School District 27
School District 27’s head office is in Williams Lake, but the district operates 23 schools in a number of communities throughout the region, serving approximately 4500 students. The driving distances between these communities are larger than in any other district, creating geographic obstacles to the delivery of educational services. Additionally, the smallest school in the district serves fewer than 20 students and the largest just less than 1500. Rapidly shifting rural demographics combined with the significant distances between schools are forcing the school district to adapt delivery methods of education. Further adding to the diversity of communities served, the School District covers the traditional territories of the Shuswap, Chilcotin and Carrier Nations. To better serve the First Nations community, the School Board has formed a partnership with First Nations representatives to improve education for First Nations students and address issues of special concern, such as language preservation. Issues of diversity and racism which affect the community at large are a particular problem for schools, where children are often on the front line of social issues. The School District faces both the challenge and opportunity of shaping the next generation of Cariboo-Chilcotin residents who must adapt to the rapidly shifting social, economic and environment setting.
Last year, a group working with the School District prepared a white paper on the motivations of students deviating from traditional schooling and participating in an alternate schooling program run by the District. They found that enrollment in the program was steady despite an overall decline in student enrollment in the District, suggesting an enduring popularity to the program and possible program changes that may be required in the future. They were limited in their methodology by ethical considerations around interviewing students. This year, the School District would like to see further exploration of this topic area, bolstered by more interaction with students of the program themselves. However, there is a wide range of issues facing the school district and a number of programs they have put in place to deal with those issues, and therefore a number of different avenues of collaboration that can be explored.
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