It wasn’t the first time this year that members of Quebec’s English education community have argued for opening up access to English schools.
But yesterday they did so in a more concerted, splashier way with officials from public and private schools, which normally compete for students, making a joint appeal to the Quebec government.
Respect the Supreme Court ruling on Bill 104 and help ensure the future viability of our schools, they said.
“We are here to send our government a clear message that we are united,” said Angela Mancini, chairperson of the English Montreal School Board. “Access to English schools is vital if we are to maintain a healthy school system and the government must ensure the long-term viability of our school system.
“Our fight is not about language but about community,” she said.
Mancini called Bill 104 a key factor in the board’s enrolment decline in recent years. In 2002 – the year Bill 104 was adopted – the EMSB had 27,000 students in its elementary and high schools. It now has 22,000.
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The Supreme Court struck down Bill 104 in October. An amendment to Bill 101, it closed a loophole that some students had used to gain the right to attend English schools. They did so by attending an unsubsidized English private school for a year. Many then switched to English public schools.
The Quebec government is expected to present its remedy in the National Assembly this week, but some English education officials want the province to consult with them first.
“Let us be part of the discussion,” said Debbie Horrocks, head of the Quebec English School Boards Association.
The government’s eventual solution must strike a balance between the protection and the promotion of the French language and the stability of the English public schools network in Quebec, Horrocks said.
Speakers at the event included four chairpersons of Montreal area English school boards, the president of a private schools association and Victor Goldbloom, a former commissioner of official languages.
“We’re looking for (Quebec) to abide by the Supreme Court judgment and come out with a ruling that allows our schools to get oxygen,” said Jonathan Goldbloom, a spokesperson for the Quebec Association of Independent Schools.
The association estimates that about 20 per cent of students in its elementary schools can’t continue in its high schools because of Bill 104. That’s because schools, such as Lower Canada College, receive government subsidies at the high school level so students need English eligibility certificates to attend.
The EMSB and the Lester B. Pearson School Board each estimate that they lose about 400 to 500 new registrations a year as a result of Bill l04. “We’re not saying scrap (Bill) 101,” said Pearson board chairperson Marcus Tabachnick. “We’re saying it may be time after 35 years of living under 101 … for some adjustment.”
Parents committees at the two boards launched online Bill 104 petitions this year. They had a total of about 11,800 signatures yesterday.
bbranswell@thegazette.canwest.com
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