for each on-reserve student choosing to be bused off-reserve for their education.
In contrast, Foothills School Division general accountant Audrey Kennedy said the division had received differing provincial grants for students based on their year of education. For Early Childhood Studies (ECS) Kennedy said basic funding was $2,482.
For students between Grades 1 and 9, Kennedy said funding increases to $4,963 per student. At the high school level funding is based on the number of credit courses the student is enrolled in at a rate of $141.80 per credit, to a maximum of 60 credits.
Lisa Blackstock, multicultural learning facilitator for the Foothills School Division, said there are approximately 220 self-identified aboriginal students attending schools in the division. She said the increase in funding should improve aboriginal student programming and support in provincial schools, but she was still unclear when and in what way.
“Until I’m clear on the expectations Alberta Learning has for this funding it’s really hard to say how this will improve (aboriginal education),” said Blackstock, whose salary is partially covered by the new funds. “It definitely will make an impact, but these things take time.”
McIntyre said he was worried the new level of funding is a backdoor way of pulling aboriginal students out of federally funded schools and ultimately allowing the Canadian government to pull out of aboriginal education entirely.
“If I’m being selfish, I don’t think it’s a good idea,” said McIntyre, a Canadian educator who had spent the last eight years as a principal at a Navajo school in Arizona. “Are the feds going to provide a similar level of funding for schools like ours? Or is this an underhanded way of drawing kids into public classrooms? If they’re going to do that then just do it. Stop piddling around it.”
Longview School principal Dave Roberts said one quarter of his student population is bused in from the Eden Valley Reserve, but in no way is the school division trying to pull students off the reserve and into provincial classrooms.
“It’s more a tradition for these students. Their parents went here and even some of their grandparents went here,” said Roberts, who meets with families on the reserve twice a year. “We let them know that Longview is a school of choice, but I certainly don’t go out of my way to draw kids away from (Chief Jacob Bearspaw) school. We certainly are not trying to steal kids from there.”
Rollins said the Canadian government is in no way looking to get out of aboriginal education, but that he couldn’t predict how the new provincial funding would affect schools such as Chief Jacob Bearspaw.
“I think (McIntyre) is asking some good questions,” said Rollins. “There is that lag and we don’t know how this is going to effect band-operated schools, but in no way is the federal government looking to end funding for band-operated schools.
“Quite the contrary actually. The federal government is currently in the process of exploring ways to strengthen and improve the level of education.”
Blackstock didn’t have a total dollar number for the new funding at press time. She said she hoped the additional funding would go towards such things as professional development and teacher and student resources.