People for Education explore convergence of public education and truth and reconciliation

A national charity is putting Manitoba’s school system under the microscope as it develops a plan to protect and bolster publicly funded classrooms across Canada.

Fort Richmond elementary school shedding racist lord’s name

Dalhousie School is undergoing a rebrand so it’s no longer affiliated with a Scottish soldier, lord and colonial leader who supported slavery.

The Pembina Trails School Division put a out a call this week for suggestions to rename the elementary building located at 262 Dalhousie Dr.

Its current namesake is George Ramsay, also known as Lord Dalhousie or the ninth Earl of Dalhousie — a title of nobility passed down in his prominent Scottish clan.

“Our whole slogan is, ‘Our differences make us strong,’” said Evi Klostermaier, acting principal of the kindergarten-to-Grade 5 school in Fort Richmond.

Sandhu siblings two of four Manitobans heading to Pan Am Youth Championships

It’s become evident that Khushreet and Laganjot Sandhu hit the bullseye when choosing which sport they would dedicate themselves to for the foreseeable future.

The Winnipeg siblings haven’t been in Archery very long — Khushreet started three years ago, Laganjot two — but there’s a consensus that they are both on a rocket ship trajectory up the local, national, and possibly global ranks.

“I just kind of got into the rhythm, and I really fell in love with it,” said 12-year-old Laganjot, who was drawn to a bow and arrow shortly after watching his sister. “But also on the competitive side, I really wanted to get better than my sister at it.”

It doesn’t matter if it’s their studies or in sports, the siblings are as competitive as it gets, and it’s fostered some tremendous individual success.

Kinew says watchdog could enforce proposed social media ban

Premier Wab Kinew floated the possibility of using a regulator or commissioner to enforce his proposed ban on social media and artificial intelligence chatbot use for kids.

Students compete to be ‘Reality Champion’

Middle school competitors deferred to their digital magnifying glass as they tried to determine whether King Charles was, in fact, pictured with a greasy plate of pepperoni pizza last month.

Mass cybersecurity breach of learning platform hits Canadian post-secondary schools

Multiple post-secondary institutions across Canada say they've been impacted by a cyberattack targeting an education system used by thousands of schools globally.

Technology company Instructure said it launched an investigation on April 29 after detecting "unauthorized activity" in Canvas, a learning platform for schools that manages student coursework, grades and other education materials.

Information affected by the attack may include names, emails and messages exchanged within the platform, but there's no evidence that passwords, financial information or government identifiers have been compromised, the company said.

Instructure said Canvas went off-line temporarily but is now available to use, and an investigation into the breach is ongoing with a third-party forensic firm and law enforcement.

U of M fundraising $30K for dedicated breastfeeding space

The University of Manitoba is fundraising $30,000 for a lactation pod in an effort to address gaps in academia which have led to a “leaky pipeline.”

Manitoba Construction Career Expo draws students from across province with goal of ‘AI-resilient’ career options

More than 1,200 students from across Manitoba hammered nails, operated miniature machinery and even tried their hand at masonry at a hands-on career fair organizers called a pitch for the “AI-resilient” jobs of the future.

The Manitoba Construction Career Expo has been organized by the Winnipeg Construction Association for more than 15 years. As Canada’s career landscape has changed for youth, there’s been an increasing interest in logging out of the virtual world and finding a more tactile profession, said Darryl Harrison, the association’s director of stakeholder engagement and advocacy.

“There’s a lot of opportunities in construction, whether you pursue an apprenticeship or take another path toward the industry, but it generally leads to well-paying jobs and it leads to a career that we’re now calling AI-resilient,” Harrison said at the event at Red River Exhibition Place on Wednesday.

“There’s a lot of careers where it’s questionable what the impact of AI will be, and we will always need hands-on work sites to build the buildings that we need.”

Parents irked after school ditches Mother’s Day

Winnipeg families are decrying an elementary school’s decision to rebrand an annual tradition — making macaroni necklaces and other crafts for Mother’s Day — in the name of inclusion.

Grade 1 and 2 teachers at Sage Creek School informed parents this week that their children will bring home “family gifts” later this spring.

Instead of making items specifically for Mother’s Day or Father’s Day, student-made creations will be distributed on May 15, the International Day of Families.

“Where is the line? What is next? At what point are you being more exclusive than inclusive?” said Ashley Dolphin, a mother of two, including a Grade 1 student at the kindergarten-to-Grade 8 school.

Inclusive, integrated musical theatre company in Winnipeg first of its kind in Canada

With its first public performance — a revue of numbers from family favourites such as Toy Story and Frozen — a new performing arts organization in Winnipeg is aiming at a more accessible, accepting and diverse vision of musical theatre production.

Co-founded by theatre educators Brenda Gorlick, Lois Brothers and Laura Kolisnyk, AIM 4 All brings together performers with and without disabilities to train, practise and perform in full-scale musical productions: AIM stands for “all-inclusive musicals.”

This weekend, 28 Manitobans will take the stage in five stagings of Disney’s Dare to Dream Jr. at the University of Winnipeg’s Asper Centre for Theatre.

With plenty of supportive family and community members excited to see the result of months of preparation, the organizers are pleased to say each show is sold out.

Introducing students to the wonderful world of volunteering

Jasmin Knight has built her career around giving back to the community.

Fuelled by her own history of helping, the student concierge at Heartland International English School began organizing volunteer placements for mature students on a casual basis.

The positive feedback from students, many of whom have never volunteered before, led to the creation of the school’s Volunteer + Study program, which launched last year.

Now Knight, 31, says she can offer students a more formal method of applying for volunteer positions in the city.

Study probes experiences of Indigenous grads

Brandon Murdock recalled thinking in 2020 that, despite his struggling academic performance, he had “a solid case” to remain enrolled at the University of Winnipeg.

Murdock was mistaken — it didn’t matter that he’d missed a voluntary course withdrawal date because he’d been overwhelmed with grief amid a wave of COVID-19-related deaths in Fisher River Cree Nation, the 31-year-old said.

There was little slack for a student who had already been suspended once before. His arts degree program, which he began in 2012, was initially put on hold in 2015 because his attendance, grades and motivation suffered during a family health crisis.

Murdock shared those challenges, among others he’s faced as a first-generation university student who grew up in foster care, as part of a recent study about the experiences of Indigenous and racialized Grade 12 graduates in Winnipeg.

RRC Polytech reduces program offerings, lays off 26 staff

RRC Polytech has announced it will let go 26 employees as it prepares to end some programs and suspend others.

The post-secondary institution blamed the reduction in international student enrolment and reduced English language-training funding as a result of federal changes to immigration policy.

“These changes, along with shifting domestic enrolment trends in some programs and increased program delivery costs, have had direct impacts on operations and financial stability at RRC Polytech,” said a news release issued Thursday.

“These impacts have both immediate and long-term financial implications that we must responsibly address.”

Manitoba education minister says social media ban could start in schools

WINNIPEG - Manitoba could turn to classrooms as the first place to ban children from using social media and artificial intelligence chatbots, and one young advocate is urging the province to work with those it's aiming to protect.

Tracy Schmidt, the province's education minister, says Manitobans can expect to see the ban's first phase rolled out in schools, likening it to when the government first banned cellphones in classrooms in 2024.

"This is very early days. A step like this is going to certainly take legislative and regulatory processes," Schmidt said at an unrelated event Monday.

"But I know that something we're talking about right away is how we can roll this out in schools as soon as possible."

Teacher spots in demand after certification changes

Universities are being flooded with applications from aspiring teachers now that it’s easier to become certified in Manitoba.

Following years of struggle to fill available seats, faculties of education are scaling up after-degree programs this fall to meet newfound demand.

The University of Manitoba is adding 105 undergraduate seats in September, with a specific focus on graduating more kindergarten-to-Grade 8 teachers.

“We need to get more fully trained teachers out in the field to address the provincial needs. We can’t have classrooms without teachers,” education dean Jan Stewart said.

Advocates praise move to ban social media use among youths

Child advocates are praising the Manitoba government for announcing its intention to ban the use of social media and artificial intelligence chatbots for youths.

Premier Wab Kinew told a crowd at a party event Saturday night the NDP government will move to restrict children from using social media accounts and artificial intelligence chatbots. The proposal is intended to protect kids from technology platforms that he says hurt their development.

Details on the plan are scant, like the age limit he is considering or how a ban would be enforced. He did not speak to reporters after his speech and was not available for comment Sunday.

Kinew’s director of communications, Amy Tuckett-McGimpsey, said the premier will likely speak more about the idea in the coming days.

Schools honouring my father will help make Canada a more inclusive place

This fall, SCI – now École Selkirk Junior High – will be renamed École Murray Sinclair Middle School in honour of my father’s accomplishments. I can only imagine how many people Dad has told in the spirit world.

Brainstorming session proposes solutions to alarming rate of student absenteeism

Dante Taylor spent much of his early high school career ditching class — a routine occurrence outside of football season — to hang out at trap houses in Winnipeg.

“For so long, I just didn’t care,” the 16-year-old told an auditorium packed with 200 people, many of them principals and superintendents, at a summit on student absenteeism.

“It wasn’t something that seemed to be important to me because it didn’t seem to be important to anybody that I was around.”

Dante said his perspective changed recently, after meeting with a guidance counsellor, doing extensive self-reflection and enrolling in a physics course that he finds equally fascinating and challenging.