Iqaluit District Education Authority taking GN to court
Case revolves around access to assessment program for special needs students
The Iqaluit District Education Authority is taking the Nunavut Department of Education to court seeking a judicial review of the department’s killing of a program funded by the federal government that would have assessed the special needs of 28 school-aged children. (File Photo)
The Iqaluit District Education Authority is asking the Nunavut Court of Justice for a judicial review, saying the Department of Education blocked its access to a federally funded child assessment program.
In September 2022, the education authority received $120,000 as part of the Government of Canada’s Child First Initiative Program to initiate screening for 28 school-aged children.
The Department of Education ended up killing the program about a month before it was set to begin, saying it already has programs to meet the special needs of students.
“They seem to be arguing that children in Iqaluit are getting too much help,” said Anne Crawford, IDEA’s lawyer.
Officials with the Iqaluit education authority said in a statement released Tuesday that they received documentation through Nunavut’s access to information law detailing approvals and consent for the assessments.
Subsequent to those approvals, the statement says, the GN blocked professionals from entering schools to conduct assessments and encouraged the contractor to withdraw its services.
The Department of Education maintains the 28 students have already had their assessments.
“When the department became aware of the students that the IDEA was suggesting needed services, the department followed up with schools to ensure each student was referred for services if needed,” stated Education Department spokesperson Krista Amey in an email.
The funds are available for the 2023-24 school year and IDEA is taking the department to court to “ensure Inuit students in need of services will [have] access to professional assistance,” said Crawford.
She said the main goal of the judicial review is to get kids assessed, but a second goal is to “assert control over school property.”
Crawford said the IDEA works directly under the authority of the territorial legislature, not the Department of Education, and is given authority over schools.
“We want confirmation from the courts, that it’s IDEA that controls school premises, access to premises who can come and go on premises, because that’s in [the Nunavut Education Act],” Crawford said.
The judicial review is scheduled to be heard in court in Iqaluit on Dec. 4.
Do the case like NTI does their cases against the GN.
Win the first time, the GN has to consult with the DEAs before making any changes.
Win a second time, the GN can not make any changes without DEA approval.
Win a third time, presumably GN will forfeit education control to the DEAs.
Pay particular attention to sections 114 (6) and 114(7) of the Education Act.
Hahahhahaha like the IDEA will do any better
Every department at the Government of Nunavut is dysfunctional! Dept of Education, Health and CGS are the worst! Maybe get rid of DMs and ADMs?
CGS is probably the worst. Go into any CGS office in Nunavut and you’ll find a bunch of people hanging around not even trying to make it look like they’re working. A lot of CGS offices and shops blatantly have couches in them, and they’re definitely not for the public.
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They sure seem to find the time to work a lot of OT though.
Interesting battle; the DEA (an elected body whose mandate is determined by the GN and whose funding comes from the GN) is fighting the GN (an elected body) and the GN’s department of education (the latter which is responsible for administering the DEA’s mandate).
Here let me fix that for you……
Interesting battle; the DEA (an elected body whose mandate is determined by the MLAs in the Assembly and some of whose funding comes from the GN) is attempting to deliver programs against the wishes of the Dept of Education (an un-elected body). The GN’s department of education seems to believe it is responsible for administering the DEA’s mandate – (when really, the mandate comes from the Education Act and the community.)
Nope. Until 2020, DEA’s were responsible for Inclusive Education (assessment of student special needs and provision of education support to meet those needs).
In 2020 the Legislative Assembly amended the Education Act, giving the Department of Education responsibility for these functions. The IDEA did not get the memo, and is now litigating because the Department told them to stop stepping on its jurisdiction.
I think you need to read the Act carefully.
You are confusing assessment (to identify needs) with support (once the needs are identified).
Remember that if the GN can consistently avoid identifying children with needs, then we will never have to take any special measures.
We have to look at this in budgetary terms. This is saving the department all kinds of money. Maybe it’s a problem for a few kids but overall it saves $$$ for real costs like administration and conferences.
This is a very interesting development for our school system.
If the court challenge is successful it means the locally elected school board could conceivably ban the Minister of Education and the related staff from entering a school building.
Is this what the intention of the Education Act really is?
Are DEA minutes public? At first look this seems like a really bad and combative move.
The ED act gives contol of the schools to the DEA.
The ED act gives control over student assessment to the Minister of ED.
Looks like a stsndoff, until the LEDGE passes a new ED act.
For someone not in the education sector, it is hard to understand what is going on, what is the significance of this. I suppose reading the materials submitted to the court, if they are available online, may help. All I get is that there is a battle over a not insignificant sum of money for some sort of professional supports for youth. It looks like it was dedicated to the IDEA based on the article, but who applied for the funds, who holds them, who has control over them, etc ? That should be explained here. What are these assessments? Why was the funding obtained if it is not being used? Is it a battle of egos, is the Dept of Education unable to respond because of understaffing, does the IDEA do the thinking and expect the Dept to do the work, is there misunderstanding of roles and responsibilities, etc. ?
Is a difficult and terrifying division to deal with. Misinformation and hostility when inquiring about the basic needs for children with needs