By Charlene Tebbutt

Questions raised over firings at Muskoday school

Jan 4, 2019 | 4:13 PM

Parents on the Muskoday First Nation are asking questions after several teachers were let go from the local school and the principal tendered his resignation.

Five staff members, including teachers, technical support staff and education assistants were fired from the Muskoday First Nation Community School (MFNCS) in early December. The principal, Andrew Debray, has also resigned.

Parents in Muskoday have raised concerns over the firings, with some taking their children out of school for days at a time. Lalita Whitedeer booked the local community hall just days before Christmas to discuss the issue, but said only a small amount of people turned up.

Whitedeer has raised concerns in the past about bullying in Muskoday and said many local kids looked to their teachers for guidance and support. She said students and parents in Muskoday deserve to know what’s going on.

Whitedeer has two children at the school and her daughter also works there as a teacher’s aid.

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“They’re all sitting in their classrooms thinking their teachers aren’t there for them anymore, they’re just gone,” Whitedeer told paNOW. “It’s affected our school in such a bad way … nobody’s happy.”

Neither Muskoday First Nation Chief Austin Bear, nor Councillor Delbert Bear, who handles the education portfolio, responded to repeated requests by paNOW for comment. Job postings for five positions were posted before Christmas. Some of those who lost their jobs spoke to paNOW on the condition of anonymity and said they have appealed the firings to the band administration, which handles education matters, and are considering legal action.

Parent Russel Leboeuf has a child currently attending school in Muskoday and his mother is also one of the teachers who was let go last month. Leboeuf collected statements from several people in the community, including teachers, parents and students, and presented them to local band councillors. The statements detailed concerns from others around the community, which he said were also raised by teachers at the school.   

Leboeuf also took his seven-year-old son out of school for two weeks in December and has an older son who attended Muskoday before moving on to high school at the start of the school year.

“I’d like to see the teachers re-instated,” Leboeuf told paNOW. “They simply raised concerns on behalf of the students … all those teachers were let go right before Christmas with no severance and no notice, it just seems heartless to me.”

Muskoday First Nation is part of the Saskatoon Tribal Council.

Debray declined to comment on the matter. In a letter sent to local students, staff and parents, and also shared with paNOW, Debray wrote that the five staff members “were relieved of their duties for ‘Just Cause.’” Debray said in the letter that he was resigning his position as principal.

The position of principal has also been posted online.

“I have chosen to resign from my position in an effort to minimize further collateral damage at MFNCS,” Debray said in the letter. “We have not experienced any major concerns during this transition. We expect to have all positions filled very shortly after our Christmas break.”

Students head back to school in Muskoday on Monday.

Charlene.tebbutt@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @CharleneTebbutt