Almost completely missed in media coverage of Friday’s purge of NDP appointees to agencies, boards and commissions by Alberta’s United Conservative Party Government was the revelation that the same day the government abruptly cancelled a three-year-old memorandum of agreement with the Alberta Teachers Association to co-operate on curriculum development. While
Continue readingTag: Education funding
daveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: Edmonton Public School Trustees doing their due diligence by asking about UCP education cuts
UCP doesn’t want Albertans to talk about cuts that could come if they form government in 2019 “How are we going to get our province back on course? I’m sorry to tell you, but it’s going to hurt. Will it affect you? It absolutely will,” said United Conservative Party MLA
Continue readingAlberta Politics: UCP in damage control mode, its troll farm busy, in face of Edmonton Public School Board budget cuts analysis
Alberta’s United Conservative Party Opposition was in furious damage control mode yesterday after Edmonton Public Schools’ release of “hypothetical” estimates of four budget scenarios for what anticipated UCP cuts could mean for students, parents and teachers. The scenarios were based on past hints UCP Leader Jason Kenney has dropped about
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Saskatchewan Catholic school funding case likely to drag on despite deadline; cabinet shuffle today in Alberta
You’d think the province of Saskatchewan would be almost out of time to figure out how to deal with a judge’s ruling last year that non-Catholic students may not receive public funding if they attend separate schools. After all, the bombshell decision by Mr. Justice Donald Layh of the Saskatchewan
Continue readingAlberta Politics: That U of A ‘bailout’ the Canadian Taxpayers Federation’s prattling about? Hasn’t happened; isn’t happening; won’t happen …
Good news for Alberta taxpayers! The University of Alberta has not sought, is not seeking, and will not seek a “bailout” – or anything like a bailout – from the taxpayers of Alberta. Let’s say it again: Hasn’t happened. Isn’t happening. Won’t happen. I mention this because of the startling
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Kinder, gentler Kenney must be for real! UCP lavishes 13 words of praise on NDP for capping super superintendent salaries!
Alberta’s United Conservative Party generates a lot of noise. Other than the Trans Mountain Pipeline, however, not a lot of it seems to have much to do with the principal issues facing Alberta these days. Education Minister David Eggen’s decision to slap a cap on the outrageous salaries paid to
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Support in Alberta is overwhelming for ending public support of elite private schools, new poll shows
PHOTOS: Private schoolboys. In Alberta, our taxpayers subsidize ’em! (Photo: Bundesarchiv.de.) Below: Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, United Conservative Party Leader Jason Kenney, and Progress Alberta Executive Director Duncan Kinney. Now that’s interesting! According to a new poll, the idea of ending funding for elite private schools enjoys more support in
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Inclusion of 1905 act in Constitution means Brad Wall’s ‘Notwithstanding Clause’ gambit is no slam-dunk
PHOTOS: Premier Brad Wall of Saskatchewan (Photo: CBC). Below: Edmonton lawyer Simon Renouf. If Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall thinks he can just snap his fingers and the Notwithstanding Clause of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms will make his Catholic school troubles go away, he may need to think
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Now the public’s tuned in, it’ll be hard to put a lid back on discussion of rich subsidies to ritzy private schools
PHOTOS: An illustration grabbed from the Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School’s website. The elite private school charges annual tuition of $21,000 per year per student … and received more than $20 million in subsidies from Alberta taxpayers over five years! Below: Alberta Education Minister David Eggen, Edmonton School Trustee Michael Janz and Alberta
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Jason Kenney states his support for public funding of home-schooling, parents’ right to veto sex education, and more
PHOTOS: Jason Kenney … he’s got some thoughts on education and we thought you might like to know what they are (CBC photo). Below: Alberta Education Minister David Eggen, Progress Alberta Executive Director Duncan Kinney and defiant Pastor Brian Coldwell of Parents for Choice in Education. Where does Jason Kenney
Continue readingAlberta Politics: In the debate over home schooling and ‘parents’ rights,’ we need to remember children have rights too
PHOTOS: Alberta Education Minister David Eggen. Below: Wildrose Opposition Leader Brian Jean and film director and former American evangelical Frank Schaeffer (Salon photo). Controversy in Alberta over the provincial government’s decision to withdraw funding and accreditation from a private Christian school association that oversaw about a third of the province’s
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Motion demanding public support for private and charter schools backfires on Alberta Tory Leader
PHOTOS: Interim Alberta Tory Leader Ric McIver and another PC are ejected from the Legislature yesterday by the Sergeant at Arms. Actual Alberta MLAs may not appear exactly as illustrated. Below: The Real Ric McIver and Edmonton Public School Board Cha…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Is there something vaguely familiar about the Wildrose Leader’s ‘interactive event’?
PHOTO: Wildrose Leader Brian Jean gazes into the future, or into a pond, or something. For $150 bucks, you can sit there with him. The annual general meeting pages on the Wildrose website include an invitation to an opportunity to take part in a conversation with Brian Jean in an
Continue readingstaffroom confidential: Solidarity key to protecting public education
Hundreds of parents, teachers and students will be protesting education cuts in BC on Sunday. Families Against Cuts to Education is hosting the protests in five BC communities after yet another round of budget cuts for school boards and increased costs surreptitiously delivered through increases to BC Hydro rates and
Continue readingstaffroom confidential: Solidarity key to protecting public education
Hundreds of parents, teachers and students will be protesting education cuts in BC on Sunday. Families Against Cuts to Education is hosting the protests in five BC communities after yet another round of budget cuts for school boards and increased costs…
Continue readingstaffroom confidential: Solidarity key to protecting public education
Hundreds of parents, teachers and students will be protesting education cuts in BC on Sunday. Families Against Cuts to Education is hosting the protests in five BC communities after yet another round of budget cuts for school boards and increased costs surreptitiously delivered through increases to BC Hydro rates and
Continue readingstaffroom confidential: Parents protest BC’s education budget cuts
Parents and education supports will be out on April 12th protesting the latest round of cuts to BC’s education budget (details here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1550717231856110/). Below is a post I wrote for rabble.ca outlining the cuts and s…
Continue readingstaffroom confidential: Parents protest BC’s education budget cuts
Parents and education supports will be out on April 12th protesting the latest round of cuts to BC’s education budget (details here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1550717231856110/). Below is a post I wrote for rabble.ca outlining the cuts and swift responses from parents and Trustees. As Boards develop their budgets for next year, we are
Continue readingstaffroom confidential: Parents protest BC’s education budget cuts
Parents and education supports will be out on April 12th protesting the latest round of cuts to BC’s education budget (details here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1550717231856110/). Below is a post I wrote for rabble.ca outlining the cuts and swift responses from parents and Trustees. As Boards develop their budgets for next year, we are
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