The School District 91 (SD 91) kindergarten registrations had a few road bumps last week.
The kindergarten enrolment started last week on Mar. 15 and immediately after the start, there were issues with parents not being able to register at the William Konkin Elementary (WKE) school.
Complaints started coming in about parents being turned away citing catchment. Some parents said that when they went to register for french immersion (FI), they were told that they won’t be able to enrol their kids at WKE as they were out of catchment area.
“We have been made aware of one or two miscommunication issues involved on the first day of K registration, and those concerns have been addressed at the school level. The catchment area procedures remain the same as past years for all SD91 communities,” said assistant superintendent Mike Skinner.
Skinner also said that the representatives from the Canadian Parents for French (CPF) Burns Lake chapter regarding this issue and that he indicated that parents should contact him directly if there are any issues enrolling.
“In the first two days of registration, we believe all parents who wanted to sign up for FI completed the registration form at WKE,” he said.
The CPF chapter in Burns Lake has been trying to convince the board to keep the FI program at WKE.
Last year in April, a report regarding the French Immersion programs’ review in the school district was released. This review, conducted by AZ Cooper Consulting was done to determine the sustainability of having French Immersion programs in the schools in the school district and in conclusion it recommended eliminating the FI program at WKE.
Some parents who had gone to register their kids earlier last week, were turned away and the CPF chapter had immediately contacted the assistant superintendent to resolve the issue as historically catchment has not been enforced in schools in Burns Lake.
As of Mar. 16, according to the CPF Burns Lake chapter, 10 little ones were registered so far. However, while the registration was to end on Mar. 19, it has been extended.
“Registration would continue after spring break to ensure all parents can register their children if they unable come to school this week,” said Skinner.
Priyanka Ketkar
Multimedia journalist
@PriyankaKetkar
priyanka.ketkar@ldnews.net
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