End of NORTEP major loss for province’s north

Historically there was a high turnover of teachers in northern Saskatchewan, and few of the teachers were Indigenous. Today, that situation has changed and the Northern Teacher Education Program (NORTEP) is the reason.

NORTEP was headquartered in La Ronge and run by a board of governors that included the Prince Albert Grand Council, the Meadow Lake Tribal Council, the Northern Lights school division, the Isle a la Crosse school division and the Creighton school division. Classes were offered by both the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Regina.

The program was well run and over the years graduated close to 500 teachers. About 90 per cent of graduates stayed in the north, so the program was receiving value for money. In most cases the graduates represented the first time a family member received a college education.

Last year, the minister of Advanced Education, Scott Moe, sent a letter to the board of directors of NORTEP terminating the program. The letter, dated July 28, 2016, stated that the program would be transferred to another institution, but no mention was made as to which one.

The provincial election took place on April 4 of that year. I have spoken to various stakeholders and nobody can recall if anyone complained about the program.

Following the letter of termination, the Ministry of Education and the NORTEP board formed a committee and issued a call for proposals and received replies from the University of Saskatchewan, the University of Regina, the First Nations University of Canada, the Gabriel Dumont Institute and the Northern Lights school division. Northlands College sent a onepage letter stating that they preferred not to participate.

In their letter, Kelvin Greschner, CEO of Northlands College stated, “we are unable to unilaterally commit to the continued delivery of NORTEP/NORPAC programming …”

The committee reviewed the proposals and unanimously selected the Gabriel Dumont Institute as the best proposal. Because of its lack of interest, Northlands College scored a zero.

In spite of their perceived lack of interest and failure to provide a business plan, the provincial Minister of Education, Bronwyn Eyre, selected Northlands College. She stated that while NORTEP was driving the process the final decision would rest with her.

In other words, the good work of the committee meant nothing.

This raises the question, was the decision already made to transfer the program to Northlands before the committee began its work? Was the board of Northlands so confident that it would get the program that it didn’t even bother to submit a proposal?

NORTEP also owns some $12 million in student housing, including two apartment buildings and four townhouses as well as a library with a replacement value of around $1 million. The NORTEP board has transferred the assets to the Gabriel Dumont Institute.

This strange saga isn’t over. The students are unsure of their futures and the time they have invested in their education. School boards are worried that overall they will be retiring about 25 teachers annually. Staff turnover combined with a rapidly growing population spell more need for new teachers. Saskatchewan has the second highest rate of child poverty in Canada and northern Saskatchewan has a higher rate than the south.

This fall, many of the students moved on to other jobs or continued their education elsewhere. This year, the teacher education program at Northlands College will fail to graduate any student, despite the fact that in years past a steady stream of teachers graduated to provide personnel for northern schools.

Northern Saskatchewan is a dead zone for the Sask. Party. Both provincial seats and the federal seat are held by the NDP. With decisions like the closing of NORTEP it appears the Sask. Party has little regard for the special needs of northerners and don’t have their support at the ballot box.

A valuable program that was controlled by Aboriginal people and northerners has been lost at a time when it is needed more than ever. The provincial government must revisit its decision and allow northern people to control their own destiny.