Education Minister Thomas Lukaszuk will introduce new legislation next week designed to address the Morinville school issue.
Lukaszuk confirmed the three school boards involved — Greater St. Albert Catholic, St. Albert Protestant and Sturgeon — have worked out a resolution on the issue over how to provide a secular education in Morinville.
“The three school boards have arrived at a decision, contrary to what other skeptics thought they would. They have arrived at a decision,” he said at the legislature on Thursday.
Lukaszuk declined to reveal what the legislation entails, but said it would resolve the issues of school choice, access to adequate facilities and voting rights for parents.
He said the solution had the backing of all three boards, but would require changes to provincial legislation.
“They found a solution that will address all three issues, but in order to implement that solution, legislation has to be introduced.”
Lukaszuk said he has always wanted the solution to come from the school boards, rather than force him to impose a solution on them and he gave the school boards full credit for achieving that.
“I was always very clear that the best decisions are made at a local level,” he said. “It is a joint effort, as a matter of fact kudos really go to those three school boards because they are the ones that hammered out a deal that was very difficult to do.”
He said he doesn't anticipate the legislative fix will be controversial and he expects quick passage.
Donna Hunter, a former Morinville resident who left the community because of the issue, said she is eager to see what the solution will be.
“That is everything that we have heard before, I guess it is all in the details.”
Hunter said she is relieved to see the decision being made, but she will want to know more about what will happen with the current Morinville elementary school and how the voting rights will work.
She said she is hopeful town residents will have access to secular education from kindergarten all the way to Grade 12.
“There are lots of questions here so I will be anxious to see.”
Hunter said with Morinville elementary and other schools in the community hosting open houses next week, she hopes parents who might be interested in signing up with the school will know its long-term future.
