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.
Trevor Miller From the perspective of the Creighton School Board, this is a decision that makes sense in dollars and cents terms, though it's a shame the realities of the situation brought it to this. With a high school of their own, diverting over $12,000 per student is hard to justify if they can't get a recognized French Immersion Diploma, especially if some students don't stay in the French Immersion program once they enroll. It's unfortunate that Hapnot's French program may take a funding hit as a result of this decision, but it's hard to see how the Creighton board could have chosen differently. Ken Mansell There appears to be very little interest from the students attending Hapnot French Immersion; I have heard it is in the single digits. Valuable time and resources spent on French Immersion increases class size in other courses. I agree with the Creighton School Board's position. French can be taught as a core subject in the home school, just like any other subject, at a fraction of the price paid for Immersion. In order to be bilingual I believe you have to live with it for more than a few hours a day at school. Denny Hyndman It's a shame to lose any funding; it is awful when it involves youth. However, quality comes into play here and Creighton does have valid concerns about Hapnot being able to offer a full immersion of French. Trustee Glenn Smith isn't far off when he worries this decision will affect whether Creighton parents enroll their children in K-8 French Immersion; as most parents do try and look at the long road during course selections. What a shame, considering all students are in this so-called 'inclusive' system. It will be interesting to see what, if any, partnerships form between our communities to ensure the longevity of programs that people have worked hard to instill.
