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NEWS RELEASE

 

For Immediate Release

2002BCED0018-000777

Sept. 5, 2002

Ministry of Education

 

TASK FORCE INTRODUCED TO ENHANCE RURAL EDUCATION

 

LOGAN LAKE – A task force on rural education will recommend strategies to ensure students in rural and remote communities across B.C. have access to quality education, Education Minister Christy Clark announced today.

 

            “School boards serving rural and remote communities face unique challenges in providing quality education to students,” said Clark. “They are having to deal with declining enrolment, problems in recruiting and retaining teachers, and difficulties in transporting students to schools.”

 

            The funding allocation system introduced last spring already includes fixed supplements for school districts with rural and remote populations, including those serving small communities with widely dispersed schools, and low enrolment.

 

            The task force will recommend ways to improve B.C.’s education system by consulting with people living in rural and remote communities; identifying challenges faced by students, parents and school boards; and reviewing successful models of rural education in B.C. and elsewhere.

 

The task force will be chaired by Jim Imrich, a former superintendent of schools with extensive experience in rural education issues. A report of the task force’s findings and recommendations will be submitted to Clark by Jan. 15, 2003.

 

“Over the past 15 months, we’ve put in place a firm foundation for developing a quality education for all B.C. students, no matter where they live,” said Clark. “We have focused on improving achievement, increasing accountability of the system, enhancing choice for students and encouraging parental involvement.

 

“The B.C. government wants to ensure that this New Era in education also addresses the unique needs of students and parents living in rural and remote communities,” said Clark. “Rural communities play a vital role in our economy, and students in these communities have the potential to make an enormous contribution to our province.”

 

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The terms of reference for the task force on rural education are available at www.bced.gov.bc.ca .

 

Contact:

Darwin Sauer, Ministry of Education     250 356-5963

 

 

 

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