The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The group opposing the Creighton high school is still talking but some members worry that nobody's listening. Members of Citizens for Better Education say they have written to Saskatchewan Premier Lorne Calvert, Learning Minister Andrew Thomson, and Creighton MLA Joan Beatty, asking that the province become involved in what has been an ugly dispute. But the reaction from the province has left them shaking their heads. "The response has been, 'We're not getting involved,'" said member Buz Trevor. Both he and Gloria Brown, another member, feel that the group has been ignored by the province despite what they believe are legitimate concerns. "I'm not sure if it's a dead issue or not," said Brown. "If we could get anybody to actually listen to us, it wouldn't be a dead issue." Citizens for Better Education wants the province to become involved in this local issue because they feel public opposition to the high school program is too strong to ignore. Earlier this year, the Citizens for Better Education organized a petition drive calling on the Creighton School Board to reverse its vote to establish the high school and review the matter further. According to the group, the petition was signed by 676 Creighton and Denare Beach voters Ñ about half of the total electorate. Not everyone who signed the petition necessarily opposed the high school concept. The petition called for the issue to be reviewed, not aborted. The petition wasn't enough to sway the opinion of the school board, but Brown said that so many signatures, combined with what she feels are unanswered questions about the high school, should be enough for the issue to be revisited. About 130 Creighton and Denare Beach students currently attend high school in Flin Flon at Hapnot Collegiate and Many Faces Education Centre. Many opponents of the Creighton high school fear that the new school won't be able to compete with Flin Flon programming because it will be smaller. They also feel the move will lessen social opportunities for youth on both sides of the border. Supporters argue that small schools are more conducive to learning than larger ones, and that Creighton Community School has a good track record of providing quality education. Some also believe the new program may be the only way to ensure the continued viability of the school. The Creighton School Board voted 4-2 on December 16 to add grades 10, 11 and 12 to Creighton Community School, one year at a time, beginning in September 2004. After reviewing the matter at a special meeting in February, they reaffirmed that decision by a consensus vote of 5-1. The school board says it will offer a pallet of nearly 80 classroom courses for the new grades.
