École-Sur-Mer parents hopeful after meeting with local MLAs

The parents and the French Language School Board have been fighting to secure additional resources from the provincial government for Grades 10, 11 and 12 at École-Sur-Mer for some time.

Last year the French Language School Board announced it would be introducing high school grades to the facility regardless of stalled talks with the province. Grade 10 classes started in September 2016, and Grades 11 and 12 are scheduled to be introduced as needed.

Negotiations have been ongoing between the parties, but with another school year quickly drawing to a close and families looking for clarification, the parents’ committee called for a meeting with local MLAs, including Sonny Gallant, Paula Bigger and Chris Palmer.

Gilles Benoit, spokesman for the parents, said Tuesday the group was pleasantly surprised with what it heard. There seemed to be a commitment from the politicians to work with parents and the board to secure additional resources.

Details and an official commitment are still needed, he said, but in general, parents left the meeting feeling encouraged.

“Sometimes action doesn’t always follow the words,” he said, but “the parents at the meeting were satisfied.”

The Journal Pioneer reached out to the Department of Education for an update on the situation and received a non-committal statement saying discussions with the French Language School Board are ongoing.

Both the Public Schools Branch and the French board are being asked to rank and submit their infrastructure priorities to government for consideration in the capital projects budgeting process.