With a provincial election to be held next month, the Anglophone East District Education Council is reaffirming its commitments.
It is calling on the next government to end court battles and reverse plans to dissolve the council.
During a news conference held on Wednesday, DEC members Dr. Kristin Cavoukian and Vice-Chair Dominic Vautour told reporters the DEC is making its stance known as a provincial election looms.
Cavoukian says DECs are an integral part of the democratic process.
“We have stood up to the Higgs and Hogan government on a number of issues of importance to our community, including the province’s attempt to eliminate French immersion, an unnecessary bill to overhaul the Education Act, and the changes Minister Hogan made to Policy 713 based entirely on unfounded conspiracy theories,” Cavoumian says.
“We continue to stand up for a safe and inclusive environment for all our students and the democratic rights of their parents who elected us now with an election on the horizon.”
The individuals who make up the DEC are currently elected by the public, but Cavoukian says if dissolved, the provincial government would impose direct control over the district.
In July, Education Minister Bill Hogan received the green light from cabinet to apply to the Court of King’s Bench to have the DEC dissolved.
“The Anglophone East DEC invited Mr. Hogan to form a working group to find a way forward on Policy 713, but he flatly rejected this invitation, and then he agreed to a working group with the Francophone DEC. Not only is this unfair and inequitable, it also makes no sense,” Cavoukian adds.
“First, we are standing against the politicization of our school system. Parties and governments come and go, and so do their ideological commitments, but our children’s education is far too important to allow ideology to dictate changes on a whim.”
The council plans to launch a Q&A series on its Facebook page to hear from more families.
“We think outhouse politics have no place in New Brunswick,” Cavoukian stressed.
The Anglophone East DEC is taking the province to court over controversial changes made to Policy 713, arguing they are discriminatory and endanger students.
Under the updated policy, schools now require parental consent if a student under 16 wants to informally use a different name or pronoun.
