Investing in youth is investment in our future

Lagimodière

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/03/2024 (935 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As an educator, I will always cherish opportunities to be a part of someone’s learning journey. February presented many such occasions through Black History Month, I Love to Read Month, Louis Riel Day, and Festival du Voyageur. Whether it’s flipping pancakes at my former high school, Collège Beliveau, reading with students or celebrating community achievements at the Legislative Building, I’m always thrilled to learn alongside community members in Lagimodière and work together towards our common goals.

Every February, students across Canada celebrate the joy of reading and the transformative power of books. I Love to Read Month helps everyone see that learning is a fun and life-long journey. Reading award-winning books like Vashti Harrison’s Big and Jessie Sima’s Not Quite Narwhal alongside such engaged and enthusiastic students reaffirmed my hope for the future of our province.

Both books showed our kids that diversity is our collective strength and that we all have unique gifts. We deserve joy, care and the right to take up space. The thoughtful questions and insightful comments from every corner of the room helped me see that these values resonate with students in every classroom I visited.

Your NDP government has taken meaningful steps to ensure young people find success, both inside and outside the classroom. We’ve invested in schools across the province with increased funding for school divisions, including ours. Louis Riel School Division received a 4.7 per cent increase in operational funding, among the highest increases for school divisions in Winnipeg. That’s only the beginning.

We’ve made strategic investments to reduce class sizes from kindergarten to Grade 4, which will increase access to individualized support for every student. We also know hungry students are in no position to learn and succeed. That’s why earlier this year we created a universally accessible nutrition program for K-12 schools so that everyone can unlock their potential.

The overlap of I Love to Read and Black History Month creates an incredible opportunity to celebrate authors, artists and leaders from the Black community. It was an honour to join alongside youth, community leaders, and my colleagues to celebrate the remarkable contributions that Black Manitobans have had on the history of our province.

Education is a dynamic and lifelong experience. Having a sense of belonging in the spaces we find ourselves is foundational to success. I hope to continue to help build that sense of belonging for residents of Lagimodière and all Manitobans across the province.

As always, if you have a question or want to connect on any issue, you can reach my office at 204-583-7423 or by emailing tyler.blashko@yourmanitoba.ca