Yellowknife school district bracing for loss of 79 education assistants from change in Jordan's Principle

Yellowknife Education District No.1 (YK1) says it no longer has the funding to keep 79 of the district's education assistants next school year as a result of recent changes to Jordan's Principle.

Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) announced earlier this year that it would be narrowing the range of eligible requests for funding through Jordan's Principle, a program established to ensure First Nations children don't face gaps or service denials because of their identities. 

In a news release Tuesday, YK1 superintendent Shirley Zouboules wrote that the district has applied for Jordan's Principle funding but is still waiting for a reply. Without the funding confirmed, Zouboules said 79 education assistants in term, or temporary, positions have been told their positions likely won't exist next school year. 

Zouboules said that YK1's eight schools will adapt and that students previously supported by the 79 education assistants not returning next year will be reassigned to the remaining education assistants. 

"Assignments will be prioritized to ensure safety and promote student success," Zouboules wrote. 

Rita Mueller, president of the Northwest Territories Teachers' Association, said Wednesday that she's been speaking with Zouboules and YK1 staff about the situation. The positions affected are one-year contracts that expire at the end of June.

She said the school district has been waiting for an answer from the federal government on continued Jordan's Principle funding, without getting an answer.

"It's my understanding they've waited as long as they can," Mueller said. "They haven't heard either way from their multitude of applications, [so] they figured that they better give notice to the impacted education assistants."

It also affects teachers, she said, who often teach more than one grade in the same classroom. She said the type of support education assistants offer varies greatly from child to child. They often work one-on-one with children, or in small groups, to give them a range of support — physical, emotional, social or academic, depending on the child's needs.

"It's invaluable. I mean, it really makes all the difference in the world to the student," Mueller said.

MLA for Tu Nedhé-Wiilideh Richard Edjericon said Łutsël Kʼé is losing five education assistants as a result of the changes.

Zouboules said the district is still confirming education assistants' assignments and that schools will have more information in the coming weeks.