Ominous though it might sound, school officials said putting an educational program under review does not mean it’s on the chopping block, even as the second phase of the Gulf Islands School District’s (SD64) new — and now annual — process of examining non-mandated programs begins.
“I don’t think anyone should leave this meeting feeling like because we did have to close the international program, this is what’s happening this year,” said school board trustee Tisha Boulter at the board’s Wednesday, Jan. 29 meeting. “It sounds like we’re foreshadowing something, [but] we’re just reviewing; it’s our actual duty to do such a thing.”
The district’s Education Committee had suggested initiating an annual review of all educational programs not mandated by the province, identifying the Gulf Islands International Program (GIIP), the Saturna Ecological Education Program (SEEC), Late French Immersion, the Gulf Islands School of the Performing Arts (GISPA) and the Trades Awareness, Skills and Knowledge (TASK) programs — with each to be reviewed in phases.
The first phase reviewed GIIP and SEEC, with trustees ultimately announcing the end of the 25-year-old GIIP in November 2024, citing both financial pressures and declining enrolment. French Immersion and TASK are set for the second phase of review.
Some trustees seemed uncomfortable with TASK being up next, although it was unclear whether switching the list around would make a difference in the long run — and possibly delay the review process program supervisors had already begun. As the timeline stood, any decisions wouldn’t be made until spring at the earliest, with the review brought to a public meeting in May.
“And everything would be going to run in the fall regardless,” said secretary-treasurer Jesse Guy. “The earliest [any program] would be stopped is the following year.”
The educational program review is comprehensive, focusing on each program’s “original purpose, its current state, its alignment with the district’s strategic goals and whether it should continue in its current form,” according to a staff report. Trustees have said the review was to ensure alignment with the board’s strategic priorities, which necessarily includes the financial limitations of the district.
Trustees suggested under the same discussion programs such as Feeding Futures, Early Learning and Inclusive Education should be included. And while some programs on the review list do fulfill provincial mandates, Mayne Island trustee and board vice chair Deborah Luporini noted the courses themselves are not.
“I hear the comments about the TASK program,” said Luporini. “But I don’t think the ministry is saying we must do a program like this; they’re saying, ‘we have a course code if you do, and you can count it towards graduation.’”
“It was very hard to make the decision about [ending] the international program,” said Salt Spring Island trustee Rob Pingle. “I do think it’s beneficial to understand all our programs, whether they’re globally initiated or provincially mandated with ‘local flavour’ to them.”
Ultimately the board stuck with French Immersion for phase two, along with either GISPA or TASK, prioritizing whichever had the most staff work already completed. Review templates will be distributed to program coordinators and principals in February, with those expected back in March and final reports presented to the district board’s Committee of the Whole at a meeting on Wednesday, April 23.
“As we work through all of these, we have the time for talking to the community,” said Saturna Island trustee and board chair Chaya Katrensky, “being involved and not rushing it. It’s a lot of work.”
Future reviews for the remaining programs under consideration will begin in the fall.