News release

Minister Accepts Key Recommendations of Mi'kmaq Services Review

Education (July 1999 - March 2013)

The Department of Education is moving to expand services and close the educational gap for the province's Mi'kmaw and Aboriginal students.

Education Minister Karen Casey today, Feb. 28, accepted the key recommendations of a review of the departments's Mi'kmaq Services Division that urged the department to improve the services it provides Mi'kmaw and other Aboriginal students.

"I believe the department's Mi'kmaq Services Division has been instrumental in improving service to the Mi'kmaw community over the past decade, but I also recognize that the department needs to continue to respond to the changing needs of the community," said the minister.

"It is clear to me that we need to improve the level of service we provide Mi'kmaw and other Aboriginal students."

The department will establish a Mi'kmaq Liaison Office to replace the Mi'kmaq Services Division. It will have a stronger voice at the department's senior management table, increased staffing and improved support services to fulfill an expanded mandate.

The office's responsibilities will expand beyond supporting Mi'kmaw and other Aboriginal students in public schools, to include post-secondary education and skills training. The new office will play a key role in identifying the educational gaps that currently exist for students and develop programs to address those needs.

The minister's response also calls for the development of a provincewide Mi'kmaw Student Support Worker Network and holds the opportunity for more direct community involvement in the development of language curriculum.

The review, which concluded in October, recommended improvements in five key areas, including communications, structure, policy, service delivery and curriculum.

Daniel Paul, chair of the Council on Mi'kmaq Education, said he is pleased with the minister's response. The council advises the minister on issues related to education.

"It is a very positive move," he said. "The Mi'kmaw community will now have a stronger role in the educational decision-making process for our students."

The review, led by consultant Theresa Meuse, involved a series of consultations with representatives from Nova Scotia's 13 First Nations bands, and input from the Native Council of Nova Scotia, the Council on Mi'kmaq Education and the Mi'kmaq Native Friendship Centre.

The minister's response to the review, Increasing the Effectiveness of Service Delivery to Mi'kmaw Learners, can be viewed at www.ednet.ns.ca .