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Baker successes and deficiencies showcased to Education Minister
Another Minister of Education has toured Mount Baker Secondary School (MBSS) and the same message was delivered – ‘we need a new school – badly!’
Education Minister Don McRae toured Mount Baker April 11 with Kootenay East MLA Bill Bennett, School District No. 5 (SD5) school board of trustees Mount Baker Replacement Committee Chair Chris Johns, SD5 acting superintendent Bendina Miller and school officials, including principal Jason Tichauer, all led by two students, Catherine Cameron and Danika Nicolajsen.
While McRae received an earful from Bennett and school district officials about the need for a new high school, he was also presented with glimpses of the school’s numerous successes; past, ongoing and recent.
McRae’s tour began with him meeting Grade 12 student Keltie Murdoch who recently finished second in the engineering division of the International Science Fair in Taiwan for her work on an air-to-air geothermal heat transfer system, currently being applied to one of her father’s buildings.
Next up, he met with the six members of the Good Ol’ Goats in the school’s music room, who performed a song for the tour guests – just a few hours before they discovered they finished second in Canada in CBC’s Talent Searchlight contest. While the young musicians signed a CD and presented McRae and Bennett with band t-shirts, the Education Minister remarked, “You are not there (top two) by accident.”
A teacher himself, McRae was clearly at home conversing with the high school students and staff.
“I see it through a different lens,” he said of the school, compared to many other elected officials, such as former Education Minister George Abbott who toured the school last year.
McRae connected with teacher Bill Walker and learned about his class’s Skills Canada project – a robot, with all parts machined and applied by the students.
“It doesn’t look like it but it’s a fairly expensive machine,” Walker said, pointing out the students have received a great deal of community support. McRae learned a teacher from his home school district (Comox Valley) played a key role in Mount Baker becoming involved in the project, which won the students a silver medal last year.
Along with Bennett periodically reminding McRae that a new school has been needed for many years, including him jokingly stating, “it’s falling down. I’m nervous; I want to get you out of here,” his tour guides pointed out the lack of a school cafeteria and obvious from the winding, up and down nature of the tour, they showcased the piecemeal nature of the 64-year-old school.
According to Mount Baker Replacement Committee Chair Johns, the replacement of the aging high school as a Neighbourhood Learning Centre (NLC) remains at the top of the agenda for the SD5 Board of Education and he pressed that home with the minister.
“Mount Baker was identified four years ago as being over capacity with deteriorating conditions, and SD5 therefore made it our number one replacement priority for the whole district. Frankly, we’ve done more work and more public consultation on this NLC initiative than any other district in the province, including those districts that’ve been approved. We have key partnerships with the city, Key City Theatre and our MLA Bill Bennett. We just need a commitment from government to go ahead,” Johns stated.
At the end of his tour, McRae stated the provincial government continues to view MBSS replacement as “a high priority. It’s such a great school and there are some great things happening here.”
SD5 superintendent Miller told the minister, “In spite of the building, we have world-class education here. We have nothing but vibrant teachers who care deeply about their kids.”
Johns said he discussed a number of other issues in his discussion with the minister, including trades training, technology, literacy, early childhood, rural education, and co-governance.
As always, funding was central to all of the discussions.
“It’s amazing what we can do. It’s just finding the capital,” McRae said.
SD5 board chair Frank Lento said he believes that short-sighted and inadequate education funding by government, such as relying on out-dated equipment and aging facilities, undermine the future prosperity of our communities.
“Our children’s education is a vital investment – the greatest raw resource our province has. It’s not the refining of coal, wood or natural gas that’s going to make this province strong. It’s the refining of our children’s talents and intellect that will get us back on track for the 21st Century –if we invest now.”
Concluding the tour with a photograph (below) with Mr. Diouff and his French Immersion class, McRae was told by Principal Tichauer, “You saw Baker as Baker.”
Min. McRae also toured Isabella Dicken Elementary School in Fernie on April 10.
Lead photo: Kootenay East MLA Bill Bennett, left, and Education Minister Don McRae, far right, with the members of the Good Ol’ Goats.
Ian Cobb/e-KNOW
