Loss of local voice, potential school closures worry rural residents opposed to Manitoba's Bill 64

Opposition continues to mount over Manitoba's education reform bill — including concerns from rural Manitobans worried their communities could lose their local voice, or even their schools.

"[The provincial government is] saying their intent isn't to close schools, but it's really pointing toward 'we can bus them farther and longer,'" said Sarah Van Den Bosch, who has two kids in school in Swan Lake, a town about 70 kilometres southwest of Portage la Prairie. 

Further south, in Winker, Mayor Martin Harder says you don't have to go far to see opposition to Bill 64 in his city.

"If I drive around the city and I look at the number of signs out there to stop bill 64 ... there is huge uptake from the city saying, 'this is enough,'" he said. 

Winkler is one of seven municipalities in the province to date to pass resolutions asking the province to revisit the controversial bill.

According to the Manitoba School Boards Association, the municipalities of Taché, Grahamdale, Fisher, Ellice-Archie, Stuartburn, Victoria Beach, Deloraine-Winchester and Louise have all passed similar resolutions.

Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, which represents more than two dozen northern First Nations, has also said the bill should be scrapped.

Province promises better outcomes

Bill 64 would see locally elected school boards dissolved in favour of a central education authority, among other reforms to the K-12 education system in Manitoba. 

While the bill would centralize much of the decision making with the provincial authority, Manitoba's education minister has previously said parents will have greater input in how their local schools operate. Each school will have a community council made up of parents of students.

The Progressive Conservative provincial government has also said the bill is intended to improve student scores and shift more resources to the classroom.

But Harder and Van Den Bosch aren't convinced.

"The education system maybe needs some work but this isn't the way to do it," said Van Den Bosch. "There are a lot of parents that feel like they can't speak up because it is almost like a political issue."

Bill Tiessen is the chair of Rural Voices United, a grassroots group that has formed in an effort to fight the legislation.

"We feel it's basically setting the stage for potential amalgamation of schools — more of a regional school system, potentially to close our own rural schools," said Tiessen, who lives in Crystal City, in southwestern Manitoba.

Tiessen wants his group, which formed about a month ago, to meet with as many local municipalities as possible in the coming months. He said local families are concerned not only about the potential of school closures, but also about the loss of local control. 

"We have a direct method of accountability and control through the trustees, through the school board, to the superintendent and … the movers and shakers that can actually make make decisions," he said.

Winkler mayor not convinced

Harder wants to see more consultation on the proposed legislation, and maybe even a total rewrite of Bill 64, before anything becomes law.

While the government has said communities will have local advisory groups reporting to the province, he isn't convinced the bill will result in effective representation.

"The fact that you are removing elected officials from that responsibility and giving it to appointed people is really the biggest issue," said Harder. 

Education Minister Cliff Cullen has previously suggested changes could be made to the bill over the summer. It's expected to be given second reading in the legislature this fall.

It will then be subject to committee hearings. By the end of June, nearly 500 people had already registered to speak at those hearings this — the largest number of registrations for committee hearings on record, according to Legislative Assembly of Manitoba staff.