Over 90 per cent of staff have declared and over 90 per cent are fully vaccinated according to an update at the Prince Albert Catholic School Division board of education’s regular meeting on Monday.
Director of education Lorel Trumier credited the staff for the numbers, which were reported earlier in November.
“Our staff have been super supportive of moving forward with (everything),” Trumier said. “Whether it’s proof of vaccination or moving to a monitoring process, they have really done a great job understanding the elements that we are trying to put in place.”
According to a memo, as of Nov. 19, 95 per cent of staff have responded to the Declaration of Proof of Vaccination requirement.
Of that percentage of staff 98 per cent of respondents are fully vaccinated.
Staff were given until Thursday, Dec.2 as a deadline. Unvaccinated staff or staff that have indicated non-disclosure will begin using a monitoring of negative test and symptom monitoring effective Dec. 6.
“Again, its one of those times where I think our staff are doing what they need to do in our educational community to support the safety around them and the students that are in their schools,” she added.
A pair of local businesses are teaming up to collect food and donations for the Prince Albert SPCA.
Pet Planet Prince Albert and Mann Northway are teaming up to Pack the Pickup for the SPCA. Donations can be dropped off at Pet Planet Prince Albert, Mann Northway or at the Prince Albert Raider home game against the Regina Pats on Dec. 3.
“Anytime is a great time to have an event like this and do fundraising and look for donations,” Prince Albert SPCA manager Ashlee Bober said. “It has been a lot of planning and now is the time that we are able to make it work…. It worked nicely to have the event that fit the timeframe of the Raiders game here this Friday.”
Pet Plant Prince Albert owner Lee Penner said they want to support the community, and this fundraiser was a natural fit.
“The community has been really good to us during the pandemic and we naturally always deal with the SPCA and we have done that for seven years,” Penner said. “This year we are going a little bit bigger.”
“It is something we have done since we bought the store, so for seven years we have been working with the SPCA on a lot of things and it has been a very good partnership,” he added.
Mann-Northway and Pet Planet have been running promotions for a few weeks, and the support is already flowing in.
Pet Planet Prince Albert will be also providing 10 per cent off all donations and matching donations purchased in store, pound for pound.
During the Dec. 3 Raiders’ game, Pet Planet Prince Albert will be announcing a major donation and continued commitment to provide every dog and cat adopted from the Prince Albert SPCA their first bag of food for free.
The SPCA wish list of items includes cat food, dog toys, small animal supplies, and general supplies like paper towels. Bober said that there is currently a large need for cat food.
“A lot of the items that are on there are things that we require year round,” she explained. “Right now we are definitely finding that we have an influx of cats, so we are really looking for help right now with cat food and stuff like that. We tend to have such a high number of cats here in this building and we go through cat food and whatnot quite quickly.”
Cat food isn’t the SPCA’s only need, however. Penner emphasized there’s also a need for pet toys, as well as food. She said staff spend a lot of time with the animals, but toys are a big help when staff can’t be around.
“It is nice for them to have some sort of entertainment and enrichment while they are in there as well,” she explained.
Bober thanked everyone who either participated in or plans to help out with the fundraiser ahead of the game. She also thanked Mann Northway, Pet Planet, and the Raiders for putting the event together.
“We appreciate the support from our community and the local businesses that we have here,” she said. “We are so grateful to have everybody else helping us out.
“We really need the support from our community to be able to do what we do each and every day and to save the amount of lives we do,” she added. “Without the help of our community, we can’t do this.”
The Prince Albert Raiders play the Regina Pats with puck drop at 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre on Friday, Dec. 3.
A new business has been approved to begin operations in the former Thorpe Brothers building located north of Prince Albert.
The former site of the COVID-19 drive-thru clinic will now be home to a head office for Trio Ventures Ltd., a company with a diverse portfolio including helicopter operations, fuel sales, and food franchises, as well as the leasing and sales of aircraft and aircraft equipment and buildings.
The Rural Municipality (RM) of Buckland approved the company’s proposal after a discretionary use application hearing during a special council meeting on Friday afternoon.
The proposal was for Helicopter Repair, part warehouse and administrative offices.
Reeve Don Fyrk said the proposal is a sign that the north industrial area is growing.
“We have one group that is taking over Mary Nesbit (Campground and RV Park) or they are in the process of taking over,” Fyrk said. “Then we have got the propane company coming in—they bought the old Carrier Lumber and they are going to be setting up shop there—and now we have Trio coming in for helicopters. I think it is just fantastic.”
Buckland planner Jason Kaptein said before the meeting that the hearing was necessary because helicopter part and repair storage falls under repair shops and that requires a hearing.
After the hearing, the RM council approved the proposal unanimously.
President Patrick Campling gave a presentation outlining their plans for the building. Trio Ventures has operations in Prince Albert at Carlton Court Plaza and downtown, and Campling told the RM the company is growing so large they need to purchase the building and renovate the interior and exterior.
The holdings include food services such as Boston Pizza and military contracts, aircraft leasing, Great Slave Helicopters, building leasing and a fuel company.
Trio is named because the company has three primary investors. Their investments include 53 North, which sells aircrafts and parts. Trio says their current holdings in downtown Prince Albert are full.
The presentation was very thorough, and Fyrk said they appreciated the details from Campling, who is not a public figure by practice.
“He did a very good presentation and when you are spending that much money, man, you have got to be right on the ball,” Fyrk said.
The size and diversity of the company was also compelling to the council.
“I don’t want to venture a guess what they are spending out there,” Fyrk said. “But the thing is, they are so diversified in everything.”
The company likes Prince Albert and he described region as fair and easygoing, and they operate as such.
Trio plans to have people in the offices by March or April of 2022, with 15 to 20 people in the building the first year with more in the second year.
“It is going to be 50 to 70 jobs all located right here in the RM of Buckland and in the City of Prince Albert so it’s a good spin off,” Fyrk said.
Campling explained to council that the company is a large supporter of bringing business to Prince Albert and area and the large aviation related companies in the region. He outlined the overall plans for the large building, making it a head office for the companies and space for 53 North Air Sales and Leasing, while adding tenants to the building in the future.
He described the company’s goal as trying to find things that are fun. There are plans for a few helicopter ports but that will be in the future.
The presentation outlined how the company plans to work with the municipality
“(He said) Tell us what your regulations were and I can do it and they are ready to follow all of the government regulations like on their fuel tanks and fire control and all. It’s a win-win situation all the way around,” Fyrk said.
The presentation included a booklet with biographies of the people with the company, objectives, future plans, and satellite views of the site,
Also present were other representatives of the company including Chief Financial Officer Denis Blain, Controller Vicki MacPherson and shareholder and representative of 53 North Air Sales Brad Huculiak.
SGI reported nearly 900 distracted driver tickets handed out in the month of October during the organization’s monthly traffic spotlight.
Driving with a cell phone accounted for 756 of the province’s 896 October distracted driving tickets.
SGI Manager of Media Relations Tyler McMurchy said this was part of their monthly spotlights where they partner with law enforcement to bring attention to safe driving through social media.
“There a little bit of extra attention paid by law enforcement when it comes to that particular issue and so for the focus on October for the distracted driving focus you are going to see police run likely some enforcement initiatives specifically for distracted drivers,” McMurchy said.
“They didn’t have too much of a hard time finding them when you see that there were nearly 900 drivers taken in the month of October in the province of Saskatchewan,” he added.
Their release took on the theme of the day with a “Black Friday” theme and how a $580 ticket can ruin your plans for holiday shopping. McMurchy said they wanted to find a fun way to remind people to pay attention behind the wheel. The consequences of failing to do so, he added, are no joke.
“We have talked about the cost of it, but I think what we really need to focus on also is the human cost,” McMurchy said.
“The human cost of distracted driving is no joke. It is responsible for one out of every five collision related injuries that we see in this province and more than one out of every four deaths in Saskatchewan. That is real people getting hurt and real people getting killed. It’s a real problem, and we want to see those numbers go down. Awareness and enforcement is one way we are going to do that but really it ultimately comes down to people making those good decisions when they are behind the wheel.”
The cell phone distracted driving law has been on the books since 2010, but in 2017, the law was clarified to make the criteria clearer for police and drivers. Drivers are now prohibited from holding, viewing, using, or manipulating a cell phone while driving.
The penalties also increased in February of 2020 because it was so pervasive and police were having trouble catching offenders.
“Now a first offence will cost you $580 and that goes for both the cell phone law and the other distracted driving law which is driving without due care and attention,” McMurchy said.
Repeat offences get even more expensive; $1,400 for the second offence and $2,100 for the third and each subsequent ticket and include seven-day vehicle impoundments. Even more important than the ticket you might get for driving distracted is the crash you might cause.
“(It comes down to) understanding that that phone call can wait that text can wait, they can wait until they check out that latest video on Tik Tok or they can wait until they are safely pulled over and out of the driving lane before they go online and start looking for those great Black Friday deals on the shopping website of their choice,” McMurchy said.
McMurchy said that the campaigns have helped make people more aware and able to make educated choice behind the wheel.
“Most people are aware at this point that they shouldn’t be holding their cell phone in their hand and they wouldn’t do it if they knew a police officer was watching,” he said. “But the thing is, if you are focusing on your cell phone when you are driving you are not giving that act of driving the attention it deserves, and you are less likely to notice if a police officer is noticing you.”
He explained that the SGI has heard stories from police officers about being in clearly marked vehicles beside drivers engrossed in cell phones who don’t notice they have an officer beside them.
“They might be in an unmarked truck beside you looking for cell phone users while they are driving, and it’s not hard to find,” McMurchy said.
“When you’re driving, please leave the phone alone and give the road your full and undivided attention. Pull over to the side of the road if you need to answer a text or find a great online deal on a Nintendo Switch.”
Police also reported the following totals for October: 400 impaired driving offences (including 299 Criminal Code charges), 5,721 speeding and aggressive driving tickets and 311 tickets for seatbelt and car seat offences.
SGI has teamed up with Saskatchewan law enforcement and the Saskatchewan Safety Council in November to focus the Traffic Safety Spotlight on intersection safety and winter driving. Join the conversation on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for tips and advice on how to drive safely now that the snow has arrived.
The Saskatchewan School Boards Association (SSBA) hosted their Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Fall Assembly remotely last week.
Sask. Rivers board chair Barry Hollick and trustees reviewed the meeting notes during their own meeting on Monday. This year, the SSBA put their focus was on supporting parent engagement.
Trustees learned about the long-standing and emerging research that clearly shows when parents are engaged in their child’s learning, the child is more successful in school and beyond.
“There was some really engaging presentations and good information that encouraged the board to take a closer look at the kinds of things we can do in Sask Rivers to continue to support and grow our parent engagement,” director of education Robert Bratvold said.
Trustees will use the research and information on successful practices to support staff and School Community Councils (SCCs) in enhancing parent engagement according to a release from the division.
During the AGM, which took place Nov. 14 to 16, Sask Rivers trustee Jaimie Smith-Windsor was reaffirmed as vice president of the organization
Along similar lines during the course of the meeting, Saskatchewan Rivers Students for Change urban trustee Tia-Lee McCallum brought up the importance of student engagement to trustees.
“I see that as really a dual responsibility,” Bratvold said. “Certainly it is up to our board and our staff to do that, but the SRSC has a great opportunity to guide and inform and encourage the board to take actions that are going to be engaging for our students.
“I think there is some opportunities for both the board and the SRSC at focusing on what we can do to focus engagement,” he added. “(It’s) making sure students are connected to the learning, ask questions, can convey when they are concerned or interested or disinterested, and then have an opportunity to reconnect.”
One item that was approved after being discussed in closed session was the purchases of school buses from Western Canada Buses.
“Ordinarily it would be that we do school bus purchase a little bit later in the year but because we know there has been challenges with the supply chain we went to tender earlier than usual,” Bratvold said.
Plans are already well under way for vaccination clinics for the age 5 to 11 age group in the Prince Albert Catholic School Division after the province’s announcement on Monday.
According to director of education Lorel Trumier, the division is opening up their K to 8 schools as vaccination sites after consultation with local public health. The school vaccination sites would open on Sunday.
“We know that there are lots of families who would like to have their children vaccinated,” Trumier said. “For that reason, to ensure that public health has the opportunity and the support that they need to do that, we are offering that opportunity for public health to use our facilities.”
The first clinics will open in Ecole Holy Cross on Sunday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Trumier said no children would be vaccinated without parental consent.
School clinics will only be open to families with children attending that school.
“That gives them more intimacy, perhaps, or people that they were familiar with,” Trumier said. “Again, we are just offering the facilities in those communities so that it is easy for the families to make the decision.”
On Monday Nov. 29 from noon to 7:30 p.m. there is a clinic at Ecole St. Anne, on Wednesday, Dec. 1 from noon to 7:30 at St. Francis School and noon to 5:30 p.m. at St. Catherine School. Clinics begin again on Monday, Dec. 6 t St. John School from noon to 7:30 p.m. and on Tuesday, Dec. 7 from noon to 5:30 p.m. at St Michael School.
A parent or guardian must accompany any child from Kindergarten to Grade 4. Students Grade 5 or higher can attend on their own if they bring a signed consent form.
“We anticipate that the after-school time will probably be busy because that’s when parents are off from work,” Trumier said.
“No student would be given the vaccine without consent unless they are age appropriate for consent,” she added.
The division has distributed information from public health about the availability of clinics and the consent form as well as information about the Pfizer pediatric COVID-19 vaccine so parents can make their decisions accordingly.
A letter distributed to parents states that in order to meet demand for immunizations in a timely manner, Public Health nurses in Prince Albert will host clinics at many local schools, in addition to having public clinics where everyone can attend.
“School based clinics will only be for students/families that attend that particular school,” the letter reads. “We encourage families to take advantage of these clinics to allow others who do not have the school based clinics the opportunity to attend the public ones. School divisions will be sending out these dates.”
Trumier said many families in the division have been anticipating the arrival of these school vaccine clinics.
“We know that there are lots of decisions that families are making,” she explained. “That’s a good thing that they get informed. I think if families are in doubt they should be talking to their doctor or public health regarding any kind of questions they have regarding vaccines. We are not experts in those areas, public health is and our doctors are.”
A Saskatchewan Rivers School Division financial audit shows an operating deficit of nearly $500,000 for 2021, a significant decrease compared more than $1 million surplus from the year before.
Chief Financial Officer Jerrold Pidborochynski updated the division’s financial standing at Monday’s regular board meeting with a presentation on the audited financial statement for the fiscal year ending Aug. 31.
The auditor for the division is MNP and the audit is sent to the Ministry of Education for final approval. Numbers are included as part of the division’s Annual Report.
Each year the Board contracts an external auditor to review the financial management and records of the division.
Director of education Robert Bratvold explained that the board received the information and confirms it before it is made part of the Annual Report which is submitted to the Ministry in the next week. The Ministry then reviews the audited report before it is released to the public in the Annual Report in December.
“If you were to look at the financial statements and not know the pandemic was going you might be a little bit puzzled, I guess, how could you not be aware of this level of revenue that was coming of these additional expenses,” Bratvold said.
In his report Pidborochynski said that when the audit is reviewed by the Ministry of Education he expects some minor adjustments but nothing major.
During the closed session of the meeting, representatives from the auditing firm of MNP as well as representatives from the Office of the Provincial Auditor reported on the annual audit.
Because of COVID-19 pandemic funding allocations the division received around $5 million in extra funding.
The audited statements saw an operating deficit of $497,779 for 2021, which was a significant decrease from the surplus of $1,066,986.
Piborochynski explained during his presentation that there were more variations up and down in numbers throughout the report than would normally be seen because of COVID-19 funding.
Bratvold said the audited financials are a reassuring item as they confirm something monitored all year round.
“It is just that external third party auditor perspective that all of the financial controls are in place and we have good processes to monitor and track and record our expenses carefully. It’s just a nice reassuring feeling when the auditor because they have very positive things to say about Jerrold and our team,” Bratvold said.
Both the local auditor and the provincial auditor indicated that the Saskatchewan Rivers financial house is in good order. There was strong evidence of effective and appropriate financial management and accounting and MNP issued a “clean audit” for the division.
Bratvold himself finds that the audited financials to be a beneficial exercise each year.
“I guess part of it is I know where the expenses are going and I know what these different lines mean,” he explained. “I find it really engaging. That’s going to sound strange to a lot of people, but I find it is really engaging when we are going through the complete audited financials.”
Another aspect Bratvold appreciates is the details in the accounts.
Both auditors commended Pidborochynski, and the financial team for their careful work over the year and supportive work with the auditors during the audit process. Total revenues increased from $107,103,196 to $110,550,339. Total expenses increased from $1,06,986 in 2020 to $111,048,178 in 2021.
One aspect that did decrease because of the pandemic was school generated funds, which comes from things like school fundraisers.
The accumulated surplus at the end of the fiscal year is approximately $87 million which is a slight decrease from just over $88 million in 2020. The accumulated surplus has developed over the life of the school division.
The board is kept abreast of the situation with reports throughout the fiscal year.
“The board has a few questions here or there but the other thing is the board also monitors this on an ongoing basis. They get regular financial statements at the board table where they review them and ask questions,” Bratvold said.
Upstage Productions at Ecole St. Mary High School is back on stage with 12 Angry Jurors, a production adapted from the classic play 12 Angry Men.
The play was adapted by Sherman L. Sergel and is directed by Jason Van Otterloo. The first performance was held Wednesday evening.
Two featured actors are Grade 11 student Nevada Connoly and Grade 12 student Nick Dutchak who play Juror number 8 and Juror number 3, respectively. The plot is the same as 12 Angry Men, but instead features a jury of all genders.
“It’s about 12 jurors and we have to decide if this boy is guilty of killing his father. It’s a very intriguing and keeping you on the edge of your seat type show,” Dutchak said.
Connoly is a veteran of the stage, having appeared in a play with Broadway North and one Upstage production, as well as the production of Newsies, which was supposed to happen in 2020, but did not run due to COVID-19. She’s just happy to be back on stage.
“I think the only way to describe doing this show in particular is just it feels so good to be back,” she said. “I am so grateful to have such a wonderful tech and a wonderful cast and wonderful staff.”
“They have done a great job,” Dutchak added.
Michael Oleksyn/Daily Herald Nevada Connoly, who plays Juror number 8 in the Upstage Productions presentation of 12 Angry Jurors, is excited to return to the stage in the production.
Dutchak, meanwhile, is in his first production. He said auditioning for the lead role was a learning experience.
“I have really enjoyed it,” he said. “It’s been a challenge. Acting brings out a different side of me. It’s awesome being around a new group of people and stepping out of my comfort zone.”
“Nick’s acting abilities are very impressive,” Connoly said of her fellow performer.
Dutchak said that the play will give the audience something to think about. Connoly said it will give theatre-goers some interesting insight into human nature.
Michael Oleksyn/Daily Herald Nick Dutchak, who plays Juror number 3 in the Upstage Productions presentation of 12 Angry Jurors, has broadened his horizons by getting involved in the production.
“I think it is beautifully written play and I think all of the cast members present it very well,” she said. “It’s 12 people with very strong opinions and the vote does essentially have to be unanimous. So just having 12 people just all agree on one thing is very difficult.” Dutchak added that the audience can find themselves in each character.
“You would hopefully be able to find one person that is like someone you know,” he said. “It just helps you relate to the show and just keeps you intrigued and wanting more.”
Production in the COVID-19 pandemic has also been a challenge. Every performer wore masks during rehearsals, but they aren’t wearing them during live performances.
“It was very weird. We had to adapt to seeing people’s faces again, which is a little odd,” Connoly said before a dress rehearsal.
“It’s hard not to show a smirk when somebody makes a face because you are like, ‘oh man, I have never seen you before,’” Dutchak added.
Connoly added that having a mask covering the lower half of your face while you act makes it slightly more difficult.
Stage Manager and veteran backstage presence Grade 12 student Dori Miller said the production has been going well behind the scenes and she was proud of the entire tech crew.
“Everything you see on stage that is not actors is stuff that we have done backstage,” she explained. “The techs have worked very hard to build this beautiful set and they work hard every day to run the show here with sound, lights, everything you see.”
“We are in black, so we don’t get seen and we don’t get heard,” she added.
Miller explained that production for both actors and techs have been ongoing since October. The actual auditions also happened later in September than usual, according to Van Otterloo.
“It’s great to see it all come together,” Miller said.
Productions are in the Lecture Theatre at Ecole St. Mary High School with doors opening at 7 p.m. and the show starting at 7:30 p.m. with shows on Nov. 24, 25, 26 and 27. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students. All audience members will be required to wear masks and provide proof of vaccination for those ages 12 and over.
Both Connoly and Dutchak are hoping to see large crowds. The actors credit director Van Otterloo for all he does for the drama department at Ecole St. Mary High School.
“He has done a great job,” Dutchak said. “He takes time out of his day to help work with us. He has done a really great job and so have our techs. They have done an amazing job.”
“He is the backbone of Upstage Productions,” Connoly added. “(We’ve had) so much help from other people, but the show literally wouldn’t have happened without him. The one thing I really admire about him is he gives us so much freedom with our characters and our creativity.”
Plans are already well under way for vaccination clinics for the age 5 to 11 age group in the Saskatchewan Rivers School Division following the provinces announcement on Monday.
Although the announcement was made on Monday, Sask. Rivers Education Director Robert Bratvold said they needed to wait until Tuesday to hammer out the final details.
“We actually have some pretty good plans in place,” Bratvold said. “We have got vaccine clinics in all of our schools in Prince Albert, (and) we are working to get more clinics into our rural areas. Health just didn’t have the staff to do all of our schools, so we are still working on that.”
The clinics are voluntary and provided by the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA).
Parent consent is required for any child to receive the vaccine, and consent forms have been sent by the province to the division.
The SHA does not have enough staff to provide clinics in all schools, but the division is still working with them to have clinics in more locations. There are also public clinics listed on the SHA website for any student who does not attend a host school.
“We had the older student vaccine (for those ages 12-17) available in the spring,” Bratvold explained. “We had that in all of our schools that had that age group of kids in it and so it was a little bit more consistent. Back then, health had access to a larger labour pool, so there are some limitations.”
The clinics in Sask. Rivers schools will not begin until next week, but parents at host schools will be receiving information ahead of them over the coming week. Clinics will begin on Nov. 29 and continue on subsequent days. Parents will receive information depending on when clinics begin.
“We will be getting some information a week in advance,” Bratvold explained. “It has that consent form that is required, and time and schedules. Most of our schools have vaccine clinics in the afternoon and then extending into the evening.”
The schedules are made to accommodate parent schedules.
A letter to parents from the SHA states that the SHA is working with school divisions to arrange for the administration of a pediatric dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine starting in late November. Students born in 2009 or earlier will still be eligible.
“The delivery plan will also include participating pharmacies and SHA clinics,” the letter reads. “Providing immunization to students is consistent with new national recommendations and authorization by Health Canada. The COVID-19 vaccine is voluntary.
“Children are at lower risk of serious illness or death from COVID-19. However, to minimize the spread of COVID-19 it is important to immunize as many eligible children safely and as quickly as possible.”
Any student Grade 4 or younger is required to have a parent or guardian present during the vaccination. Students in Grade 5 and 6 just require the consent form.
Province to introduce legislation to keep protesters away from schools
The Government of Saskatchewan is also introducing legislation to protect teachers, staff and students while accessing schools. This will ensure families can access a school without harassment while vaccines are rolled out for kids 5-11.
“Similar to the protections provided for patients, staff, and families accessing our hospitals, it is important that our children, parents, teachers and staff are able to access schools in the province without fear of interference or intimidation,” Education Minister Dustin Duncan said in a release
“In particular it is important to ensure our children do not feel scared or threatened.”
A 50-metre safe access zone will prevent sidewalk protests or interference near schools that could potentially cause obstructions, delays or harassment for people entering and leaving school properties. There is also regulation-making authority to extend zones up to 150-metre zones.
Lawful labour picketing will still be allowed within the safe access zones. Like hospital safe access zones, the safe zone provisions for schools will also automatically expire two years from the coming into force dates.
Bratvold explained that he did not have background on the province’s decision.
“This is not something that was a topic of discussion with school divisions as far as I am aware of,” he said.
Saskatchewan Rivers School Division education director Robert Bratvold said the province’s letter about unvaccinated students participating in extracurricular events caused some confusion for school officials, but some of those problems were ironed out in a recent meeting.
Education Minister Dustin Duncan released a letter to school board chairs on Nov. 17 stating that both curricular and extra-curricular school operations are not considered subject of proof of vaccination/negative test requirements including sports and arts. It also considered education an essential service.
“It was a surprising letter to receive,” Bratvold said on Tuesday. “It was unexpected. It caused quite a bit of confusion and some concern within not just our division but across the province too.”
Bratvold said it created some uncertainty for schools in Shellbrook and Canwood, who co-hosted the SHSAA 3A Girls Provincial Volleyball tournament on Nov. 19-20. However, tournament organizers were able to host a safe event within Public Health Order guidelines.
“The order didn’t directly impact or force any change in the plans,” Bratvold explained. “We had to take a careful look at them, but there were not any changes so that was fortunate.”
Duncan’s letter said that some students who are age-eligible and not vaccinated were being prohibited from school sanctioned events. He stated that all students should remain eligible unless they are not under isolation as a result of being a close contact or COVID-19 positive. “It was, I thought, unfortunate that the letter conveyed some things that might cause confusion generally,” Bratvold said. “We are still seeking some clarity around that.”
The government did further discuss the letter with directors of education and board chairs at a COVID response meeting the day the letter came out. These meetings have been common place since the pandemic started, and Bratvold said it was a good opportunity to discuss the letter’s intent and implications with deputy minister Donna Johnson.
“They had a good conversation with directors and board chairs and laid out lots of the concerns and questions we had,” Bratvold said. “She was able to respond to several of them and also commit to seeking more clarity about some of the other questions that needed further investigation.”
The letter stated that Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Saqib Shahab supported the approach and Shahab himself confirmed it later in the week.
Saskatchewan School Boards Association president Shawn Davidson said Duncan’s letter sowed confusion among the province’s 27 divisions, since none of them have any policy limiting what a student can do if they’re not vaccinated or don’t provide proof of a negative test.
“Confusion is a fair term as far as what it has created,” Davidson said.
The letter was carbon copied to all directors of education along with the board chairs so Bratvold was in a position to respond.
“I appreciate that practice where the letter goes to the elected officials like the chair and the boards but is also copied on to the COs and directors so that if there is implications for operations, which there were, we can address those as soon as we can,” Bratvold said.
-With files from Zak Vescera Saskatoon StarPhoenix
